類比IC設計公司成長策略

Abstract

IC設計業是台灣高科技產業中重要的一環，也是知識經濟時代的主力產業，過去台灣IC設計業的發展重心大多集中在數位IC設計上，但近年來由於系統整合需求日增，已經邁向大者恆大的趨勢；反觀類比IC設計業，由於所需投入的人力與資源相對來得少，因此吸引相當多公司投入研發，逐漸形成產業聚落。

綜觀類比IC設計公司的崛起過程大多是由小公司、利基市場開始，但是當競爭者逐漸增加，公司面對的是資源與速度的競爭，公司能否利用過去的優勢順利轉型並擴充資源乃成為重要的發展關鍵。

本研究的主要目的在於發掘類比IC產業成長的動力，經由探討台灣類比IC產業的歷程，分析各公司的狀況、以及產業的發展瓶頸等問題，佐之以個案公司的創業歷程、發展策略、產品市場定位、競爭情勢及其所選取的成長模式，分析其決策的過程與考量，以及預期的效益與潛在的風險等問題，提出公司發展的策略建議，期望能作為台灣類比IC公司成長模式的參考。

IC design industry has been a key enabler in the knowledge based economy and a critical segment in the Taiwan high tech industry. The IC design industry in Taiwan used to focus mainly on digital IC development. As the demand for greater system integration increases, the industry matures and the scale economy prevails, large incumbent companies have created tremendous advantages. On the other hand, the relatively less demanding for man power and resources in analog IC design has attracted lots of new companies to participate in this industry. Analog IC design has been gradually developing into a new technology cluster.

Most analog IC design companies start small and target niche markets. As more and more companies enter this market, the competition for resources and agility intensifies. Using past advantages to acquire additional resources to transform company for new competition is an important milestone in the development of a successful company.

This research attempts to identify the dynamics of analog IC design industry by examining the development of the analog IC design in Taiwan, analyzing each individual company, and reviewing the bottlenecks in the industry development. Conducting case studies of individual companies is an integral part of this research. We examined a case company from its start-up history, development strategy, product and market positioning, competition, selected growth path, and decision making considerations, such as expected benefits and related risks. We drew our conclusions by making proposals on the strategic management of company development, which we hope will serve as a growth model for Taiwan analog IC companies.