Bit, Inc.
FormerlyBipolar Integrated Technology, Inc.
TypePrivate
IndustryComputer
Founded1983 (1983)in Beaverton, Oregon, United States
Defunct1996 (1996)
FateAcquired by PMC-Sierra
ProductsSemiconductor
Number of employees
250 (peak)[1]

Bipolar Integrated Technology, Inc. (BIT), later Bit, Inc., was a privately held[2] semiconductor company based in Beaverton, Oregon, which sold products implemented with emitter-coupled logic technology. The company was founded in 1983 by former Floating Point Systems, Intel, and Tektronix engineers.[1][3][4][5] The company, which occupied a 46,000-square-foot manufacturing facility manufacturing facility at the Oregon Graduate Center,[6] raised $36 million in start-up capital within three years of its foundation.[7]

Die shot of a BIT B2110 floating point multiplier

The initial product was a floating-point co-processor chipset. Later, the company produced the B5000 SPARC ECL microprocessor (never reached production in a Sun Microsystems product, though used by Floating Point Systems).[8] They also produced the R6000 MIPS ECL microprocessor, which did reach production as a MIPS minicomputer.[9] Initial yields of the R6000 were very poor, leading to parts shortages for MIPS Computer Systems; the latter company attributed their first quarterly loss in October 1990 to BIT.[10] The two signed an agreement in June 1991 to allow BIT to market the R6000 on the open market, dissolving the previous exclusivity agreement with MIPS.[11]

Under its new president Fred Hanson, BIT had its first profitable year in 1991,[11] reaching peak revenues of $20 million. Revenues dropped the following year to about $10 million, however, after it had lost four of its largest customers, including MIPS, Floating Point, and Control Data.[12] The company eventually entered the telecommunications market with Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) devices and Ethernet switches. The company was acquired by PMC-Sierra in September 1996 for these later communications products.[1][13]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Staff writer (September 9, 1996). "Sierra purchases Bit". Electronic News. International Publishing Corporation. 42 (2133): 2 – via ProQuest.
  2. ↑ Ristelhueber, Robert (July 1, 1991). "Bipolar Integrated Tech, MIPS sign two chip-set agreements". Chilton's Electronic News. Sage Publications. 37 (1867): 15 – via Gale.
  3. ↑ Staff writer (1986). "Sunset corridor symbolizes power of private sector". National Real Estate Investor. Communication Channels. 28: 196 – via Google Books.
  4. ↑ Staff writer (April 15, 1990). "Bipolar names new chief officer". The Oregonian. Oregonian Publishing Company: D6 – via ProQuest.
  5. ↑ Staff writer (July 31, 1992). "Bipolar appoints top financial officer as president, CEO". The Oregonian. Oregonian Publishing Company: C7 – via ProQuest.
  6. ↑ Anderson, Michael A. (March 23, 1987). "BIT cashes in on chip that's faster and cooler". Business Journal-Portland. American City Business Journals. 4: 2 – via Gale.
  7. ↑ Hill, Gail Kinsley (August 3, 1987). "BIT, Lattice trim sails in face of difficulty". Business Journal-Portland. American City Business Journals. 4: 1 – via Gale.
  8. ↑ Agrawal, Anant; Emil W. Brown; Dave Murata; Joseph Petolino (2012). "Bipolar ECL Implementation of SPARC". In Ben J. Catanzaro (ed.). The SPARC Technical Papers. Springer New York. pp. 201–211. ISBN 9781461231929 – via Google Books.
  9. ↑ Fletcher, A. (2013). Profile of the Worldwide Semiconductor Industry: Market Prospects to 1997. Elsevier Science. p. 251. ISBN 9781483284859 – via Google Books.
  10. ↑ Manning, Jeff (October 22, 1990). "'Modest' loss tied to Beaverton firm's production lag". Business Journal-Portland. American City Business Journals. 7 (34): 11 – via Gale.
  11. 1 2 Manning, Jeff (June 24, 1991). "Licensing agreement may restore shine to BIT's performance". Business Journal-Portland. American City Business Journals. 8 (17): 1 – via Gale.
  12. ↑ Manning, Jeff (December 21, 1992). "BIT layoffs drag on, new investors sought". Business Journal-Portland. American City Business Journals. 9 (43): 1 – via Gale.
  13. ↑ Wirbel, Loring (December 8, 1997). "PMC-Sierra unveils Exact bus, switching fabric". Electronic Engineering Times. CMP Publications (984): 50 – via ProQuest.
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