Laird Technologies licenses apt-X for Bluetooth Stereo wireless audio modules

Laird Technologies, a global force in embedded wireless component sales, licenses apt-X® codec technology for high-quality wireless stereo from Bluetooth audio modules for electronics OEMs

Belfast, Northern Ireland [June 7, 2010]:  APTX, the award-winning audio processing technology company, today announces that Laird Technologies, a major global provider of electronics components and technology for wireless communications, has licensed apt-X® audio codec technology for use in a new family of high-volume Bluetooth stereo audio multi-chip modules intended for OEM integration into automotive, commercial, and consumer applications.

Laird Technologies selected apt-X technology to optimize the objective sound quality of stereo audio channeled over the 2.4GHz ISM band from all four members of its latest family of Bluetooth modules. Each of the Laird BTM modules – the "Class 2" (~10m range) 521 and antenna-less 520, and the more powerful "Class 1" (~100m range) 511 and antenna-less 510 – incorporates the CSR BlueCore5 semiconductor, the Bluetooth 2.1 system-on-a-chip used extensively in digital entertainment devices from media players, mobiles, and smartphones, to laptops, tablets, and games consoles.  Every BTM module comes pre-configured with apt-X audio codec software; OEMs are not required to program in extra firmware.

Asked to comment on the reasons for the licensing agreement with APTX, Carl Baker, the UK-based Director of Sales for Laird Technologies, said: "Laird Technologies wanted the best possible stereo audio quality for BTM, its new Bluetooth stereo wireless audio module designs based on the CSR BlueCore5. Once we listened objectively to speakers playing uncompressed music and MP3 audio material streaming over Bluetooth A2DP wireless we immediately knew we needed apt-X coding technology. With apt-X switched in there’s a marked improvement in the sonic purity of Bluetooth stereo audio."

Stephen Wray, VP Licensing for APTX added: "This strategic license agreement with Laird opens previously untapped Hi-Fi markets to apt-X stereo Bluetooth. The availability of Laird’s best-in-class Bluetooth modules pre-installed with apt-X allows high-end audio designers to specify off-the-shelf, standards-based wireless audio technology for new product development; apt-X audio coding circumvents the channel bandwidth constraints inherent in the stereo Bluetooth profile and enables full-frequency bandwidth wireless audio streaming for the richest stereo sound possible."

The BTM 510, 511, 520 and 521 Bluetooth stereo wireless audio modules are available now through Laird Technologies' worldwide sales channels. Sales volumes of actual shipped modules are anticipated to reach approximately 1M units per annum in 12 months time given the increasing pace of new product design cycles in today’s global electronics industry, and the phenomenal worldwide demand for Bluetooth connectivity in everyday electronic appliances. Bluetooth capability already resides in over 2 billion electronic devices.

About Laird Technologies, Inc.

Laird Technologies designs and manufactures customized, performance-critical products for wireless and other advanced electronics applications.  The company is a global market leader in the design and supply of electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding, thermal management products, mechanical actuation systems, signal integrity components, and wireless antennae solutions, as well as radio frequency (RF) modules and systems. Custom products are supplied to all sectors of the electronics industry including the handset, telecommunications, data transfer and information technology, automotive, aerospace, defense, consumer, medical, and industrial markets. Laird Technologies, a unit of Laird PLC, employs over 10,000 employees in more than 39 facilities located in 13 countries.

About APTX

APTX provides industry-leading audio compression solutions to the broadcast, professional audio, and consumer electronics industries.  The company’s apt-X audio codec technology has earned a reputation throughout the audio industry as the ultimate high-quality, low-delay audio data compression algorithm available.  Today, apt-X technology is licensed for use in broadcast audio codec hardware, professional audio systems, and consumer electronics devices, including portable media players and mobile phones, Bluetooth stereo headphones, and wireless microphones.  Headquartered in Belfast, N. Ireland, APTX has sales offices in the US, Japan, China, and S. Korea.