Asian Tech Press (Dec 22) -- The latest report from industry tracker Omdia shows that thanks to strong sales of memory chips, Samsung Electronics overtook Intel in the third quarter to become the world's top chipmaker in terms of revenue.

Omdia aggregated data said that in the three months from July to September, Intel, which has been at the top of the chipmaker revenue list for 11 consecutive quarters, slipped behind Samsung, because in the memory sector, Samsung is the largest supplier of DRAM and NAND, which is also the largest area of semiconductor growth.

DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory) is a volatile semiconductor memory that retains data as long as power is supplied, and it is commonly used in personal computers, workstations, and servers. NAND flash memory is a non-volatile memory that does not require electricity to store data.

According to Omdia, worldwide memory chip revenue grew 12 percent from the previous quarter as demand for application and infrastructure chips for remote work and online learning drove growth. The sector accounted for 29 percent of all semiconductor revenue.

As a result, three of the world's top four chipmakers in the same period were memory-focused semiconductor companies, including Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, and Micron Technology (Micron).

The global semiconductor market reached $153.2 billion in revenue in the third quarter, up 7.6 percent from the second quarter and a record fourth consecutive quarter.

Omdia said: "Increased demand for electronic products, and the resulting shortage of certain semiconductor components increased the average selling price and revenue of companies across the semiconductor industry. In addition, seasonal demand ahead of the holiday shopping season also boosted revenue."

In the DRAM segment, Samsung's market share rose to 43.9 percent from 43.2 percent in the second quarter, SK Hynix accounted for 27.6 percent, down 0.6 percentage points, and Micron remained at 22.7 percent. Quarterly revenue in the NAND market reached a record $18.7 billion, up 13.8 percent from $16.4 billion in the second quarter.

The NAND market is driven by strong shipment growth to meet demand in the enterprise, data center, and smartphone markets," said Craig Stice, principal analyst for semiconductor research at Omdia. In addition, average selling prices rose nearly 5 percent sequentially in the third quarter as supply and demand remained slightly out of balance."