We are the world's largest semiconductor chip maker, supplying advanced technology
solutions for the computing and communications industries. Our goal is to be the
preeminent building block supplier to the worldwide Internet economy. Our products
include chips, boards and other semiconductor components that are the building
blocks integral to computers, servers, and networking and communications products.
We offer products at various levels of integration, allowing our customers flexibility
to create advanced computing and communications systems and products.
Intel's component-level products consist of integrated circuits used to process
information. Our integrated circuits are silicon chips, known as semiconductors,
etched with interconnected electronic switches. Developments in semiconductor
design and manufacturing have made it possible to decrease the size of circuits
and transistors etched into silicon, utilizing less space as a result. This
decrease in size enables us to put increased numbers of transistors on an equivalent
size chip, decrease the size of the chip or offer an increased number of integrated
features, which can result in microprocessors that are faster or incorporate
additional features, products that consume less power and/or products that cost
less to manufacture.
Our major products include microprocessors; chipsets; boards; wired Ethernet
and wireless connectivity products; communications infrastructure components
such as network and embedded processors and optical components; microcontrollers;
flash memory; application and cellular processors used in cellular handsets
and handheld computing devices; and cellular baseband chipsets.
Our major customers are:
' original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and original design manufacturers
(ODMs) who make computer systems, cellular handsets and handheld computing devices,
and telecommunications and networking communications equipment;
' PC and network communications products users (including individuals, large
and small businesses, and service providers) who buy PC components and board-level
products, as well as Intel's networking and communications products, through
distributor, reseller, retail and OEM channels throughout the world; and
' other manufacturers, including makers of a wide range of industrial and communications
equipment.
Our primary focus is on developing advanced integrated silicon technology solutions,
which we believe will provide the performance and technology features necessary
to help accelerate the convergence of computing and communications capabilities.
Convergence refers to having computing and communications capabilities in an
integrated product solution. We also provide key components for networking and
communications infrastructures used to connect technology users. We believe
users of computing and communications devices want not only higher performance
but also other capabilities such as multithreaded or multitasking capability,
seamless networking connectivity, improved security, reliability, ease of use
and interoperability among devices. It is our goal to incorporate features addressing
these capabilities in our various products to meet user demands.
Each of our operating segments uses its core competencies in the design and
manufacture of integrated circuits, as well as key silicon and platform capabilities,
to provide building blocks for technology solutions. The Intel Architecture
business provides the advanced technologies to support the desktop, mobile and
enterprise computing platforms.
Competitive product offerings continue to increase in the market segments where
we have product offerings. Our desktop processors compete with products offered
by AMD, IBM and VIA, among others. Our mobile microprocessor products compete
with products offered by AMD, IBM, Transmeta Corporation and VIA, among others.
Our server processors compete with software-compatible products offered by AMD
and with established products based on rival architectures, including those
offered by Hewlett-Packard Company, IBM and Sun Microsystems, Inc. Our chipsets
compete in the various market segments against different types of chipsets that
support either our microprocessor products or rival microprocessor products.
Competing chipsets are produced by companies such as ATI Technologies, Inc.,
Broadcom, NVIDIA, Silicon Integrated Systems Corporation (SIS) and VIA. We also
compete with companies offering graphics components and other special-purpose
products used in the desktop, mobile and server market segments. One aspect
of our business model is to incorporate higher performance and advanced features
into the microprocessor and chipset, the demand for which may increasingly be
affected by competition from companies (such as NVIDIA and ATI) whose business
models are based on incorporating performance and advanced features into chipsets
and other components (such as graphics controllers).