The Marketing Minute: Marketing With Layers
The Right Approach: Electro-Tek—A Williams Family Legacy, Part 1
It’s Only Common Sense: If You’re Not Differentiated, You’re Dead
Communications IC Market to Again Surpass Computer IC Market
June 5, 2019 | IC InsightsEstimated reading time: 2 minutes
IC Insights will release its June Update to the 2019 McClean Report later this month. This Update includes a 2017-2023 IC database that segments the actual 2017 and 2018 and forecasted 2019-2023 IC market by major product type by consumer, auto, computer, industrial, communications, and government/military end-use applications in the Americas, Europe, Japan, and Asia-Pacific regions.
Over the past 20 years, the communications IC segment almost doubled its share of the total IC market from 18.5% in 1998 to 36.4% in 2018.
The communications segment first surpassed the computer segment as the largest end-use market for ICs in 2013 but was passed by the computer segment in 2017 and 2018 due to the booming memory market (since more memory is used in computer than in communication systems). However, with the memory market forecast to plunge by 30% this year, the communications IC market is expected to surpass the computer IC market in 2019 and hold this position through 2023.
As shown, the automotive IC segment marketshare has displayed a steady increase since 1998 going from a 4.7% share that year to 8.0% in 2018. Moreover, the automotive IC market is forecast to register the strongest 2018-2023 CAGR of any of the end-use segments at 9.2%. Unfortunately, given its relatively small size, high growth in the automotive IC segment is not expected to be enough to significantly lift the growth rate of the total IC industry over the next five years.
In contrast to the rising shares of the automotive and communications segments, the computer and consumer IC marketshares have drifted lower over the past 20 years. As shown, the computer segment’s share of the total IC market dropped 19 percentage points since 1998 to 36.6% in 2018. However, strong server demand to help support the Internet of Things is expected to pump new life into the computer IC market over the next five years and slow the rate of marketshare decline for this segment.
The figure showed that the industrial/other segment’s share of the total IC market was in a steady decline from 1998 through 2013. However, as industrial automation has picked up momentum worldwide, this segment is forecast to rise to an 8.7% share of the total IC market in 2023, up from only 6.5% in 2013.
One thing to keep in mind with regard to IC end-use marketshare figures is that they typically move at an evolutionary, not revolutionary, pace. Major changes and trends in the end-use percentage figures are sometimes only evident when looking at five or ten year timeperiods. Overall, this is one aspect of the IC industry that requires some perspective that only relatively long periods of time can provide.
Share on:
Testimonial
"Advertising in PCB007 Magazine has been a great way to showcase our bare board testers to the right audience. The I-Connect007 team makes the process smooth and professional. We’re proud to be featured in such a trusted publication."
Klaus Koziol - atgSuggested Items
The Marketing Minute: Marketing With Layers
10/15/2025 | Brittany Martin -- Column: The Marketing MinuteMarketing to a technical audience is like crafting a multilayer board: Each layer serves a purpose, from the surface story to the buried detail that keeps everything connected. At I-Connect007, we’ve learned that the best marketing campaigns aren’t built linearly; they’re layered. A campaign might start with a highly technical resource, such as an in-depth article, a white paper, or a podcast featuring an engineer delving into the details of a process. That’s the foundation, the substance that earns credibility.
ICT Symposium Review: Sustainability and the Circular Economy
10/09/2025 | Pete Starkey, I-Connect007It was pleasant autumnal weather as we made our way once again to Meriden, the nominal centre of England, for the 2025 Annual Symposium of the Institute of Circuit Technology. Delegates were welcomed by technical director Emma Hudson who introduced and moderated a skilfully coordinated programme, focused on the highly relevant theme of sustainability.
Circular Packaging Market to Reach $98.0 Billion by 2035
10/08/2025 | Fact.MRThe market's journey from USD 45.8 billion in 2025 to USD 98.0 billion by 2035 represents substantial growth, the market will rise at a CAGR of 7.9% demonstrating the accelerating adoption of sustainable packaging systems and circular economy solutions across food & beverage, personal care, and e-commerce sectors.
It’s Only Common Sense: Stop Whining About the Market—Outwork It
10/06/2025 | Dan Beaulieu -- Column: It's Only Common SenseWhenever the market hiccups or the industry cycle dips, I hear the same tired chorus: “The market is down. Customers aren’t buying. What can we do? We just have to wait it out.” Nonsense. If you think that by showing up, opening your doors, and waiting for the economy to smile kindly upon you, that success will follow, you are in the wrong business. Worse yet, you’re living in the wrong mindset. Most people don’t want to hear the truth that winners find business in down cycles. Losers blame the economy.
Schweizer Ends Staff Restructuring Measures and Short-Time Working at the Schramberg Site
10/01/2025 | Schweizer Electronic AGSchweizer Electronic AG has implemented comprehensive measures to adjust its cost and personnel structure at its Schramberg site due to strong market fluctuations in the automotive and industrial electronics sector. Thanks to the successful restructuring, short-time working can now be ended with immediate effect. A stable order situation is expected for the fourth quarter, with signs of growth momentum returning in 2026.