SiliconBlue and Magma Strengthen Technology Partnership

Update: Lattice Semiconductor to Acquire SiliconBlue (Dec 09, 2011)

Magma's Physical Synthesis and Placement Technology Optimized for Industry's First Ultra-Low-Power FPGA Technology for Battery-Powered Applications

SUNNYVALE, Calif. and SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Nov 24, 2008 -- SiliconBlue(tm) Technologies, pioneer of an Ultra-Low-Power 65-nm FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) technology for consumer applications, today announced it has formalized a technical partnership with Magma(r) Design Automation. The agreement facilitates close collaboration and co-development between the two companies to provide a comprehensive FPGA design environment for SiliconBlue's iCE65(tm) FPGA product line, which was introduced in June.

Under the agreement, Magma's advanced, timing-driven physical synthesis and placement technology - tailored for SiliconBlue's iCE65 architecture - has been fully integrated into SiliconBlue's iCEcube(tm) tool flow providing designers with a seamless FPGA design environment from concept to bitstream. The tools support standard constraint formats and provide comprehensive coverage of Verilog and VHDL languages. In addition, the tools take advantage of SiliconBlue's advanced NVCM (non-volatile configuration memory) technology at 65 nm and future process nodes. The iCEcube 2008.9 is available immediately for download at: www.siliconbluetech.com/iCube_development_software.php

"Our partnership with Magma gives us and our customers access to proven, state-of-the-art logic and physical synthesis tools," said Kapil Shankar, CEO of SiliconBlue. "The integration of these tools will allow SiliconBlue customers to take full advantage of the benefits of our unique low-cost, low-power iCE65 FPGA product line. We look forward to continuing our co-development work with Magma."

"Reducing chip development costs through increased productivity, improved results and faster turnaround time is a key advantage of the Magma software," said Kevin Moynihan, general manager of Magma's Design Implementation Business Unit. "We're pleased to be working with SiliconBlue to make our superior technology available to a broader set of FPGA designers."

The response to SiliconBlue's low-power FPGAs has been exceptional; within a short period of three months, the company has more than 70 customer engagement / tool installations. Fusao Saito of TOMEN Electronics said, "We have designed the iCE65 device into an application for our leading-edge embedded solution - something that could not have been done with a traditional FPGA. SiliconBlue's single-chip NVCM technology fit our requirements for small space, low cost and easy-to-use tools, and it also allows us to meet critical time-to-market demands."

About Magma's Tools

Magma's synthesis and place-and-route technology interfaces with FPGA implementation tools and supports vendor-specific design constraints, netlists and IP or library blocks. This technology also provides a fast, simple and fully automated synthesis solution to meet aggressive timing goals with minimal effort. High-level technology-independent optimizations and area minimization allow customers to reduce area utilization and fit designs into smaller FPGA devices.

About Magma

Magma's software for designing integrated circuits (ICs) is used to create complex, high-performance chips required in cellular telephones, electronic games, WiFi, MP3 players, DVD/digital video, networking, automotive electronics and other electronic applications. Magma's EDA software for IC implementation, analysis, physical verification, circuit simulation and characterization is recognized as embodying the best in semiconductor technology, enabling the world's top chip companies to "Design Ahead of the Curve" while reducing design time and costs. Magma is headquartered in San Jose, Calif., with offices around the world. Magma's stock trades on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol LAVA. Visit Magma Design Automation on the Web at www.magma-da.com.

About SiliconBlue

SiliconBlue has built from the ground up, the first single-chip, reconfigurable, ultra-low power FPGA optimized for handheld, mobile applications. While incumbents have focused on speed, density and features, SiliconBlue has set a new standard for price, power and space. Our low cost, non-volatile and reconfigurable FPGAs feature: operating power as low as 25 uW (typical); logic cell gate complexity unparalleled in existing low power PLDs; sizes as small as 3mm by 4mm. Samples, evaluation boards and software tools are available now. For more information, please visit www.siliconbluetech.com