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MIGDAL HAEMEK, ISRAEL – Camtek fourth-quarter 2008 revenue was $12.4 million, 41% lower than the fourth-quarter 2007 revenue of $21 million and 35% lower than third-quarter 2008 revenue.

CHICAGO – IT, including hardware, is one of the big beneficiaries of the US economic stimulus plan, says TFI Quarterly Forum’s chief economist, Matt Chanoff. But, as big as it is, it’s too small to make up directly for the shortfall driven by the global recession, he adds.

More than $65 billion of the plan goes directly into high-tech spending. The top winners are medical infomatics ($22.7 billion); green tech support ($17.3 billion); smart grid power grid development ($11 billion); broadband and video conferencing ($7.5 billion), and automotive green tech ($4 billion).

Approximately one-third of this spending will go directly to hardware, meaning the US government will inject about $22 billion in spending over two years into an industry with $2.2 trillion in annual worldwide revenue, according to Chanoff. In other words, the US government package should directly add about 0.5% to industry revenue, he says.

"Success from the stimulus package requires clarity on what is available and how we can quickly leverage this injection of funds for the benefit of our industry,” said Kathleen Geraghty, TFI Quarterly Forum president.

SCOTTSDALE, AZ -- Smartphones are expected to double their share of the handset market to nearly 20% by 2013. Although growth will be strong globally, the US market will see the greatest increase, reports In-Stat.

STAMFORD, CT -- For the fourth quarter, worldwide mobile phone shipments dropped 4.6% from 2007 to 314.7 million units, according to Gartner Inc.

The PC industry should prepare itself for a very rough year, according to Gartner. The deepest unit decline in history is predicted, with shipments dropping 11.9% from last year to 257 million units.

TAIPEI -- Hon Hai (Foxconn) and IBM reportedly are set to sign a pact to codevelop environment-friendly products.

The Central News Agency is reporting China Parliament Speaker Wang Jin-pyng and Environmental Protection Administration Minister Shen Shu-hung will be among those present at the official signing, which is scheduled for March 4.

No financial or other terms of the deal were announced.

IBM has ventured down the environmentally friendly path before. In 2007, it committed $1 billion to fund Project Big Green, an effort toward environment-friendly, energy-efficient products and services. This is its first known deal with Foxconn, however.