IMHO this is just Intel hiding rather than solving its problems. It gives the appearance of management doing something but it's the wrong thing.

If we've learned nothing else, the big winners are at the cutting edge and vertically integrated. Splitting design and fab seems like a good idea: force fab to compete for design business. But middle management will take over and create perverse incentives where neither fab nor design radically improves.

I've heard tales of Intel being rife with politics, fiefdoms and empire-building. This is classic middle management run amok in the absence of real leadership. I honestly think the best thing Intel could do is fire everyone above the director level and start over.

Intel dominated when their fab was cutting edge and no one else had access to it. Splitting this means if their fab improves then everyone has access to it.

There's clearly an organizational problem here but this split isn't going to solve it.