Intel's x86 cash cow isn't going anyway, which allows it to continue to invest in mobile. It can continue to loose billions at the expense of gaining market share. It has cutting edge manufacturing, plus that allows it to keep the foundry margins. Intel can give away the modem to Apple to screw QCOM revenue (or margin if they don't switch). The biggest threat to Intel was the break up of the Wintel monopoly, but the "x86 power disadvantage to ARM" myth, is well just a myth. Microsoft realized that and went with Intel for the Surface3. It doesn't look like a rosy picture for the ARM ecosystem on Windows. QCOM had a great run as there was little significant competition. The folks who think that it will be business as per usual are kidding themselves. The issue isn't the 810 screw up, it can't be solve by 810+ or 9xx. The competition got ready to fight, and market forces didn't like the QCOM monopoly. Given that, QCOM shareholders can't expect the same business returns going forward.
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It's the silver lining of what's been going on with the Samsung situation. I think it's a good wake-up call.
A wake up call indeed, implications : QC mgmt was sleeping at the wheel and engineers drinking from the kool-aide.
Qualcomm plans to direct its roughly $5 billion annual research and development budget toward a handful of specific projects, so it can keep coming out with the most desirable technology, Jacobs said.... What we're really going to do is focus in on some of the high-impact things
Sounds like the plan is to come up with some replacement home run products. Home run products for most companies come once in a blue moon, with plenty of luck involved. Although QCOM has lots of cash, it is easy to burn through that quickly. I would have thought the smarter move would be to reduce your R&D spend, focus on your core competencies and ditch the parts of the business which are not sustainable.
There's a reason for x86 on atablets and phonablts. Dual boot into windows and android. Can't do it on an ARM based processor, especially when Microsoft said they are dropping support for ARM.
Gardening?!?!?! Get yer hoes ready. Obviously competition is not good (for margins)
http://www.cnet.com/au/news/qualcomms-jacobs-samsung-snub-a-good-wake-up-call/
Something on the order of 90%+ Internet data traffic is via direct Ethernet or WLAN/Ethernet, not cellular. Game over ...
I think the problem with Chromebooks for QCOM is not many require modem connections, Intel competition from the top, and competition from the numerous cheap SoC's from below (ARM is a double edged sword)
QCOM sounds like a great company. But it wont remain like that unless it is fundamentally financially strong (its R&D spend should reflect the post honeymoon reality of competition)
Can ARM even get traction in Chromebooks?
Aptly said but folks invested deeply in qcom can't see it
it takes an objective outlook to perceive this
qcom is a good company and would remain a good chip company
the honeymoon period was long and was awesome while it lasted