February 26, 2007 – Worldwide sales of semiconductor assembly and test services (SATS) marked the fifth consecutive year of double-digit growth in 2006, due to accelerated transition to and integration with new packaging technologies, according to data from Gartner Dataquest.

Worldwide SATS revenues rose 25.7% growth to $19.07 billion, up from $15.27 billion last year, according to Gartner’s preliminary results. SATS growth is driven by the growing importance of integration via packaging as a factor in the overall function and cost of semiconductor devices, noted Jim Walker, research VP for Gartner’s semiconductor manufacturing and design research group, in a statement. He pointed specifically to an accelerated transition to wafer-level packaging, chip-scale packages, flip-chip, and system-in-package (SiP).

Still tops in SATS revenue for 2006 was Advanced Semiconductor Engineering (ASE), which became the first assembly/test services provider to surpass $3 billion in annual revenues. Each of the other top four firms gained a few points of market share at ASE’s expense, though, and No.2 Amkor closed the gap significantly thanks to 30% year-on-year growth. SPIL and STATS ChipPAC also enjoyed 30%-40% growth to maintain their positions from the previous year.

Surging into the top five was Singapore-based United Test and Assembly Center (UTAC), which nearly doubled its revenues to $637.5 million in 2006, due in part to pro-forma revenue figures from NS Electronics Bankok, which it acquired earlier in the year.

Gartner projects the SATS segment will keep the record going for yet another consecutive year — the firm projects 10.2% growth in SATS revenues in 2007 as IDMs and OEMs focus more on design and distribution and less on manufacturing, and as the industry continues to transition to advanced packaging technologies, according to Walker.

Preliminary worldwide SATS companies revenues, 2006 (Est., US $M)

Company……………2006 revenues…..vs. 2005 (% growth)…..2006 share (%)…..vs. 2005

ASE Group………………3088.9…………….2583.0 (19.6)……………16.2…………….17.0
Amkor Technology…..2728.6…………….2099.0 (30.0)……………14.3……………13.8
SPIL………………………..1733.4……………..1343.0 (29.1)…………….9.1………………..8.9
STATS ChipPAC…….1616.9………………1157.0 (39.7)……………8.5………………7.6
UTAC*……………………..637.5………………..326.0 (95.6)…………….3.3………………..2.1
Others…………………….9262.8……………….7661.0 (20.9)…………..48.6…………….50.5
TOTAL………………….19,068.1…………..15,169.0 (25.7)…………..100.0………….100.0