Analysis: Plug-and-play IP goal remains elusive

Dylan McGrath, EE Times
(02/09/2009 2:28 AM EST)

SANTA CLARA, Calif.—Intellectual property (IP) was a hot topic at the DesignCon show here last week, with frustration over the quality of IP and business models that are described as immature being knocked more than once.

Users continue to bemoan the dearth of standards and effective quality metrics that they say would help greatly in confidently selecting IP. But several speakers in panel discussions here highlighted reasons why what sounds like a straightforward issue is infinitely more complex. And, many said, the only way to be truly successful in selecting and implementing IP is through deep vendor-customer collaboration.

During a panel on IP selection, an audience member voiced the observation that chips are like the printed circuit boards of yesteryear, with IP cores acting in the role once occupied by standard components. He likened stitching together an SoC using several IP blocks to slapping components onto a pc board to build a system.

But several audience members disagreed, noting that, among other things, standard components can be evaluated by datasheets and performance benchmarking that describe exactly what each device will do. For the most part, the IP business still offers nothing comparable.

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