4DS - Memory Chip The Best Update Sofar - posted on 7 April 2024, page-62

replying to the post about the IP licencing market


While 4DS is only an IP company, it doesn't mean that it will only be IP companies that will be interested in them.

The Semiconductor IP (SIP) players only represent a thin slice of the IP used in the $500bn + semiconductor industry. SIP companies do one thing - licence IP for revenue.

SIP companies don't represent all the IP in the semiconductor manufacturing industry and therefore $8bn doesn't represent the value of all the IP in the industry. It only represents licensing revenues for SIP companies.

There are plenty of direct IP licencing agreements that won't be represented in the $8bn: manufacturing contracts, JVs etc. between semiconductor or technology companies where company A gets the benefit of the IP of company B.

my research of SIP companies didn't identify what I would call a "household name" they way DM used the phrase.

Some of the actual household names have annual R&D budgets 2-3 times larger than the entire SIP sector. This is the money they spend on their own intellectual property.

Nothing holding them back from splashing wads of cash around to get their hands on a big emerging technology.

While an SIP company may be interested in the opportunity 4DS presents, they very likely will have to compete with these very cashed up household names who may want to use the R&D budgets and pay a premium to restrict the possibility of others having access to the tech (carving out a niche in the market with a revolutionary technology** is probably worth paying extra for).

** if it turns out to be a revolutionary technology - obviously we have to wait for PL5&6 to find out.