Semiconductor makers nervous as Apple bets on buying out Toshiba

Global semiconductor manufacturers are alarmed in recent days, as it was known that the American smartphone giant Apple placed its bet on acquiring the Japanese chip maker Toshiba.

According to Japanese dailies including Yomiuri Shimbum and Nihon Keizai Shimbum on Friday, 10 companies including Apple, Broadcom (semiconductors manufacturer)-Silverlake (investment fund) consortium, SK Hynix, and the Taiwanese IT giant Hon Hai participated as the preliminary bidder for winning Toshiba's memory and semiconductors business on March 29.

Apple's attempt to buy out drew worldwide interest, as it is the second largest smartphone manufacturer in the world. If Apple acquires Toshiba and secure its own pipeline, Samsung Electronics, which is currently enjoying the lion's share in the NAND flash market, will possibly lose its biggest client.

Chang-deok Kim drake007@donga.com