Tech-PC has posted an article on 64bit support in
forthcoming Intel products

Intel are not pushing their x86-64 solutions in the same marketplace as the Itanium, with the Itanium aimed exclusively at large multi-processor systems while Xeons are the reserve of smaller servers and workstations. Without EPIC, Intel will have no realistic prescence for the large server market, and when you see the price of processors in this sector you can understand why they would one, the Xeon architecture does not have the power or the scalibility it would need to compete in this kind of market place. Besides, if 64-bit Xeons were going to replace Itanium wouldn't we see Xeon, not Itanium 2, on the rear wing of the Toyota F1 car.

Read more