Most Taiwan-based IC design houses now count on seasonal demand in the second quarter to help drive their sales as demand for related IC products for the entry- to mid-level handsets has remained slack recently, according to industry sources.

In addition to reducing demand for white-box handsets in the China market, handset vendors in some emerging markets have also held back orders for ICs due to social unrest, the sources noted.

As a result, revenues of some IC design houses, including MediaTek, Novatek Microelectronics, Sitronix Technology, ILi Technology (Ilitek), Orise Technology and Anpec Electronics, are expected to hover at their low levels in the first quarter, the sources indicated.

MediaTek revealed earlier that its first-quarter revenues are likely to hit its low-end target of NT$19.5-NT$21 billion due to low order visibility.