July 31, 2009

Intel VP Sean Maloney kicked off the Intel Technology Summit today with a broad-ranging discussion of a number of themes that Intel has been pounding recently, including the state of the global computing market and the chipmaker's recommendations for and relationship to various government stimulus projects. Maloney also spoke to a few other hot topics in the ensuing Q&A, including netbook cannibalization of existing laptop sales, the impact of Windows 7 on the upgrade cycle, and rumors of the end of Moore's Law.

One of the biggest factors affecting any company with a foot in any kind of infrastructure market—and this includes everyone from Caterpillar to Intel—are the various global stimulus packages that are being rolled out by governments in their efforts to combat the downturn.

Maloney made a few references to the Chinese stimulus package that contributed to Intel's latest quarter earnings, some of which were direct and some of which were oblique. An example of the latter was his statement that "countries with foreign exchange reserves" can compensate for depressed IT spending. This latter statement was fascinating, and it initially me wonder if Maloney knows something the rest of us don't.

As for as domestic stimulus, Maloney thinks that the projects should be audited to ensure that they make use of the latest and greatest technology. He made some generalizations about how the architects and engineers on many large projects can be a bit behind the technology curve, so someone, presumably from Stimulus Central Planning, needs to make sure that all comrades use only the most glorious and auspicious technologies for the benefit of the motherland.

Source:-http://arstechnica.com