Updated The ongoing semiconductor shortage has reached the point that it's affecting one of the most-hated aspects of printing – copy-protection chips on ink cartridges.

That's right, the function that enables printers to scream about foreign bodies if you dare to use a third-party cartridge or potentially prevent the printer from working at all.

Japanese electronics outfit Canon has had to admit, by way of its German tentacle, that it's having such a hard time getting hold of components that it's been forced to ship toner cartridges without the chip fitted.

This appears to mean, on certain models of multifunction printers, that using even a sanctioned Canon cartridge will have the same effect as cramming in a knockoff.

Not to worry. The company has posted a handy workaround, and it mostly involves clicking "Close", "I Agree", "OK", "Whatever", or "Fuck off already" whenever the printer starts complaining about cartridges that are actually designed to go in the device. The translation reads:

We value you as a customer and a constant user of Canon products.

Due to the persistent global shortage of semiconductor components, Canon is currently facing challenges in sourcing certain electronic components that are used in our consumables for our multifunction printers (MFP). These components [are used for example in] Features such as the detection of the remaining toner level.

In order to ensure a continuous and reliable supply of consumables, we have decided to deliver consumables without [the] semiconductor components until normal supply is restored.

There is no negative impact on print quality when using consumables without electronic components, but certain additional functions, such as [for example] the detection of the toner level may be impaired.

What follows are a number of individual instructions for printing on certain models (all from its imageRUNNER series, apparently), and they all follow the path of clicking away annoying error messages, though Canon warns: "The toner level displayed on your device may not be correct, and the remaining toner level may suddenly change from 'OK' to 'Empty'. When 'Empty' is displayed, install a new toner container."

Mildly inconvenient but hardly the end of the world, and it's funny that the one thing standing between printing with official cartridges and fakes is a little electronic signature that says everything's fine and gives accurate toner readings.

We asked Canon why the workaround was published on its German website specifically. We've also asked HP "Ink" how its supply for cartridge protection chips was holding up.

HP previously said that it does not want "unprofitable customers" and was considering preventing some printers from functioning with a cloned toner. For its part, HP previously said the risk of cloned supplies is that hackers can exploit a "vulnerability where the supply chip meets the printer" as well as quality and printer performance degradation. It has also said that almost all cloned cartridges end up in landfill, making it an environmental no-no.

We'll update the piece if we hear anything back. ®

HP got in touch to say: "HP uses original HP chips in its ink and toner cartridges to ensure the best possible customer experience while protecting against the counterfeiting of its supplies. The company leverages a globally diverse supply chain to remain agile and adaptable in the face of changing industry dynamics."

The global economy may be in a tenuous situation right now, but the semiconductor industry is likely to walk away from 2022 with a "healthy" boost in revenues, according to analysts at IDC. But beware oversupply, the analyst firm warns.

Semiconductor companies across the world are expected to grow collective revenues by 13.7 percent year-on-year to $661 billion, IDC said in research published Wednesday. Global semiconductor revenue last year was $582 billion.

"Overall, the semiconductor industry remains on track to deliver another healthy year of growth as the super cycle that began in 2020 continues this year," said Mario Morales, IDC group vice president of semiconductors.

Big Tech in America has had enough of Congress' inability to pass pending legislation that includes tens of billions of dollars in subsidies to boost semiconductor manufacturing and R&D in the country.

In a letter [PDF] sent to Senate and House leaders Wednesday, the CEOs of Alphabet, Amazon, Dell, IBM, Microsoft, Salesforce, VMware, and dozens of other tech and tech-adjacent companies urged the two chambers of Congress to reach consensus on a long-stalled bill they believe will make the US more competitive against China and other countries.

"The rest of the world is not waiting for the US to act. Our global competitors are investing in their industry, their workers, and their economies, and it is imperative that Congress act to enhance US competitiveness," said the letter.

Scientists in Germany claim to have developed bipolar transistors from organic materials, opening a path for flexible and transparent electronics.

The study, led by Shu-Jen Wang, post-doctoral researcher Technische Universität Dresden, built an organic bipolar junction transistor using doped rubrene. That could help the semiconductor industry to make the switch to organic materials, increasing access to a wide library of materials for building electronic devices.

Transistors are the basis of today's digital circuits and, at a simple level, allow one signal to control another. They can amplify a signal, or switch between 'on' and 'off' states, through control of a current of charge carriers – which are either electrons or their positive counterpart (holes), or both.

In the world of fabless chip designers, AMD, Nvidia and Qualcomm usually soak up the most attention since their chips are fueling everything from top-end supercomputers to mobile devices.

This hunger for compute is what has allowed all three companies to grow revenue in the high double digits recently. But there's one fabless chip designer that is growing faster among the largest in the world and it's far from a household name: Marvell Technology.

Silicon Valley-based Marvell grew semiconductor revenue by 72 percent to $1.4 billion in the first quarter, which made it the fastest growing out of the top 10 largest fabless chip designers during that period, according to financials compiled by Taiwanese research firm TrendForce.

If you've been ripping your hair out about the ongoing semiconductor shortage, you should know that chip manufacturers are at least trying to spend their way out of the problem at record levels.

Chipmakers across the world are expected to increase spending on equipment for front-end manufacturing plants by 20 percent to an all-time high of $109 billion in 2022, according to the latest World Fab Forecast report from semiconductor industry group SEMI.

To help illustrate how much money semiconductor companies are spending on fab equipment, consider the fact that they only handed over $55 billion for new kit in 2019, which means that the estimated investments this year represent a roughly 2x increase from three years ago.

Intel has found a new way to voice its displeasure over Congress' inability to pass $52 billion in subsidies to expand US semiconductor manufacturing: withholding a planned groundbreaking ceremony for its $20 billion fab mega-site in Ohio that stands to benefit from the federal funding.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Intel was tentatively scheduled to hold a groundbreaking ceremony for the Ohio manufacturing site with state and federal bigwigs on July 22. But, in an email seen by the newspaper, the x86 giant told officials Wednesday it was indefinitely delaying the festivities "due in part to uncertainty around" the stalled Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) for America Act.

That proposed law authorizes the aforementioned subsidies for Intel and others, and so its delay is holding back funding for the chipmakers.

Samsung vice chairman Lee Jae-yong is said to be courting Dutch chipmaker NXP on a visit to Europe to bolster the company's position in the automotive semiconductor market.

According to the Asian Tech Press, Jae-yong, who has been released on probation after serving time on corruption charges, is expected to visit several chipmakers and semiconductor manufacturing vendors including the Netherland's NXP and ASML, as well as Germany's Infineon. Press became aware of Jae-yong's plans after a Seoul Central District Court approved the vice chairman's travel plans.

NXP offers a wide array of microprocessors, power management, and wireless chips for automotive, communications, and industrial applications. However, the Asian Tech Press said Samsung's interest in the company, which is valued at approximately $56 billion, is primarily rooted in the company's automotive silicon.

Japan is reportedly hoping to join the ranks of countries producing leading-edge 2nm chips as soon as 2025, and it's working with the US to make such ambitions a reality.

Nikkei reported Wednesday that businesses from both countries will jointly research the design and manufacturing of such components for devices ranging from smartphones to servers as part of a "bilateral chip technology partnership" between America and Japan.

The report arrives less than a month after US and Japanese leaders said they would collaborate on next-generation semiconductors as part of broader agreement that also calls for "protecting and promoting critical technologies, including through the use of export controls."

Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC has revealed details of its much anticipated 2nm production process node – set to arrive in 2025 – which will use a nanosheet transistor architecture, as well as enhancements to its 3nm technology.

The newer generations of silicon semiconductor chips are expected to bring about increases in speed and will be more energy efficient as process nodes shrink and the tech industry continues to fight to hang onto Moore's Law.

The company is due to go into production with the 3nm node in the second half of this year.

China should seize Taiwan to gain control of TSMC if the United States and its allies impose sanctions against the Middle Kingdom like those now in place against Russia, according to a prominent Chinese economist.

The move follows the suggestion last year out of the US that Taiwan should be prepared to destroy its semiconductor factories if China were to invade.

This latest development comes in a speech by Chen Wenling, chief economist for the China Center for International Economic Exchanges, delivered at the China-US Forum hosted by the Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies at Renmin University of China at the end of May. The text of the speech was posted to the Guancha (Observer) online news site.

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