Apple purchasing flash memory from Japan to reduce reliance on Samsung

Apple is increasing purchases of flash memory from Japanese suppliers in an effort to scale back its dependance on Samsung for components, as the two companies continue their legal dispute, a new report claims.

DigiTimes on Thursday cited industry sources as saying that Apple has tapped Toshiba and Elpida Memory for orders of DRAM and NAND flash.

"Apple has moved to reduce its reliance on memory supplies from Samsung Electronics, the sources claimed," the report read. "The vendor has procured more NAND flash parts from Toshiba, and mobile RAM from Elpida, the sources indicated."

The tipsters also suggested that the ongoing legal dispute between Apple and Samsung has been "key to encouraging" Apple to broaden its supplier base. According to the report, the Korean electronics giant has been the largest component supplier for Apple's products in the past.

Last week, reports emerged that Apple had signed a foundry agreement with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. to manufacture the next two generations of Apple processors. The deal has been viewed as a significant blow to Samsung, which was contracted to produce the A4 and A5 chips used to power Apple's iOS devices.

Apple is slated to be Samsung's largest customer this year with a projected $7.8 billion in parts, up from $5.7 billion in 2010. The company has become the world's largest consumer of memory chips in recent years as it incorporated flash storage into its products.

In 2005, Apple revealed that it had reached agreements with several flash suppliers, including Samsung, to pre-pay more than $1 billion to guarantee flash shipments through 2010. Earlier this year, then COO Tim Cook called the deal a "fantastic use of Apple's cash."

For its part, Samsung currently boasts a more than 40 percent share of the worldwide DRAM market and a 30 percent share of NAND flash production.

The disagreement between the two companies has heightened in recent months. According to Samsung executives speaking on condition of anonymity, the company is already planning to target the as-yet-unannounced iPhone 5 with patent infringement suits when it arrives in Korea. Another recent report said Samsung will also pursue legal action against Apple's next-generation handset in Europe.

Recent gains made by Apple in Australia have prompted Samsung to fight back with a countersuit against the iPhone and iPad. Apple also won a permanent ban on the Galaxy Tab 10.1 in Germany earlier this month after a court ruled that Samsung's tablet looks too similar to the iPad 2.