LOS ALTOS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Rambus Inc. (NASDAQ:RMBS), one of the world's premier technology licensing companies specializing in high-speed memory architectures, today announced it has acquired a number of patents from Inapac Technology, Inc. to broaden its offerings for the mobile memory market. These patented innovations complement the high-bandwidth, low-power memory technologies developed by Rambus as part of its Mobile Memory Initiative, announced earlier this year. Specific terms of the deal are not disclosed.
These newly acquired patented innovations are key enablers for achieving high manufacturing yields in System-in-Package (SiP) implementations. SiP consists of a number of stacked integrated circuits (IC) – such as a media processor, DRAM, and Flash memory device – enclosed in a single package or module. This technology allows designers to achieve high functionality in a very compact space, ideal for mobile products such as mobile phones and mobile gaming devices. Given its performance characteristics, SiP has applicability in computing and consumer electronics products as well.
“These patented innovations, which have been proven in shipments in over 90M DRAM devices in SiP implementations, broaden our portfolio for the mobile market,” said Herb Gebhart, vice president of Strategic Development at Rambus. “Combined with our high-performance, power-efficient memory technology, we offer compelling solutions that will help our licensees develop a new generation of breakthrough mobile products.”
Known to the industry as SiPFLOW™, the acquired patented innovations greatly increase the assembly yield in SiP devices. Industry-leading reliability rates of less than 100 defective parts per million (DPPM) have been achieved in high-volume SiP containing a DRAM and media processor. Products including the Motorola RAZR V3i and the Sony Ericsson C902 mobile phones have used these patented innovations through separate technology license agreements with Inapac.
Rambus’ Mobile Memory Initiative focuses on the development of high-performance, low-power memory solutions for smartphones, netbooks, portable gaming, and portable multimedia products. Rambus has demonstrated in silicon data rates of 4.3Gbps at best-in-class power efficiency. With this performance, designers could realize more than 17Gigabytes per second of memory bandwidth from a single mobile DRAM device.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
ARM Holdings plc 20F
Customer and revenue base: "At December 31, 2008, ARM’s technology has been licensed to 210 semiconductor companies, including many of the leading semiconductor companies worldwide..........In fiscal year 2008 the semiconductor industry as a whole declined by about 4%. The Company once again grew revenues, achieving a growth rate in US dollar revenues of approximately 6%.......Processor Division (PD) dollar license revenues grew by 18% in 2007 and decreased by 11% in 2008. The portfolio of licensable products comprises a rich mix of proven ARM technology, such as the ARM7, ARM9 and ARM11 families of products and newer technology such as the Cortex family of products and the Mali 3D graphics processors. 61 new licenses were signed in 2008 compared to 62 in 2007 and 65 in 2006. Revenues from Cortex family products accounted for 37% of PD license revenues in 2008, compared to 31% in 2007 and 26% in 2006. Cortex products started generating revenue in 2005. ARM11 accounted for 14% of PD license revenues in 2008, compared to 23% in 2007 and 22% in 2006. 23 companies became new ARM Partners in 2008, bringing the total number of semiconductor partners to 210 at the end of 2008."
Revenue by segment:
Video IP acqusition: "On December 16, 2008, the Company purchased the entire share capital of Logipard AB from Anoto Group AB and other shareholders for total cash consideration of SEK 68 million (£5.5 million) and £0.1 million of related acquisition expenses. The acquisition of video processor technology builds on the success of the ARM’s 3D graphics processor, and enables ARM to provide customers with an integrated multimedia platform, which is becoming increasingly important in devices such as mobile computers, portable media players and digital TVs."
Employees: "At December 31, 2008, the Company had 1,740 full-time employees, including 501 in the United States, 35 in Japan, 13 in South Korea, 10 in Taiwan, 23 in P.R. China and 300 in India."
Patent foundation: "The Company has an active program to protect its proprietary technology through the filing of patents. The Company currently holds 427 US patents on various aspects of its technology, and 734 non-US patents with expiration dates ranging from 2012 to 2029. In addition, the Company has 414 patent applications pending in the United States and an additional 576 patent applications pending in the United Kingdom and various other jurisdictions.....The number of proposed patent applications submitted by ARM employees was 143 in 2008..."
Revenue by segment:
- Processor Division: £221.4M
- Physical IP Division: £46.4M
- Systems Design Division: £31.1M
Video IP acqusition: "On December 16, 2008, the Company purchased the entire share capital of Logipard AB from Anoto Group AB and other shareholders for total cash consideration of SEK 68 million (£5.5 million) and £0.1 million of related acquisition expenses. The acquisition of video processor technology builds on the success of the ARM’s 3D graphics processor, and enables ARM to provide customers with an integrated multimedia platform, which is becoming increasingly important in devices such as mobile computers, portable media players and digital TVs."
Employees: "At December 31, 2008, the Company had 1,740 full-time employees, including 501 in the United States, 35 in Japan, 13 in South Korea, 10 in Taiwan, 23 in P.R. China and 300 in India."
Patent foundation: "The Company has an active program to protect its proprietary technology through the filing of patents. The Company currently holds 427 US patents on various aspects of its technology, and 734 non-US patents with expiration dates ranging from 2012 to 2029. In addition, the Company has 414 patent applications pending in the United States and an additional 576 patent applications pending in the United Kingdom and various other jurisdictions.....The number of proposed patent applications submitted by ARM employees was 143 in 2008..."
OPTi Receives Rulings on Summary Judgment Motions in Patent Infringement Action Against Apple Inc.
Palo Alto, CA., April 4, 2009 – OPTi Inc (OTCBB:OPTI) today announced that the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas issued rulings in the ongoing patent infringement action between OPTi Inc (“OPTi”) and Apple Inc. (“Apple”). The rulings arise from motions filed by both parties and argued before the court on April 2, 2009.
The rulings as issued on April 3, 2009 are:
The rulings as issued on April 3, 2009 are:
- The court granted OPTi’s summary judgment motion that Apple’s accused products infringe the patent at suit and denied Apple’s cross-motion for summary judgment that its products do not infringe the patents-in-suit.
- The court denied Apple’s motion seeking summary judgment that OPTi was entitled to no pre-suit damages for certain products. The Court ruled that whether OPTi had given Apple proper notification of infringement on those products is a question for the jury to decide.
- The court granted in part and denied in part Apple’s motion seeking to exclude the opinions of OPTi’s damages expert. The court ruled that the facts in the case do not support application of the entire market value rule, and that OPTi’s expert would be allowed to present to the jury the balance of the opinions that were the subject of Apple’s motion.
Monday, April 6, 2009
$8 Million in New Financing for Ember
BOSTON and CAMBRIDGE, U.K., APRIL 6, 2009 - Fueled by the significant surge in the deployment of smart meters, Ember Corporation, a leading provider of ZigBee wireless networking technology, today announced it closed an additional $8 million in funding from its primary venture capital investors and strategic partners.
Polaris Venture Partners, GrandBanks Capital, RRE Ventures, Vulcan Capital, DFJ ePlanet Ventures, New Atlantic Ventures, WestLB Mellon Asset Management (formerly West AM) and strategic partners such as Chevron Technology Ventures and Stata Venture Partners participated in the round. This new round combined with existing investments from STMicroelectronics, Hitachi Corporation and MIT bring the total capital Ember has raised to $89 million.
The company also announced the expansion of its sales channels with the addition of new distributors in Australia, New Zealand, India and Hong Kong, People’s Republic of China which are emerging as key markets for ZigBee-enabled smart meters.
About Ember
Ember Corporation (http://www.ember.com) develops ZigBee wireless networking technology that enables companies involved in energy technologies – enertech – to help make buildings and homes smarter, consume less energy, operate more efficiently, and keep people comfortable and safe. Ember’s low-power wireless technology can be embedded into a wide variety of devices to be part of a self-organizing mesh network. Ember is headquartered in Boston and has its radio development center in Cambridge, England, and distributors worldwide. The company is a promoter and Board member of the ZigBee Alliance and its platform is the “Golden Suite” for 802.15.4/ZigBee interoperability testing.
Polaris Venture Partners, GrandBanks Capital, RRE Ventures, Vulcan Capital, DFJ ePlanet Ventures, New Atlantic Ventures, WestLB Mellon Asset Management (formerly West AM) and strategic partners such as Chevron Technology Ventures and Stata Venture Partners participated in the round. This new round combined with existing investments from STMicroelectronics, Hitachi Corporation and MIT bring the total capital Ember has raised to $89 million.
The company also announced the expansion of its sales channels with the addition of new distributors in Australia, New Zealand, India and Hong Kong, People’s Republic of China which are emerging as key markets for ZigBee-enabled smart meters.
About Ember
Ember Corporation (http://www.ember.com) develops ZigBee wireless networking technology that enables companies involved in energy technologies – enertech – to help make buildings and homes smarter, consume less energy, operate more efficiently, and keep people comfortable and safe. Ember’s low-power wireless technology can be embedded into a wide variety of devices to be part of a self-organizing mesh network. Ember is headquartered in Boston and has its radio development center in Cambridge, England, and distributors worldwide. The company is a promoter and Board member of the ZigBee Alliance and its platform is the “Golden Suite” for 802.15.4/ZigBee interoperability testing.
LSI To Purchase AMCC RAID Adapter Business
MILPITAS, Calif., April 6, 2009 – LSI Corporation (NYSE: LSI) today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire the assets and certain associated intellectual property of the 3ware® RAID adapter business of Applied Micro Circuits Corporation (NASDAQ: AMCC) for approximately $20 million in cash.
3ware products include SAS and SATA RAID adapters designed to offer cost-effective, high-performance, high-capacity storage solutions for a broad range of applications. 3ware adapters are sold to end users through a worldwide network of channel partners including leading storage distributors and system builders.
"The indirect channel plays an important role in delivering today’s increasingly capable, yet often complex storage solutions to customers of all sizes," said Abhi Talwalkar, LSI president and chief executive officer. "The addition of the 3ware business to the LSI storage portfolio uniquely positions us to provide an unmatched breadth of rich storage solutions coupled with the outstanding channel support needed to help channel partners maximize their effectiveness."
The transaction is expected to close within thirty days and is subject to satisfaction of customary closing conditions. Upon closing, the 3ware business will be integrated into the LSI Engenio Storage Group.
LSI expects the acquisition to be neutral to non-GAAP* earnings per share in 2009. The company expects to provide further details in April when it reports first quarter results.
3ware products include SAS and SATA RAID adapters designed to offer cost-effective, high-performance, high-capacity storage solutions for a broad range of applications. 3ware adapters are sold to end users through a worldwide network of channel partners including leading storage distributors and system builders.
"The indirect channel plays an important role in delivering today’s increasingly capable, yet often complex storage solutions to customers of all sizes," said Abhi Talwalkar, LSI president and chief executive officer. "The addition of the 3ware business to the LSI storage portfolio uniquely positions us to provide an unmatched breadth of rich storage solutions coupled with the outstanding channel support needed to help channel partners maximize their effectiveness."
The transaction is expected to close within thirty days and is subject to satisfaction of customary closing conditions. Upon closing, the 3ware business will be integrated into the LSI Engenio Storage Group.
LSI expects the acquisition to be neutral to non-GAAP* earnings per share in 2009. The company expects to provide further details in April when it reports first quarter results.
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Infineon voluntary delists from New York Stock Exchange
Neubiberg, Germany — April 03, 2009 — Infineon Technologies AG today announced that it has applied to voluntarily delist its American Depositary Shares (“ADSs”) from the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”). The Company expects that the delisting will take effect on April 24, 2009, and that as of that date, the ADSs will no longer be traded on the NYSE. Infineon intends to file for deregistration and termination of its reporting obligations under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”) as soon as possible following the first anniversary of the delisting.
The Frankfurt Stock Exchange represents Infineon’s principal trading market, with trading on the NYSE accounting for a relatively low percentage of trading of its ADSs and ordinary shares on a worldwide basis. Infineon has therefore weighed the benefits of listing on the NYSE against the associated costs and reached the decision that continuing the listing of the ADSs is no longer commercially justifiable.
Infineon will maintain its ADS facility as a “Level I” program and pursue a listing of its ADSs on the over-the-counter market OTCQX. Infineon’s ordinary shares will continue to be traded on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, and the Company will continue to comply with the rigorous German disclosure and transparency requirements. Infineon will continue to publish its financial reports, press releases and other information in English for investors on its website.
After delisting and until deregistration is effective, Infineon will comply with its reporting obligations under the Exchange Act. After deregistration, Infineon will continue to maintain the level of disclosure expected by the international financial markets.
The Frankfurt Stock Exchange represents Infineon’s principal trading market, with trading on the NYSE accounting for a relatively low percentage of trading of its ADSs and ordinary shares on a worldwide basis. Infineon has therefore weighed the benefits of listing on the NYSE against the associated costs and reached the decision that continuing the listing of the ADSs is no longer commercially justifiable.
Infineon will maintain its ADS facility as a “Level I” program and pursue a listing of its ADSs on the over-the-counter market OTCQX. Infineon’s ordinary shares will continue to be traded on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, and the Company will continue to comply with the rigorous German disclosure and transparency requirements. Infineon will continue to publish its financial reports, press releases and other information in English for investors on its website.
After delisting and until deregistration is effective, Infineon will comply with its reporting obligations under the Exchange Act. After deregistration, Infineon will continue to maintain the level of disclosure expected by the international financial markets.
Tessera Announces Executive Changes
SAN JOSE, Calif. – April. 3, 2009 – Tessera Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: TSRA) today announced two key executive transitions, effective immediately. Bruce McWilliams, chief strategy officer, will leave his day-to-day role to pursue other opportunities, but will continue to serve as chairman of the Tessera board of directors. His responsibilities for developing company strategy will be assumed by John Keating, senior vice president of corporate development.
Scot Griffin, executive vice president of Tessera’s Micro-electronics business, will leave the company to pursue other business opportunities. Leadership of the Micro-electronics business will be assumed by Craig Mitchell, senior vice president of Interconnect, Components and Materials; and by Brian Marcucci, senior vice president of Business Development & Licensing. Responsibility for litigation and other IP protection activity related to the Micro-electronics business has been assumed by Bernard J. “Barney” Cassidy, general counsel and senior vice president, who joined Tessera in November of 2008. Griffin will continue as a consultant to the company regarding IP strategy for a period of three months.
Scot Griffin, executive vice president of Tessera’s Micro-electronics business, will leave the company to pursue other business opportunities. Leadership of the Micro-electronics business will be assumed by Craig Mitchell, senior vice president of Interconnect, Components and Materials; and by Brian Marcucci, senior vice president of Business Development & Licensing. Responsibility for litigation and other IP protection activity related to the Micro-electronics business has been assumed by Bernard J. “Barney” Cassidy, general counsel and senior vice president, who joined Tessera in November of 2008. Griffin will continue as a consultant to the company regarding IP strategy for a period of three months.
Exar Corporation Closes Hifn Acquisition
FREMONT, Calif., April 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Exar Corporation (Nasdaq: EXAR) announced today that it has closed the previously announced acquisition of hi/fn, inc. ("Hifn"), effective April 3, 2009. Al Sisto, the former chief executive officer and chairman of the board of directors of Hifn, has joined Exar's board of directors. It is expected that Hifn's personnel and operations will be relocated during the second calendar quarter of 2009.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Marvell 10K
Customer concentration: "Customers representing 10% or more of our net revenue in fiscal 2009: Western Digital 21%."
Wafer foundry: "We currently outsource a substantial percentage of our integrated circuit manufacturing to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, with the remaining manufacturing outsourced to other foundries primarily in Asia."
Assembly and test: "We outsource all product packaging and substantially all testing requirements for our production products to several assembly and test subcontractors, including STATS ChipPAC Ltd. and Global Testing Corporation in Singapore, Siliconware Precision Industries in Taiwan and ASE Electronics in Singapore, Taiwan and Malaysia."
Employees: "As of January 31, 2009, we had a total of 5,552 employees.........On March 5, 2009, in response to the deteriorating global economic environment we announced plans to lower our overall costs and expenses. As a result of this plan and combined with certain cost reduction measures taken in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2009, we plan to reduce our global workforce by approximately 15%, or approximately 850 employees..........We have substantial operations, including approximately 21% of our workforce as of January 31, 2009, in Israel. "
Patent foundation: "As of January 31, 2009, we have been issued and/or have acquired over 850 U.S. patents and over 200 foreign patents and we have more than 2,300 U.S. and foreign pending patent applications on various aspects of our technology, with expiration dates ranging approximately from 2010 to 2027."
New patent litigation: "On March 6, 2009, Carnegie Mellon University filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania naming MSI and the Company and alleging patent infringement. Carnegie Mellon has asserted two patents purportedly relating to hard disk drive products that incorporate read-channel integrated circuits. Because this action was only recently filed, MSI and the Company have not yet answered the complaint. The Company is in the process of reviewing these patents and hiring counsel to defend us in this action. This action is in the very early stages, however, the Company intends to contest this action vigorously, but is unable to predict the outcome of this action."
Wafer foundry: "We currently outsource a substantial percentage of our integrated circuit manufacturing to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, with the remaining manufacturing outsourced to other foundries primarily in Asia."
Assembly and test: "We outsource all product packaging and substantially all testing requirements for our production products to several assembly and test subcontractors, including STATS ChipPAC Ltd. and Global Testing Corporation in Singapore, Siliconware Precision Industries in Taiwan and ASE Electronics in Singapore, Taiwan and Malaysia."
Employees: "As of January 31, 2009, we had a total of 5,552 employees.........On March 5, 2009, in response to the deteriorating global economic environment we announced plans to lower our overall costs and expenses. As a result of this plan and combined with certain cost reduction measures taken in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2009, we plan to reduce our global workforce by approximately 15%, or approximately 850 employees..........We have substantial operations, including approximately 21% of our workforce as of January 31, 2009, in Israel. "
Patent foundation: "As of January 31, 2009, we have been issued and/or have acquired over 850 U.S. patents and over 200 foreign patents and we have more than 2,300 U.S. and foreign pending patent applications on various aspects of our technology, with expiration dates ranging approximately from 2010 to 2027."
New patent litigation: "On March 6, 2009, Carnegie Mellon University filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania naming MSI and the Company and alleging patent infringement. Carnegie Mellon has asserted two patents purportedly relating to hard disk drive products that incorporate read-channel integrated circuits. Because this action was only recently filed, MSI and the Company have not yet answered the complaint. The Company is in the process of reviewing these patents and hiring counsel to defend us in this action. This action is in the very early stages, however, the Company intends to contest this action vigorously, but is unable to predict the outcome of this action."
Trident Microsystems to Acquires Product Lines from Micronas
Santa Clara, Calif. — March 31, 2009: Trident Microsystems, Inc. (Nasdaq: TRID), a leader in high-performance semiconductor system solutions for the multimedia and digital television (DTV) markets, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement with Micronas Semiconductor Holding AG (SIX Swiss Exchange: MASN) to acquire selected assets of the frame rate converter (FRC), demodulator and audio product lines of Micronas’ Consumer Division. The consideration payable to Micronas will consist of 7.0 million shares of Trident common stock and warrants to acquire up to 3.0 million additional Trident shares.
Under the terms of the agreement, Trident will acquire products, technology and intellectual property used in Micronas’ FRC line of frame rate converters, the DRX line of demodulators and all of the Micronas audio processing products. Upon completion of the acquisition, we expect our total headcount to increase by approximately 150 employees located throughout the world. Following the close of the transaction, Trident will have new design centers in Munich and Freiburg, Germany, as well as Nijmegen, The Netherlands and expects to establish its European headquarters in Munich. In connection with the acquisition, Trident will issue 7.0 million common shares to Micronas, which are valued at approximately $10 million, based on the closing price of Trident common stock on Tuesday March 31, 2009. Trident will also issue warrants to Micronas to acquire up to 3.0 million additional Trident shares. One million warrants will vest on each of the second, third and fourth anniversaries of the closing of the acquisition, with exercise prices of $4.00 per share, $4.25 per share and $4.50 per share, respectively. If not yet exercised, the warrants will expire on the fifth anniversary of the closing of the acquisition. Upon closing, Micronas will own approximately 10 percent of Trident, without giving effect to the exercise of the warrants or any other dilutive securities. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of Trident’s fiscal year, ending June 30, 2009, and remains subject to the satisfaction of closing conditions contained in the definitive agreement, including certain regulatory approvals.
Union Square Advisors LLC acted as exclusive financial advisor to Trident. DLA Piper LLP and Schellenberg Wittmer served as legal counsel to Trident.
Under the terms of the agreement, Trident will acquire products, technology and intellectual property used in Micronas’ FRC line of frame rate converters, the DRX line of demodulators and all of the Micronas audio processing products. Upon completion of the acquisition, we expect our total headcount to increase by approximately 150 employees located throughout the world. Following the close of the transaction, Trident will have new design centers in Munich and Freiburg, Germany, as well as Nijmegen, The Netherlands and expects to establish its European headquarters in Munich. In connection with the acquisition, Trident will issue 7.0 million common shares to Micronas, which are valued at approximately $10 million, based on the closing price of Trident common stock on Tuesday March 31, 2009. Trident will also issue warrants to Micronas to acquire up to 3.0 million additional Trident shares. One million warrants will vest on each of the second, third and fourth anniversaries of the closing of the acquisition, with exercise prices of $4.00 per share, $4.25 per share and $4.50 per share, respectively. If not yet exercised, the warrants will expire on the fifth anniversary of the closing of the acquisition. Upon closing, Micronas will own approximately 10 percent of Trident, without giving effect to the exercise of the warrants or any other dilutive securities. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of Trident’s fiscal year, ending June 30, 2009, and remains subject to the satisfaction of closing conditions contained in the definitive agreement, including certain regulatory approvals.
Union Square Advisors LLC acted as exclusive financial advisor to Trident. DLA Piper LLP and Schellenberg Wittmer served as legal counsel to Trident.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)