Bidding war over key component could eliminate third hard disk maker
What if the three remaining hard disk manufacturers became two? Seagate Technology and Western Digital control 90% of the market, according to market researcher TrendForce, with Toshiba picking up the crumbs. Seagate and WD both make their own magnetic drive heads, but Toshiba relies on a third party, TDK, which also sells to Seagate and WD when they need extra capacity. Seeking to guarantee…
The hard disk market is dominated by three major players: Seagate Technology, Western Digital, and Toshiba. Seagate and Western Digital together control 90% of the market, with Toshiba relying on a third party, TDK, for critical magnetic drive heads. Toshiba attempted to secure TDK's drive head business earlier this year, leading Seagate to counteroffer.
TDK remains tight-lipped about the situation. If Seagate successfully acquires TDK, it could eliminate Toshiba from the hard disk market altogether. Despite Toshiba's dependence on suppliers for technological advancements, WD and Seagate are known for their continuous innovation. In February, Western Digital unveiled two technologies to enhance drive performance: high bandwidth drive technology (HBDT) and dual pivot technology (DPT).
HBDT allows for simultaneous reading and writing from multiple heads on multiple tracks, potentially doubling bandwidth compared to conventional HDDs. In July, Seagate introduced a 30TB hard disk in a 3.5-inch enclosure using its Heat-Assisted Magnetic Recording (HAMR) technology and announced plans for even larger capacities.
Written by urgent.news from Computerworld's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
