Smic's announcement late April 28th, a wholly owned subsidiary smic core electricity long telegram technology 151 million shares for Shanghai, total subscription price 2.655 billion yuan, cash payments. After completion of the deal smic will through core electric Shanghai hold long telegram technology a total of 194 million shares, accounting for long telegram a 14.26% stake in science and technology, to become a long telegram deals the single largest shareholder of science and technology. In addition, smic to long telegram technology to nominate two directors.

Why the semiconductor QianHouDao to converge?

Wafer foundry pattern, the semiconductor industry is divided into three stages: manufacture, design and testing, the three links of the enterprise, mutual cooperation, chip manufacturing is also known as before (also translated Frontend, front), representative enterprises such as TSMC and smic, encapsulation testing put bare chip of chip manufacturer production, packaging and complete the test in the form of the final product, so called after (Backend), representative company went unquestioned moonlight and long telegram technology, etc.

Originally foundries only concentrate on chip manufacturing, and packaging after testing links have cooperation but not independent development technology. But now including TSMC and smic, reach to encapsulate all the test field, is this why?

This is mainly because the semiconductor process development close to the physical limit, after the new packaging become the realistic choice to achieve a higher level of integration. More than bare chip (die) stacked together the three-dimensional system of packaging more and more popular, technology development, between the bare chip stack fabs have more advantages than testing factory. Now chip faster and faster, and power consumption demand is higher and higher, also puts forward more requirements on packaging technology, in regard to the development of new packaging technology, wafer manufacturing more and more advantage.

Advanced packaging more and more complex

TSMC's deputy general manager luo town ball in 2014, with the net interview once said: "only do wafer foundry TSMC before, now also in advanced packaging. The main reason is that TSMC found there are some technical factory to develop will be slow, please seal test they delay if we can do, so as to promote the whole industry forward."

Spontaneous combination? Promote the capital? Or achievements to promote?

Starting from the joint venture in 2014 core long telegram, smic and long telegram more and more scientific and technological cooperation. After its establishment, the big fund has invested in smic and long telegram technology. In the process of long telegram technology acquisition star division chippac, smic's core electric semiconductor also involved, so both sides need further cooperation is not strange. But whether the financial statements, or the personage inside course of study reports, smic's money is not enough, as planned in 2020, the funds needed for the production of 14 nm process a lot of pressure.

So large funds to play a role in the deal is significant, wen-jun gu directly say big fund "for instance, contributing to the core of the long telegram, is big fund in 2016" number one project ""

Cooperation of both sides, to what degree? If be to integrate in the direction of a group, so big fund, is the "invisible hand" or "visible hand"? This is both sides of the autonomous will, the natural demand of market development, or by a design cooperation? Interdisciplinary integration, didn't understand technical strength type knife characters, the likelihood of success have how old?

After all the core once faced similar trouble. Wuhan in 2006 to open fabs (that is, wuhan new core), wuhan municipal government pay smic a "fee-only", by the core operation management in the factory. Look this is a business easily, but from the point of the end result, wuhan new core development economics, smic also back the burden. Finally announced around the year 2013 in wuhan new core "is no longer a sister company of smic."

Semiconductor QianHouDao fusion can, of course, also need to merge, but now the right way? TSMC into testing reason precisely because testing in the field of plant in regard to the development of technology and TSMC synchronization.

Luo town ball ICCAD conference in 2015, said in an interview: "the characteristics of the semiconductor industry is the executive power and decision-making to very concentrated, in such a heavy capital expenditures and intelligence intensive, capital intensive industry, the governance and the decision to do very unity. Look at many companies in Japan, you merge with me, I told you to merge, in the end also didn't do it."

Eager to change the mood of China's semiconductor backward situation is understandable, but the train of thought to clear, stable in action, after all, limited resources, opportunity is rare, one thousand wrong direction, they want to run for generations.