Led by booming exports of APs, or applications processors, DDIs, or display driver ICs, and CMOS image sensors, exports of SOCs would make up more than 45% of the country’s total semiconductor chip exports in 2012, outmaneuvering once kingpin memory chips as the biggest growth engine for the first time in history.
The share of memory chip exports as a percentage of the total will likely be in the neighborhood of 39.6%, according to the Ministry of Knowledge Economy.
Yet, the industry has still a long way to go before it makes it to global prominence.
The sheer size of Korean SOC chip makers still pales in comparison with that of global players that are aggressively consolidating their operations by going on a merger and acquisition binge. More worrisome, they lack in core technologies for base-band modem chips and power supply and management chips.
"As global fabless SOC chip makers are going on a buyout spree to consolidate their operations, size matters more than in the past, threatening to force out still young and just fledgling Korean SOC chip makers," said Kim, Jeong-Il, director of semiconductor, display & electric industries division with the Ministry of Knowledge Economy.
Power management SOCs are at the center of its R&D projects. The ministry plans to raise 323.0 billion won in private and public funds to finance the development projects for power management SOC solutions over the next 7 years from 2014 through 2020.
The ministry will also work together with KISA, the Korea Semiconductor Industry Association, to establish and operate IP bank, which will allow fabless SOC chipmaker to recyle legacy IPs, or license new IPs with no overlapped investments. This co-use of IPs will help them to cut short their development lead time and costs.
The Korea-China SOC industry's cooperation office, which was established in May, 2012 in the city of Shenzen will also play a key role in Korean SOC makers' headway into the Chinese market. The ministry plans to invite a pool of overseas Korean brains in what it calls as reverse brain drain to help fabless chipmaker's design activities.