Micron shares plummet after China bans chip sales

[midian182]

What just happened? US semiconductor giant Micron has had sales of its chips temporarily banned in China by one of the country’s courts. Taiwanese rival United Microelectronic Corporation (UMC) released a statement yesterday revealing the news, which saw shares in the American firm fall by as much as 8 percent.

The Fuzhou Intermediate People’s Court of the People’s Republic of China issued a preliminary injunction stopping Micron from selling 26 products, which includes some dynamic random-access memory and NAND flash items.

The move comes after UMC took Micron to the Chinese courts over patent infringement claims. It said the US company’s products infringed on three of its patents related to DDR4, SSDs, and graphic card memory. UMC requested that Micron stop making, importing, or selling these products. It also asked that all inventory be destroyed and applied for compensation.

"UMC is pleased with today's decision. UMC invests heavily in its intellectual property and aggressively pursues any company that infringes UMC's patents," UMC president Jason Wang said in a statement.

Micron said that it hasn’t been issued with an injunction from the Chinese court and would not be commenting further until it has received and reviewed the relevant documents.

The court drama started in December when Micron filed a lawsuit in California under the Defend Trade Secrets Act. It accused UMC and partner Fujian Jinhua Integrated Circuit Company of stealing RAM secrets and staff.

The latest events come as China continues to investigate allegations that Micron, Samsung, and Hynix participated in DRAM price-fixing schemes. The three firms are also facing a class action lawsuit in the US over the claims.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/75357-micron-shares-plummet-after-china-bans-chip-sales.html

 

[erickmendes]

DRAMa queens

 

[Dimitrios]

DRAMa queens

Well played.

 

[Lounds]

They need to sort the ram prices, it's depressing...

 

[captaincranky]

Was anybody really expecting a different outcome than this, after the US almost put ZTE out of business?

 

[cliffordcooley]

Was anybody really expecting a different outcome than this, after the US almost put ZTE out of business?

I was thinking the very same thing. However they must be grasping at straws, to use such a petty excuse for retaliation.

 

[captaincranky]

I was thinking the very same thing. However they must be grasping at straws, to use such a petty excuse for retaliation.

Not really. Politics doesn't necessarily require gravity of an individual issue, but visibility, back story, and profile mean everything.

I don't know how US courts have treated China's actions against American companies, but they've walked all over South Korea where Apple vs. Samsung is concerned..

China's back room antics against American interest's have been present at least since the Vietnam war.

We couldn't win that war, as China was suppling manpower and arms, in an endless stream down the Ho Chi Minh trail. In the case of North Korea, they have essentially taken Russia's place in North Korea, with respect to its defense against Western interests since the end of the Korean War. The simple fact is, the busier they can keep us dealing with North Korea, the less they have to put skin in the game

So, Trump taxes China's steel, and our congress continues to try to put ZTE out of business, over Trump's objections.

No matter how trivial this may seem, it is big news to the employees of Micron, and China is lavishing itself with the joy of spanking the US in public over it

 

[mbrowne5061]

Was anybody really expecting a different outcome than this, after the US almost put ZTE out of business?

I was thinking the very same thing. However they must be grasping at straws, to use such a petty excuse for retaliation.

Not really. Politics doesn't necessarily require gravity of an individual issue, but visibility, back story, and profile mean everything.

I don't know how US courts have treated China's actions against American companies, but they've walked all over South Korea where Apple vs. Samsung is concerned..

China's back room antics against American interest's have been present at least since the Vietnam war.

We couldn't win that war, as China was suppling manpower and arms, in an endless stream down the Ho Chi Minh trail. In the case of North Korea, they have essentially taken Russia's place in North Korea, with respect to its defense against Western interests since the end of the Korean War. The simple fact is, the busier they can keep us dealing with North Korea, the less they have to put skin in the game

So, Trump taxes China's steel, and our congress continues to try to put ZTE out of business, over Trump's objections.

No matter how trivial this may seem, it is big news to the employees of Micron, and China is lavishing itself with the joy of spanking the US in public over it

Taiwan is not China in this specific case. They are - as officially viewed by Washington and Beijing - a break-away province. China claims sovereignty over Taiwan, Taiwan bitterly disagrees (and effectively self-governs outside of the control of the Chinese Communist Party), and the US tries to stay neutral (while still playing both sides of the field when it suits them).

In this case, the ZTE decision is pretty much entirely irrelevant (though Taiwan probably loved it, just to see a Chinese rival get knocked down a couple of pegs).

 

[captaincranky]

...[ ]...In this case, the ZTE decision is pretty much entirely irrelevant (though Taiwan probably loved it, just to see a Chinese rival get knocked down a couple of pegs).

OK, so I never let let fact stand in the way of a good story. You could say the same thing about every politician who ever lived.

Besides, I tried to do a deep dive on US versus ROC patent cases. There were some, but as Foxconn is Apple is based in Taiwan, it seemed a bit pointless.

Although here's a pretty juicy tidbit about Foxconn offering 2 billion shares on the Shanghai exchange: http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/201805/14/WS5af8f298a3103f6866ee82e3.html

Which will piss off the mainland government, while leading to China trying to buy back Taiwan, one Foxconn share at a time, and result in the Chinese hijacking the rest of Apple's technology, (at least the little bit they haven't already stolen), resulting in Apple's army of lawyers trying to make an infringement case in Communist China's courts. (I think).

 

[GeforcerFX]

So this is a Taiwanese company, suing an american company, in a Chinese court? Where is Micron not allowed to be sold then in just the PRC or is Taiwan included, but wouldn't there need to be another case for Taiwan to have a ban since Taiwan has there own courts? Wonder what US response will be, which Chinese tech company do we bankrupt next?

 

[Abraka]

It's interesting how US media calls Taiwan part of China when the news is negative. But when it's a positive news then Taiwan is just Taiwan, no mention of China. Same with Hong Kong. For negative news they call out China, but if it's positive then it's Hong Kong.

But I'm glad that so many people here noticed this thing.
Definitely pretty smart audience here.