Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, South Korea’s two-biggest memory chip makers, dominated the global DRAM market with the largest combined share in the second quarter of the year, showed data from market researcher DRAMeXchange on Tuesday.

Samsung and SK hynix accounted for a combined 73.5 percent of the world’s DRAM market in the April-June period, recording the biggest share.

Samsung’s share dropped slightly from 44.9 percent in the first quarter to 43.6 percent, while SK hynix’s expanded from 27.9 percent to 29.9 percent, according to data.

The global DRAM market grew 11.3 percent in the second quarter from the previous quarter to reach $25.69 billion in total revenue, which marked the largest revenue as well.

Samsung’s DRAM revenue for the quarter went up by 8.2 percent on-quarter to a new high of $11.21 billion. SK hynix’s rose 19.5 percent to $7.69 billion due to a significant increase in bit shipments.

To cement its leading position in the global market, Samsung on Tuesday announced a 100 billion won ($88 million) investment in joint research projects on chip development with renowned universities in Seoul including Seoul National University. 

Samsung’s semiconductor business division will create a center for joint projects with the universities to efficiently conduct the projects, it said.

“Academic research and the nurturing of talent are crucial for the development of the semiconductor industry,” said Samsung CEO Kim Ki-nam. “The latest expansion in joint research between academia and Samsung will hopefully lead the Korean semiconductor industry’s growth.”

By Song Su-hyun (song@heraldcorp.com)