If no competition steps up, however, the startup could find itself alone in a limited niche. PMC-Sierra Inc. (Nasdaq: PMCS)
and Vitesse Semiconductor Corp. (Nasdaq: VTSS) still ship active/passive multiplexers.
One SATA pioneer has his own theory. I guess its good to be in a market where no one else is; but if no one else does it, you want to ask, Why is no one else doing it? asks J. Peter Herz, founder of SATA controller startup 3Ware, which Applied Micro Circuits Corp. (AMCC) (Nasdaq: AMCC) bought for $150 million a year ago (see AMCC Buys More Storage).
Herz, who left AMCC after the sale, speculates the market isnt big enough. While active-active helps performance, it's a feature associated with higher-end storage. SATA is predominantly aimed at the low-cost storage market. Storage is getting so cheap that high-end features arent needed, Herz says. If it breaks, you just replace it.
That doesnt mean SiliconStor is doomed. It seems likely to score sufficient wins to survive in the short term, and as a small startup with little overhead, it doesnt require the volume that the bigger companies would. If the larger chip makers decide down the road to embrace active-active SATA and SAS multiplexer chips, SiliconStor could be an acquisition target. It also could eventually expand beyond multiplexer chips.
In any case, SiliconStor hasn't given away too many details. When the company announced its Dot Hill deal last November, CEO Mike Ofstedahl wouldnt reveal how big the company was or how much funding it had.
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