The Commerce Department Bureau of Industry and Security added more than 60 companies, including Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp., China’s largest chipmaker, to the entity list “to protect U.S. national security,” said BIS Friday. This stems from China’s “military-civil fusion doctrine” and evidence of collaboration between SMIC and “entities of concern in the Chinese military industrial complex,” it said. SMIC denied the allegations, saying it supplies products and services only for “civilian end users” (see 2011120011). The company didn't comment Friday. The new restriction “limits SMIC's ability to acquire certain U.S. technology by requiring U.S. exporters to apply for a license to sell to the company,” said BIS. “Items uniquely required to produce semiconductors at advanced technology nodes -- 10 nanometers or below -- will be subject to a presumption of denial.” China urges the U.S. “to stop its wrong behavior of oppression of foreign companies,” said a Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson Friday in anticipation of the BIS action. “China will continue to take necessary measures to safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies.”
Kyocera is expanding its R&D campus in Kirishima City, Kagoshima, Japan, with a 75,000-square-foot center slated to begin construction next month, it said Friday. The $9.6 billion R&D center will focus on information and communications, environmental preservation and smart energy. The Kokubu campus currently houses R&D operations for 5G smartphone technologies; semiconductors and components used in IoT devices; and cell stacks for smart energy. The new facility is to open in September 2022.
Goodfriend Group hires Earl Ash, ex-aide to Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester, D-Del., as senior director-public policy and government relations, specializing in telecom, technology and media, succeeding Meagan Sunn, named tech, telecom and judiciary counsel at office of Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich. ... Cooley global cyber/data/privacy team adds Tiana Demas from Facebook as partner.
That U.S.-based semiconductor fabs cost 40%-70% more than foreign counterparts due to low federal incentives helps explain why American companies account for 48% of the world’s chip sales, but U.S.-based fabs do 12% of such manufacturing, blogged Jeff Rittener, Intel chief government affairs officer. Intel backs the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (Chips) for America Act, passed by Congress last Friday with bipartisan support as part of the FY 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), said Rittener Thursday. It establishes a Commerce Department program to provide up to $3 billion “to companies to invest in facilities and equipment in the U.S. for semiconductor fabrication, assembly, testing, advanced packaging” or R&D, he said. This positions the U.S. “to regain our leadership in the semiconductor manufacturing industry and significantly contribute to the nation’s economic and technological success,” he said. “We need federal investment to do so.” Intel urges President Donald Trump to sign the NDAA and the act into law. Trump is threatening an NDAA veto. The White House didn’t respond to questions.
The FCC may approve in coming weeks the latest Communications Act Section 706 report. It's expected to conclude that broadband is being deployed in a reasonable and timely manner and say 25/3 Mbps downstream/upstream remains an appropriate benchmark for fixed service, FCC and industry officials said. FCC Democrats want to wait for the new administration, officials said. The report is due in February, after the start of Joe Biden's presidency.
Others at FCC also retiring at year's end (see this section, Dec. 10) as announced at Thursday's commissioners' meeting by Chairman Ajit Pai are Senior Counsel-Number Administration, Wireline Bureau Marilyn Jones; Brock Fakken, IT specialist and webmaster for Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau; and Media Bureau Attorney-Adviser Stephen Svab; and those who retired from the Media Bureau in recent months: Electronics Engineer Gary Loehrs and Industry Analyst Kay Whitfield ... Texas Public Utility Commission Executive Director JP Urban resigns.
Broadcom’s wireless revenue in fiscal Q4, ended Nov. 1, was 31% of its semiconductor business and up 43% sequentially from Q3, with the launch of the “new-generation flagship phone by our large North American OEM customer,” said CEO Hock Tan on an investor call Thursday, in obvious reference to the iPhone 12. Broadcom announced multiyear agreements in January to supply Apple with $15 billion in wireless components and modules. Wireless revenue declined 9% year-on-year, due to the one-quarter delay in ramping up “production of that program,” said Tan. Broadcom now expects fiscal Q1 “to be up over 50% year-on-year,” he said.
Patent and Trademark Office moves Mary Critharis to chief policy officer and director-international affairs, a job she did on acting basis after her predecessor Shira Perlmutter named to lead Copyright Office (see this section, Oct. 22) ... Remitly hires Saema Somalya, ex-Fifth Third Bank, as general counsel, succeeding Aaron Gregory, and adds to the board Bora Chung, Bill.com ... Mattel taps from ViacomCBS Media Networks Jonathan Anschell as executive vice president-chief legal officer and secretary, succeeding Robert Normile, who's continuing until Dec. 31 and remaining an executive adviser into April.
True wireless designs were 45% of Q3 headphone shipments, but supply side issues with Bluetooth chips inhibited availability of new models, leaving brands to delay product launches until 2021, reported Futuresource. Global headphone shipments grew 19% year on year following two quarters of decline. True wireless featured in most new product launches, covering a range of price points. The $50-$99 segment is “highly competitive and overcrowded,” analyst Adriana Blanco said Tuesday.
After staking a commanding lead in the true wireless earbud category with two versions of in-ear AirPods ($159 and $249), Apple took an old-school turn with Tuesday’s announcement of the $549 AirPods Max over-ear headphones. AirPods Max have an Apple H1 chip built into each ear cup and use “computational audio” from the chips’ 10 audio cores -- capable of 9 billion operations per second -- to provide adaptive equalization, active noise cancellation, a transparency mode and spatial audio, said the company. It didn’t respond to questions on whether it’s continuing to develop the company's Beats by Dre headphones line.