Prolific Technology and Princeton Technology Corporation (PTC) are both scheduled to commence volume production of GPS solutions in 2007, following the presence of leading IC design houses like MediaTek and MStar Semiconductor in the GPS market, according to industry sources.
MediaTek company officials indicated that shipments of GPS solutions have already started and sources indicated that both of the company's GPS baseband and radio frequency (RF) ICs went into volume production for ODM vendors in the third quarter.
Considering the relatively high margins that GPS-supported handsets and automotive-use LCD TVs could bring, the sources further noted that MediaTek is focusing its GPS solutions on these applications instead of pure GPS devices.
There has been speculation about the progress of MStar's GPS solutions. The sources indicated that the IC design house has also started volume production of GPS solutions and it is also paying more focus on the GPS-supported automotive-LCD TV market.
Prolific and PTC, both of which started developing GPS solutions for over a year, are expected to soon start volume production of their respective solutions in 2007. Although there has been no official confirmation of the deployment of their GPS solutions, the share price of the two companies has risen by over 30% over the past month due to the speculations.
Industry players are generally positive about the GPS market not only due to its extending penetration but also the market share gain that Taiwan-based makers could grab. An average GPS chip is quoted at US$7-8 whereas Taiwan IC design houses are quoting at below US$5 level, which should help encourage sales.
Article translated by Esther Lam and edited by Eric Mah
