Ingram Micro Inc., Eprom Inc., Leadman Electronics Inc., Leadertech Systems of Chicago Inc., Eastern Data, Inc., Agaman and Daiwa in the U.S. as well as some unidentified distributors in Europe will carry Via's double-data-rate P4x266 chipsets, according to Frank Jeng, marketing director of Via.

These companies will sell non-branded generic motherboards featuring the chipsets, on the theory that such non-branded products will be less subject to liability in the legal entanglements between Via and Intel.

"This is a very significant development for our promotion of the chipsets," said Jeng, who just returned to Taipei after meeting clients in mainland China. "Five to 10 distributors on the mainland are also poised to sell P4x266 very soon." Jeng declined to name the Chinese partners.

The distribution deals would allow Via's chipsets to reach end users, but would not penetrate the much larger OEM market, some analysts said. Still, the move indicates that Via, Taipei, Taiwan, is stepping up efforts to sell the DDR chipsets anywhere it can, as Taiwan's tier-one board makers such as Asustek Computer Inc. won't ship products with the chipsets due to pressure from the Santa Clara, Calif.-based CPU powerhouse.

Via's allegedly illegal use of Intel's technology in its P4x266 chipset and C3 microprocessor has triggered lawsuits in Germany, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

To spur demand, Via entered the motherboard market last month by setting up a new business unit to outsource production to Taiwanese companies. The company is also working closely with tier-two or smaller companies.

Tyan Computer Corp., Fremont, Calif., announced this week that it has initiated shipment of its latest motherboard with the P4X266 chipsets. Coded Trinity 510, the motherboard "provides OEMs and System Integrators with new levels of value and performance for their P4 product lines," Danny Hsu, director of strategic marketing for Tyan, said in a statement.

Via reiterated its earlier target to ship one million chipsets each in November and December, Jeng said. The company's October shipment topped its forecast of one million, beating analysts' expectations.

As the legal disputes have dragged on for months, Via is now expected to be granted. a P4 license by Intel as soon as next week, reported Commercial Times of Taipei.

The report cited undisclosed industry source as saying Via's President Chen Wen-chi is currently attending Las Vegas' Comdex Show, where he's meeting executives from Intel about a possible licensing. The royalty which Via might pay Intel is $2 per chipset, about half of what Intel is charging Taiwan's Silicon Integrated Systems Inc. and Acer Laboratories Inc., the report said.

Via declined to comment, saying that it always keeps the door open for a "reasonable and fair" negotiation with Intel. Officials at Intel's Taiwan office couldn't be reached for comment.

The reported deal has surprised many analysts, who said that it could only happen under some circumstances. "Chances for reaching such a licensing agreement by end of this year are not good," said Eric Chen, an analyst at SG Securities Co. in Taipei. "But there could be exceptions like Intel isn't having enough capacity to meet demand for its P4 chipsets or SiS's market share in the segment is rising so fast that it may threaten the leading role of Intel."

Ingram Micro, Santa Ana, Calif., claims to be the largest global wholesale provider of technology products and supply chain management services The company operates in 36 countries with sales of $30.7 billion for the fiscal year 2000.

Santa Clara-based Leadman is an international wholesale distributor and manufacturer of computer related products that was founded in 1982 in Taiwan.

Eastern Data is based in Virginia Beach, VA., while Leadertech in Wood Dale, IL.