Only a week after reporting a drop in quarterly earnings, Intel has launched today a fresh bid to capture market share in the business computing segment.

Based on reports in the New York Times, the microchip manufacturer's newly branded line of processors is designed for companies which manage and maintain a large fleet of personal computers. Online rumors suggest the business brand could be called "Averill".

Intel has been losing market share to main competitor Advance Micro Devices (AMD) recently, and analysts suggest the chip giant is hoping the new business platform range will replicate the success the Centrino brand has enjoyed since its release in 2003. Centrino was the name Intel gave to a chip range, designed to handle the wireless capabilities of laptops and mobile devices.

Meanwhile, in a fresh blow to the Californian chip giant, the Korean stock exchange (KRX) broadcast that Samsung Electronics has usurped Intel to become the world's largest semiconductor manufacturer in terms of market value.

While Intel insists it will have its current problems in hand by the second half of 2006, market analysts are divided on the accuracy of this self-prognosis.