We already told you in December that MSI and Leadtek may become exclusive manufacturers of the GeForce FX-based graphics cards and now we can confirm this based on a Taiwanese DigiTimes web-site article dated Monday 13th of January 2003. The report claims that the Santa Clara, California-based GPU developer will ask certain EMS manufacturers to produce the GeForce FX powered graphics cards and to sell them to NVIDIA’s AIB partners afterwards. The latter will only have to sell the mentioned products under their own brand-name. Eventually, AIB makers will receive code-named NV31 and NV34 chips and will be allowed to design their own graphics cards based on these VPUs.

It is a well-known fact that modern high-end graphics cards utilise very complex PCB design, requiring advanced manufacturing capabilities and also quality PCBs. Reportedly the GeForce FX reference design requires 8 to 12-layer PCB that can be made only by the first-tier producers, such as Compeq Manufacturing, World Wiser Electronics, Gold Circuit Electronics and Nanya PCB. NVIDIA negotiates with these manufacturers and plans to sell its GeForce FX manufacturing partners (probably MSI and Leadtek) the graphics processors along with a PCB and DDR-II SDRAM memory.

Later, say, in March or April, or, maybe, in April and May, NVIDIA will start to deliver their code-named NV31 and NV34 VPUs. AIB manufacturers will be allowed to design and built their own products powered by these processors following basic reference design by NVIDIA. Of course, these solutions should also allow the makers of graphics cards to achieve higher gross margins.

The information is strictly unofficial and was not commented by NVIDIA representatives so far.