Trident Licenses to Sunplus Its Current MEMC Patent Portfolio

Non- Exclusive Royalty-Bearing Agreement Validates Portfolio Strength in Delivering Superior Picture Quality

SUNNYVALE, Calif., July 28, 2011  -- Trident Microsystems, Inc. (NASDAQ: TRID), a leader in semiconductor and software solutions for the digital TV and set-top box markets, today announced that it has entered into a non-exclusive patent license agreement with Sunplus Technology Co., Ltd., a leading multimedia system-on-a-chip (SoC) design company for home entertainment solutions. The agreement provides Sunplus and its affiliate, Orise Technology Co. Ltd., with access to Trident's current portfolio of patents related to motion estimation and motion compensation (MEMC).  MEMC technology has become a de facto standard by enabling superior picture quality when displaying high-definition and 3D video on televisions, computer monitors, tablet computers, and other video-enabled consumer electronics devices throughout the connected home.

This is the second patent license agreement that Trident has announced for its leading MEMC patents. Specific commercial terms of the royalty-based agreement are not being disclosed.

"This license agreement validates once again Trident's technical leadership position in picture quality, which is an increasingly critical requirement for a broad range of consumer devices," said Tony Francesca, Trident's Vice President of Corporate and Business Development. "Our MEMC technology represents decades of development that was originally started at Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. and has become widely recognized as the highest quality solution in the industry."

This patent license agreement is part of Trident's ongoing effort to make a limited number of licenses under its MEMC patent portfolio available to TV OEMs and consumer electronics semiconductor providers.  Trident controls a broad patent portfolio that includes patents directed to MEMC, demodulators, audio, video, television interfaces, 3D, conditional access and general semiconductor circuit technology. 

For additional information or to request a license, interested companies can contact Trident at: IP_Legal@tridentmicro.com. 

About Trident Microsystems, Inc.

Trident Microsystems, Inc., with headquarters in Sunnyvale, California, is a leading force in the digital home entertainment market, delivering an extensive range of platform solutions that enhance the consumer experience in the Connected Home.  As one of the top-three semiconductor providers to both the TV and set-top box markets, Trident's solutions can be found in the products of leading OEMs and channel partners worldwide.  The company's extensive IP portfolio has been driving key innovations in image quality, 3D TV, low power consumption, and 45nm designs. For further information about Trident and its products, please consult the Company's web site: www.tridentmicro.com.

About Sunplus Technology Co., Ltd.

Sunplus Technology Co., Ltd., established in 1990, is a leading provider of multimedia IC solutions to home entertainment platforms for DVD players, Set-Top-Boxes and Digital TVs and upcoming high definition home entertainment products such as BD players, HD Set-Top-Boxes and Full-HD Digital TVs. Sunplus multimedia ICs and system solutions enable customers to build digital home entertainment products with superior quality and performance. Sunplus is headquartered in Taiwan and has service offices in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Chengdu. For more information, please visit Sunplus website at www.sunplus.com.