SAN JOSE, Calif. -- It's been a wild week for Spansion Inc. The NOR-flash leader Wednesday (Feb. 4) named John Kispert, former president and COO of KLA-Tencor Corp., as its new chief executive and member of the board. He replaces Bertrand Cambou, who stepped down earlier this week.
Now, rumors are running rampant that Micron Technology Inc. is looking at buying Spansion (Sunnyvale, Calif.), sources said. Micron is a major player in NAND flash, DRAM and CMOS image sensors, but it has no presence in NOR.
''Micron could use the manufacturing facilities, IP, and perhaps try to sustain some of the NOR/NROM/EcoRAM markets that Spansion created,'' according to one analyst. Spansion's NOR devices are based on NROM technology. Last year, Spansion rolled out a new class of memory that is said to replace DRAMs in the datacenter, dubbed EcoRAM.
Micron declined to comment. ''It's Micron's policy to not comment on rumor or speculation,'' according to a spokesman for Micron (Boise, Ida.).
Last year, Micron signed a definitive agreement to acquire Qimonda AG's 35.6 percent ownership stake in Taiwan DRAM venture Inotera Memories Inc. for $400 million in cash. For some time, there have been reports that Micron is also interested in buying Qimonda, which has filed insolvency at a Munich court. That deal has yet to happen.
Like Qimonda, Spansion is running out of options amid losses and poor demand. On Jan. 15, Spansion announced it was exploring strategic alternatives for a sale or merger. The company also announced plans to restructure its balance sheet.
Sources indicate that Spansion is mulling bankruptcy fillings. At one time, Toshiba Corp. was looking at Spansion.
The problems reached a boiling point when Cambou resigned. Earlier this week, Boaz Eitan, an executive vice president and member of the board, was named interim president of Spansion.
Kispert, former president and COO of KLA-Tencor, brings operational and financial experience to Spansion. ''As CEO, Kispert expects to intensify Spansion's strategic and restructuring initiatives to build value for the company's stakeholders, leveraging the company's leadership in the flash memory industry,'' according to Spansion.
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