AMD returns to market share leadership in discrete graphics

[Apoptosis]

AMD returns to market share leadership in discrete graphics

In July 2006, AMD announced the acquisition of ATI Technologies. Debate ensued – did AMD make the right bet? Will PC graphics pay off? Four years later new data from Mercury Research shows that the strategy is working in a big way, at the expense of its main graphics rival. Mercury Research just released its market share report for Q2 2010, and AMD’s results compared to the same period the year prior are striking:

- For the first time in four years, AMD has taken control of the discrete graphics market from Nvidia, with 51.1% market share, up 10.4 points from Q2 2009. In that same period, Nvidia lost 10.4 points.
- In the lucrative Desktop discrete market, AMD gained 11 points in the year, standing at 44.5% market share. This was a direct loss for Nvidia, who fell 10.9 points in the same period.
- In the fast growing mobile discrete market, AMD gained another 2.4 points, now standing at 56.3% market share.

These numbers demonstrate AMD’s return to the market share leader in discrete graphics (the last time AMD was share leader was in Q2 of 2006). These results come off the back of a series of positive activities for AMD’s graphics business, including demonstration of working Fusion silicon in June (one of the reasons for the ATI acquisition), a monster quarter where graphics made up about a quarter of AMD’s revenue, and some nice traction for AMD’s graphics in the new iMac and MacPros. Meanwhile, Nvidia flagged yesterday that they’d miss their Q2 numbers, mainly as a result of a weak consumer graphics business.

[Sttm]

Wow good for them. I wonder if they will get out the 6000 series in time to stave off Nvidia gains with the gtx460, and possibly other GF104 variants.

Now AMD just needs to kickstart their CPU guys and get them working on trouncing Intel, and not just at the $90 price point! I want a new FX chip dammit.