AMD hardware is present in the three major consoles on the market. Its Radeon family offers some of the most competitive options in graphics cards. Its low-cost processors remain in high demand in emerging markets, and what we know so far about the future Zen platform is very promising. Even with all these points in its favor, AMD cannot escape its financial crisis. The new red for the last quarter is $197 million, and it is the fourth consecutive one.
Red Ink Continues
It is never pleasant to see a company that has accompanied us for decades in such a dire situation. Personally, I have had more AMD processors than Intel, and my relationship with their hardware goes back to the Am5x86 days. Even these lines were written on AMD hardware, a Phenom II Black Edition that has shown no signs of fatigue so far. If we take a few minutes to search for opinions about AMD's overall situation, we will find two dozen different answers. Some believe it can only survive thanks to an acquisition. Others think it should close one of its main fronts, which implies ceasing to manufacture CPUs or graphics cards. Then there are those who talk about a serious lack of internal discipline, with disproportionate salaries. Those who know AMD's history more closely will also mention the last years of Jerry Sanders, co-founder and former CEO, who retired in 2002 as possible causes of its current chaos.
Why would anyone bother to explore that far back? For the simple reason that AMD has not managed to change course, and it recorded a new loss of $197 million for its last quarter. It is the fourth consecutive visit to the red ink, and so far this year, total losses amount to $557 million. To tell the truth, the news is not surprising for those of us who follow AMD's state, and if we take into account the last 17 years (which places us in the old Sanders domain), the overall red is close to $8 billion. As if that were not enough, AMD also lost Phil Rogers, one of the masterminds behind HSA technology, who will now take a position at Nvidia.
A Cash Infusion
On the other side of the street, we discover that AMD reached an agreement with Nantong Fujitsu Microelectronics, in which the Chinese company will take over 85 percent of the two facilities that AMD owns in Malaysia and China, in exchange for $371 million in cash. This certainly helps cover the deficit, but analysts do not agree, and the feeling is that AMD cut off an arm to eat it. Unfortunately, AMD dances on the edge. All the chips seem to be placed on Zen, and it must somehow find a viable route into the mobile space.
