MediaTek achieved a record revenue of $17.6 billion in 2021, with operating margin rising for the fourth consecutive year, driven by investment in 5G, Wi-Fi 6, and low-power technology. Revenue during 2020 stood at $11.5 billion, which makes last year’s revenue about 53% higher.
However, revenues for Q4 2021 went down 2% QoQ mostly due to the reduction of 9% QoQ in smartphone revenues. It was still 33.5% higher than the same quarter in 2020 though (via Counterpoint).
The decline in smartphone revenue was due to reduced smartphone chipset sales which can be owed to higher than usual demand by Chinese OEMs in the first half. Because of supply constraints, such companies built a chipset inventory to prepare for future uncertainties.
That aside, MediaTek has some big plans for 2022. The revenue is once again expected to rise up to $4.7-$5.1 billion, which is about 2-10% higher than Q4 2021. The driving force for this is expected to be the Dimensity 9000 flagship processor and higher 5G penetration. The Dimensity 9000 has secured customers like OPPO, vivo, and Xiaomi, and the first model with the chip is expected to be launched in March.
The revenue for all of 2022 is expected to be 20% higher YoY with a gross margin target of 48% to 50%, owing to a better product mix and strong technology migration. MediaTek has secured the needed capacity with TSMC and 2022 looks all set to be another strong year.
Not only that but MediaTek is expected to even lead the smartphone chipset market with a 39% volume share in Q1 2022, beating Qualcomm with its 29% figure. The Taiwanese chipmaker has guided long-term revenue growth but most will still be driven by smartphones.
Qualcomm has multiple tricks up its sleeve though and has already diversified into automotive, IoT, and RF (radio frequency) sectors. To better compete and gain relevance across a wider range of products, MediaTek will have to secure more investment or new partnerships.
Currently, MediaTek has design wins with infotainment applications in the automotive segment and the company is also focusing on Extended Reality (XR). Investments have mostly been made in core technology, however, that includes 5G modem with low latency, mmWave support, next-gen. Wi-Fi, 6G, security IP, etc. Gains have also been recorded in the notebook/PC segment, thanks to 5G modems, Wi-Fi 6/6E, Kompanio chipsets (for Chromebooks) in partnership with Intel and AMD.
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