Approximately 53 million PC graphics devices shipped from nine suppliers in the fourth quarter of 2002, a 13 per cent increase over to the previous quarter.
Growth across industry segments was well distributed in the fourth quarter of 2002 as compared to the third quarter of 2002 in which segment
growth was limited to chipsets with integrated graphics for desktop PC platforms.
Growth occurred in both the mobile and desktop segments and in shipments of discrete and integrated graphics chipsets during the fourth quarter. Strong growth in the fourth quarter is typical for the PC industry; however, graphics shipments outpaced CPU shipments by approximately 30 per cent during the period, indicating a larger total available market (TAM) for graphics due in part to a strong attach rate of discrete graphics to integrated solutions.
The mobile segment led growth in the fourth quarter of last year, with shipments increasing 25 per cent as compared to the third quarter of 2002. The desktop segment grew by a more moderate 11 per cent. Integrated graphics shipments increased by 17 per cent and discrete graphics shipments increased by nine per cent during the quarter. However, only five of nine suppliers drove growth in the fourth quarter of last year: ATI, Intel, Nvidia, SiS, and VIA. Small players were increasingly marginalized with either flat or reduced shipments.
As compared to the third quarter of 2002, Nvidia saw a 13 per cent increase in graphics shipments in fourth quarter of 2002 and was the largest supplier of PC graphics devices worldwide but with a reduced share of the total graphics market. Intel was the second largest supplier in fourth quarter of 2002, with a 12 per cent increase in graphics shipments and an increased share of the total graphics market. In third position, ATI saw an 18 per cent increase in graphics shipments in the fourth quarter of 2002, with a relatively steady share of the total graphics market. The following table lists the ranking and relative market share, based on unit shipments in the fourth quarter of 2002, of the nine major graphics suppliers to the PC industry.
Rank/ Graphics Supplier/ Q4’02 Market Share
1. Nvidia, 32%
2. Intel 28%
3. ATI 19%
4. VIA 11%
5. SiS 8%
6. Matrox Graphics 1%
7. Trident 1%
8. Silicon Motion 1%
9. 3Dlabs 1%
Lisa Epstein, a senior analyst at Jon Peddie Research, a technically oriented multimedia and graphics research and consulting firm based in Tiburon, Calif.
