Intel and AMD retain market share amid fast growth

iSuppli reports that in the second quarter Intel accounted for 80.4% of global microprocessor revenue, down from 80.7% in the second quarter of 2009 when the company's share reached a four year high. On a sequential basis, Intel gained 0.1 points of share from the 80.3% it held in the first quarter of 2010. AMD's share amounted to 11.52% in the second quarter of 2010, up 0.04 points from 11.48 the same time a year ago. On a sequential basis, AMD saw its share decline by 0.2 points from the 11.72% of share it held in the first quarter of 2010. The static market share situation might suggest that the second quarter was uneventful in terms of the competition between the two major microprocessor suppliers. However, with the market undergoing rapid growth and rapid technological development, the fact that the companies have largely retained their positions indicates they are competing furiously for every tenth of a point of market share. Matthew Wilkins, analyst at iSuppli, said: "Global microprocessor revenue in the second quarter of 2010 rose 34% from the same period in 2009. The annual increase reflects the pc market's dramatic recovery from the dismal conditions seen in the second quarter of 2009, when global pc shipments declined by 4.3% compared to a year earlier. In contrast, pc shipments in the second quarter of 2010 increased by 22.8% from the same quarter in 2009." Meanwhile, iSuppli reports that technology, as measured from the second quarter, evolved significantly during the past 12 months. Approximately 38% of notebook pc microprocessors shipped during the period were graphics enabled microprocessors, up significantly from 2009, according to data from iSuppli's PC Technology Penetration Forecast.