Ingrid Lee, Taipei; Jessie Shen

 

Packaging and testing house ChipMOS Technologies plans to gradually phase out its DRAM packaging and testing business, and concentrate on backend services for LCD driver ICs and flash products, according to company chairman and CEO SJ Cheng.

ChipMOS will continue to service its existing DRAM clients, but will no longer expand the segment's operations, said Cheng. In addition, the company is seeking buyers for its unused DRAM testers, Cheng noted.

The testers acquired previously from Siliconware Precision Industries (SPIL) will also be sold in line with ChipMOS's business direction to target non-DRAM markets, Cheng pointed out.

Around mid-2010, ChipMOS took over NT$1.63 billion (US$56 million) worth of backend equipment for LCD driver ICs and DRAM memory from SPIL, which moved to focus on logic IC packaging and testing.

LCD driver IC assembly and testing will become ChipMOS's core business, contributing 40% to company revenues, up from the current 29%, Cheng indicated. Meanwhile, the proportion of its revenues coming from flash memory assembly and testing will be maintained at 28%, Cheng said.

Cheng made the remarks after the company announced it has received a five-year NT$8.4 billion syndicated loan from a banking consortium.