I knew TwinMOS as a Flash memory company: SD, CompactFlash, USB stick, flash-based MP3 player, etc. Before that, they made other hot electronic commodities. Like many other HsinChu companies, they are big enough for efficient manufacuring and small enough to be nimble. The success, or demise, of such companies depends on the judgement of a few who decide when to abandon an ageing product and retool the factory for the next wave of successes.
TwinMOS runs a mean and efficient IT department. They find something that works and stick to that system for years. Not for loyalty, but the costs of retooling. Or, as Jonathan said, they cannot afford the cost of exit. Let's just say that Sun has not yet penetrated TwinMOS (I am working on it). For now, they are one of my feelers to HsinChu science park and this versatile island of Taiwan.
And what product line they most prominently showed in CompuTex? Yes, like about 20 other booths, iPod speakers. All of them save a slot at the center to proudly up-stand an iPod, whatever model. The rest is the show-off of industrial designers: candy-colored sub-woofer of a space-age shape, speakers arranged in a creative way, a LCD screen, knobs or touch buttons, a remote control, and a back-panel of some connectors or wires.
Yes, like PC-AT few decades ago, iPod has started an industry. Apple today controls the specifications of the connector, the FairPlay technology, and a primary conduit to lots of contents. All amateur PC industry historians are predicting on what will happen in the next few years.
And guessing what Apple will do.