Abstract
The 2008 Microcontroller market was highly profitable and is predicted to grow
10 percent annually over the forecasted period thanks to numerous applications
in automotive, medical, consumer, communications, and, to a lesser degree,
computer market.
Microcontrollers are single, simple programmable ICs that are designed for
embedded applications and are relatively inexpensive to produce compared to
more complex and expensive microprocessors used in PCs. Microcontrollers are
typically found in automatically controlled products and devices, including
remote controls such as toys, appliances, power tools, automobile engine
control systems, and office machines. Hybrid automobiles are predicted to be
one major end market for MCUs over the next several years as many of the
technologies used in “green” vehicles, such as hybrids, are
managed through MCUs. Smart cards are another surging market for
microcontrollers, as revenue in this segment is growing at a compound annual
growth rate of 14 percent.
MCUs are a critical piece of the overall semiconductor industry and accounted
for $13.7 billion in total worldwide revenue and 10.8 billion units shipped in
2008. Revenue is predicted to experience strong average growth of 10 percent
until 2014 due to increasing shipment numbers combined with consistently
falling ASPs.
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