BiTMICRO Networks Adopts Configurable ARC 700 Core Family for Next Generation E-Disk

ELSTREE, England and FREMONT, Calif., April 18, 2006 – ARC International (LSE: ARK) today announced that BiTMICRO Networks, Inc., the leading provider of high performance non-volatile solid state disk, flash disk drive and network storage and management solutions, has taken a license for the ARC™ 700 family of configurable cores. BiTMICRO will use ARC’s configurable processors to develop low cost, next-generation system-on-chip (SoC) devices for their state-of-the-art E-Disk® solid state storage solutions.

These new families of SoCs comprise the TALINO™ high-speed disk controllers with integrated common industry standard interface cores while the ISIP™ flash memory controllers will provide high-performance multi-vendor support for large arrays of flash devices.

“We chose ARC’s configurable processors after evaluating a number of fixed architecture alternatives, including PowerPC®,” said Rudy Bruce, executive vice president for marketing and sales at BiTMICRO Networks. “The configurable ARC 700 family prevailed because it gives additional product differentiation and a competitive market advantage through the creation of unique architectural features in the CPU. Furthermore, the processor modifications we make provide a level of protection against cloning by our competitors, which non-configurable cores cannot offer.”

The Configurable ARC™ 700 Core Family

The configurable ARC 700 core family delivers the most power- and area-efficient 32-bit CPU and DSP processors in its performance class in a unified RISC architecture. At up to 700 MHz and over 1068 DMIPS performance in a 90 nanometer process, the 710D, 725D AND 750D cores meet the needs of the most demanding SoC applications, such as graphics, media codecs and packet processing. The 700 core family also makes an ideal platform for devices requiring high-end embedded operating systems such as Linux. Standard features include DSP instructions, RTOS and secure processing support. ARC's XY Advanced DSP subsystem, Memory Management Unit and FPX floating point extensions are available options for each core.

Using ARC’s patented configurable CPU technology, SoC designers can easily optimize an ARC processor for their specific applications. Features and instructions can be added or removed to achieve a highly differentiated solution that consumes less power and less silicon area, and is unique and proprietary to its creator.

About BiTMICRO Networks

BiTMICRO® Networks (http://www.bitmicro.com), a privately held California corporation, is the leading provider of rugged and high performance non-volatile solid state disk, flash disk drive, and network storage and management solutions. E-Disk® storage solutions are offered with SCSI Narrow and Wide, IDE/ATA and Fibre Channel interfaces in 2.5-inch and 3.5-inch hard disk drive footprints, and 19-inch rack mount configurations scalable up to several terabytes of pure solid state storage.

About ARC International plc

ARC International is the world leader in low-power, high-performance 32-bit configurable CPU/DSP processor cores, subsystems, real-time operating systems and development tools for embedded system design. ARC’s patented configurable CPU technology assists customers in the development of next generation digital media, consumer and communications devices, resulting in lower cost, higher performance SoC products.

ARC International maintains a worldwide presence with corporate offices in San Jose, California, USA and Elstree, UK. The company has research and development offices located in England and the United States. For more information please visit the ARC website at: www.ARC.com. ARC International is listed on the London Stock Exchange as ARC International plc (LSE: ARK).