News Article
Consumer electronics growth supercharging MEMs microphone market
Record-breaking growth in consumer electronics products such as cellular phones, cordless phones, headsets and headphones gave the MEMs microphones and speakers market a huge boost in 2004, according to market analyst The Information Network.
Record-breaking growth in consumer electronics products such as cellular phones, cordless phones, headsets and headphones gave the MEMs microphones and speakers market a huge boost in 2004, according to market analyst The Information Network.
The market is forecast to provide 5% of the nearly 2 billion microphones sold worldwide in 2005 and grow to 15% of the nearly 3 billion microphones sold in 2008 – a compounded growth rate of 240%. A similar growth rate in the speaker sector will propel the MEMs microspeaker market in 2008 to 500 million units shipped.
Recent refinements in MEMS processing have resulted in the batch fabrication of low cost, high performance, miniaturised condenser microphones. In certain applications, this device offers key advantages over traditional ECMs.
MEMS products utilise robust processes from the semiconductor industry to make a wide variety of electronic devices smaller, more reliable and cheaper to manufacture.
Knowles Acoustics has emerged as the number one worldwide provider of MEMS acoustic components. In 2004, the company inked an agreement with MEMSCAP to supply MEMS silicon microphone wafers.
Also in May, Knowles signed a definitive manufacturing and supply agreement for MEMS wafer services with Sony Semiconductor Kyushu Corp. SSKC will provide fabrication services for Knowles Acoustics-designed MEMS microphone wafers.
“The strategic partner agreements, combined with Knowles significant success in marketing this product, has propelled it to the top of MEMs microphone suppliers, ahead of companies such as SonionMicrotronic (Denmark), powerhouses of traditional microphone such as Infineon Technologies, and a growing number of Chinese manufacturers,” said Dr Robert Castellano, president of The Information Network.
Castellano said the start-ups would struggle to break into the MEM acoustic sector because it is already a very crowded marketplace. SonionMicrotronic is entrenched in the lucrative cell phone and hearing aid market and Knowles Acoustics is in a strong position in the mobile phone sector.
The market is forecast to provide 5% of the nearly 2 billion microphones sold worldwide in 2005 and grow to 15% of the nearly 3 billion microphones sold in 2008 – a compounded growth rate of 240%. A similar growth rate in the speaker sector will propel the MEMs microspeaker market in 2008 to 500 million units shipped.
Recent refinements in MEMS processing have resulted in the batch fabrication of low cost, high performance, miniaturised condenser microphones. In certain applications, this device offers key advantages over traditional ECMs.
MEMS products utilise robust processes from the semiconductor industry to make a wide variety of electronic devices smaller, more reliable and cheaper to manufacture.
Knowles Acoustics has emerged as the number one worldwide provider of MEMS acoustic components. In 2004, the company inked an agreement with MEMSCAP to supply MEMS silicon microphone wafers.
Also in May, Knowles signed a definitive manufacturing and supply agreement for MEMS wafer services with Sony Semiconductor Kyushu Corp. SSKC will provide fabrication services for Knowles Acoustics-designed MEMS microphone wafers.
“The strategic partner agreements, combined with Knowles significant success in marketing this product, has propelled it to the top of MEMs microphone suppliers, ahead of companies such as SonionMicrotronic (Denmark), powerhouses of traditional microphone such as Infineon Technologies, and a growing number of Chinese manufacturers,” said Dr Robert Castellano, president of The Information Network.
Castellano said the start-ups would struggle to break into the MEM acoustic sector because it is already a very crowded marketplace. SonionMicrotronic is entrenched in the lucrative cell phone and hearing aid market and Knowles Acoustics is in a strong position in the mobile phone sector.
