Memory Maker Qimonda Declares Bankruptcy

By Geoff Duncan Published January 23, 2009

Memory Maker Qimonda Declares Bankruptcy

DRAM menufacturer Qimonda has filed for bankrupcty protection in a local court in Munich, Germany, after a bailout financing deal between Qimonda’s parent company, Infineon, a Portuguese investment firm, and the German state of Saxony failed to come through. Qimonda is the first DRAM manufacturer forced to seek bankruptcy protection in the recent global economic downturn; the company has also been hit hard by a worldwide glut in memory products that kept prices for RAM near (or even below) the costs of manufacturing DRAM for most of 2008.

Qimonda is seeking to reorganize its business, and anticipates the bankruptcy filing will enable it to more rapidly restructure its business and get back on its feet. “We assume we will be able to continue our business within the context of our restructuring program with the support of the temporary insolvency administrator and our employees,” said CEO and president Kin Wah Loh, in a statement.

Recommended Videos

The Munich court has appointed Dr. Michael Jaffé, a well-known bankruptcy attorney, as preliminary insolvency administrator for Qimonda.

Qimonda employs over 12,000 people worldwide.

The state-supposed bailout plan had been set to infuse €325 million (about $420 million) into Qimonda, but the deal hasn’t been finalized and the company hasn’t received any of the funds.

Taiwan has also moved to shore up the books of its own DRAM manufacturers, pledging almost $6 billion in bailout money to support its memory manufacturers.

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…

Computing

How to change margins in Google Docs

Laptop Working from Home

When you create a document in Google Docs, you may need to adjust the space between the edge of the page and the content --- the margins. For instance, many professors have requirements for the margin sizes you must use for college papers.

You can easily change the left, right, top, and bottom margins in Google Docs and have a few different ways to do it.

Computing

What is Microsoft Teams? How to use the collaboration app

A close-up of someone using Microsoft Teams on a laptop for a videoconference.

Online team collaboration is the new norm as companies spread their workforce across the globe. Gone are the days of primarily relying on group emails, as teams can now work together in real time using an instant chat-style interface, no matter where they are.

Using Microsoft Teams affords video conferencing, real-time discussions, document sharing and editing, and more for companies and corporations. It's one of many collaboration tools designed to bring company workers together in an online space. It’s not designed for communicating with family and friends, but for colleagues and clients.

Computing

Microsoft Word vs. Google Docs

A person using a laptop that displays various Microsoft Office apps.

For the last few decades, Microsoft Word has been the de facto standard for word processors across the working world. That's finally starting to shift, and it looks like one of Google's productivity apps is the heir apparent. The company's Google Docs solution (or to be specific, the integrated word processor) is cross-platform and interoperable, automatically syncs, is easily shareable, and perhaps best of all, is free.

However, using Google Docs proves it still has a long way to go before it can match all of Word's features -- Microsoft has been developing its word processor for over 30 years, after all, and millions still use Microsoft Word. Will Google Docs' low barrier to entry and cross-platform functionality win out? Let's break down each word processor in terms of features and capabilities to help you determine which is best for your needs.
How does each word processing program compare?
To put it lightly, Microsoft Word has an incredible advantage over Google Docs in terms of raw technical capability. From relatively humble beginnings in the 1980s, Microsoft has added new tools and options in each successive version. Most of the essential editing tools are available in Google Docs, but users who are used to Word will find it limited.