D&R Headline News (May 2012)

Headlines for Thursday May. 31, 2012

Top Story

Why chip makers are buying software firms

The owners of embedded software companies have long considered an acquisition by a semiconductor partner a logical exit strategy. We took a look at semiconductor acquisitions over the past two years with the aim of better understanding the dynamics of the market, and we came up with four critical questions.

• Cavium And Elliptic To Collaborate On Providing Security And Content Protection On Cavium's PureVu Wireless Display SoC
• Synopsys Design Implementation Tools Receive TSMC 20nm Phase I Certification
• APS5 32 bit Microcontroller IP Core for High Performance Embedded ASIC Designs Launched by Cortus
• Methodics Acquires Missing Link Tools To Expand Platform for Advanced SoC Design and IP Quality Management Solutions
• EVE Contends Mentor Graphics' Patent Infringement Suits Are Unfounded
• Insufficient baseband chip supply hurting LTE smartphone sales
• Analog Bits Unveils Integrated Sensor Macro Family
• Xtendwave selects EnSilica's eSi-3200 processor for the receiver IC implementing NIST's next-generation WWVB atomic timekeeping signal
• Mavenir Systems and Imagination Technologies Announce IR.92-Compliant VoLTE Interoperability for US-Based Carriers
• Cadence Announces STMicroelectronics has Taped Out 20-Nanometer Test Chip Using Cadence Tools

Headlines for Wednesday May. 30, 2012

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Dell Unveils Programs to Enable the ARM-based Server Ecosystem and Accelerate Development and Testing of ARM-based Applications and Solutions

Dell today announced it is responding to the demands of our customers for continued innovation in support of hyperscale environments, and enabling the ecosystem for ARM-based servers. The ARM-based server market is approaching an inflection point, marked by increasing customer interest in testing and developing applications, and Dell believes now is the right time to help foster development and testing of operating systems and applications for ARM servers.

• 8051 Microcontroller IP Cores from CAST Even More Efficient with New Single-Wire Debug
• Xilinx Ships World's First Heterogeneous 3D FPGA
• DCD among National Finalists for European Business Award and DQ80251 for the UKTI Award of Innovation

Headlines for Tuesday May. 29, 2012

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Vivante Leads Mobile GPGPU Revolution Becoming First GPU IP Supplier to Pass OpenCL(TM) 1.1 Conformance Test

Vivante today announced Vivante GC Cores passed the Khronos(TM) Group OpenCL 1.1 Embedded Profile (EP) conformance test suite on Freescale's i.MX 6 platform. The GC Cores use the latest programmable ScalarMorphic(TM) architecture to accelerate parallel data workloads on thousands of concurrent threads to achieve Gigaflops (GFLOPS) of computational performance.

• Novocell Semiconductor and ChipStart Announce Renewal of Global Sales Representation Agreement
• MagnaChip and YMC Enter Into a Joint Development Agreement for MTP-IP Devices
• ANSYS, Inc. Signs Definitive Agreement to Acquire Esterel Technologies S.A.
• Avery Design Systems Adds NVM Express to Storage Standards Verification IP Solutions
• Cadence Announces Updated Design and Verification IP for DDR PHY Interface
• The First Toshiba ARM Cortex-M0 Microcontroller Optimized for Smart Meters
• European Researchers to Tackle Accelerator Programming
• DFI Group Releases Version 3.1 of Its High-Speed Memory Controller and PHY Interface Specification
• Evatronix to Showcase its Latest Multimedia IP at DAC

Headlines for Monday May. 28, 2012

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Renesas cuts 14,000 jobs; fab sale to TSMC

Renesas Electronics Corp. plans to eliminate up to 14,000 jobs, while selling the company’s leading system-chip fab in Yamagata to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., according to a report in Nikkei, Japan’s economic newspaper.

• Renesas Electronics and TSMC Collaborate to Construct Ecosystem for Microcontrollers
• GainSpan Licenses Cosmic Circuits IP
• Moortec Semiconductor Signs Representative Agreement with Avant Technology in Taiwan

Headlines for Friday May. 25, 2012

• InterDigital Responds to Reports of Huawei European Commission Complaint

Headlines for Thursday May. 24, 2012

Top Story

ARM CTO looks at architecture scaling for 2020 solutions

Anticipating the propagation of the Internet of things, Mike Muller, chief technology officer at ARM Ltd., discussed the needs for architecture scaling at the annual IMEC Technology Forum this week at the Square meeting center in Brussels, Belgium.

• Reports: Renesas to tie up with TSMC, cut jobs
• Uniquify Launches ideas2silicon Design Services Platform
• Xilinx Kintex-7 FPGA Embedded Kit Accelerates Productivity and Programmable System Integration for FPGA-Based Soft Processor Systems
• Ittiam's Wi-Fi IP Gets Strong Traction in Consumer Markets with Multi-million Units Production
• Synopsys Posts Financial Results for Second Quarter Fiscal Year 2012
• Synopsys Announces Aart de Geus and Chi-Foon Chan to Become Co-CEOs
• Solantro Semiconductor Secures $10 Million Series A Financing for Rollout of Chipsets for Solar PV Module Integrated Electronics

Headlines for Wednesday May. 23, 2012

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Silicon Image Introduces Low Power Dual-Mode Transmitter IP Core Supporting Both HDMI and MHL Connectivity Standards

Silicon Image today announced the availability of a low power dual-mode transmitter intellectual property (IP) core that supports both the HDMI ® (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) 1.4b and MHL™ (Mobile High-Definition Link) 2.0 standards.

• OCP-IP Releases OCP 3.1 Specification into Member Review
• NECs CyberWorkBench and Imperas OVP Fast Processor Models Integrated to Expand Hardware-Software Co-Verification Capabilities

Headlines for Tuesday May. 22, 2012

Top Story

OCP-IP Delivers Enhanced Transaction Generator Package

OCP-IP announces the availability of an enhanced version of their Transaction Generator (TG), which is a transaction level (TL) SystemC simulator for benchmarking network-on-chips (NoCs) used in multiprocessor system-on-chip (SoC) applications. The latest version now includes 8 new traffic models from Hong Kong University’s MCSL Benchmark Suite v1.1

• NanGate Unveils Next Generation Library Creator Platform
• Cortus Launches APS3R 32 bit Microcontroller IP Core for Low Energy Embedded Applications
• One Counterfeit Part Every 15 Seconds
• CEVA, Inc Joins Wi-Fi Alliance to Further Advocate for a Software-based Wi-Fi Strategy

Headlines for Monday May. 21, 2012

• Silicon Labs Acquires Ember, Gains Low-Power 2.4 GHz Wireless Mesh Networking Technology
• Nufront's Third-Generation Mobile Applications Processor Powered by Cadence DDR3/3L/LPDDR2 Memory Interface IP Solution
• Hisilicon Licenses Range of ARM Mali Graphics Processors to Drive the Next-Generation of Smart Connected Devices
• Posedge and PerfectVIPs Partner to Provide Complete ONFi IP/VIP Solution
• Samsung Now Producing Highest Density Mobile LPDDR2 Memory Using 20nm-class Technology - an Industry First

Headlines for Friday May. 18, 2012

Top Story

Report: ARM aims to take 20% of notebook PC market

Warren East, CEO of processor IP licensor ARM Holdings plc, has said he expects companies making processors based on the ARM cores will take between 10 and 20 percent of the notebook PC market in 2014 or 2015, according to a Dow Jones report.

• JEDEC Announces Publication of LPDDR3 Standard for Low Power Memory Devices
• ESilicon set to reap rewards of Asian gamble
• Report: UMC benefits from TSMC 28-nm supply shortage

Headlines for Wednesday May. 16, 2012

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EVE Unveils 10-Gigabit Ethernet Validation Platform

EVE today announced immediate availability of a 10-Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) validation platform for its ZeBu (Zero Bugs) family of system-on-chip (SoC) hardware-assisted verification platforms.

• GSA Reports an Increase in April Semiconductor Funding Activity
• PLDA Introduces High-performance Linux and Windows PCI Express Device Drivers Optimized for Latency-sensitive Applications
• EVE Adds New Applications for Leading SoC Emulation Platform Environment
• PHYTEC Announces an Ultra-Low Cost ARM Cortex-A8 System on Module (SOM) Supporting the Texas Instruments AM335x Family of Processors

Headlines for Tuesday May. 15, 2012

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Cadence Introduces New NVM Express IP Solutions for Solid State Storage Applications

Cadence today launched the industry’s first IP subsystem for the development of SoCs supporting the NVM Express 1.0c standard, an interface technology used in the rapidly growing solid-state drive (SSD) market. The solution includes Cadence Design IP for NVM Express controller and Cadence Design IP for NVM Express subsystem.

• Kilopass NVM IP Cores First to Deliver Footprint and Pin Compatibility Across Eight Top-Tier Silicon Foundries for the 130/110nm Process Node
• Handicapping the field of possible MIPS suitors
• HiSilicon Extends Multi-License Deal with Vivante for Graphics IP
• Cadence Expands System and SoC Verification Offerings to Accelerate System Integration and Reduce Time to Market
• ICScape Grows Globally
• IC Manage Introduces Views Storage Acceleration Software
• Qualcomm, Micron, and GlobalFoundries Gain in 1Q12 Top 20 Ranking
• SMIC and Beijing Government Sign Cooperation Framework Document to Launch SMIC Beijing Second Phase Expansion Project
• AMD Selects Synopsys as a Verification IP Partner
• EVE's ZEMI-3 Methodology Used by Fujitsu Microelectronics Solutions to Implement Integrated Algorithm-to-Emulation Flow
• Forte's SystemC High-Level Synthesis Licensed by HighIP Design Company

Headlines for Monday May. 14, 2012

Top Story

CEVA Continues to Dominate DSP IP Market with 90% Market Share

CEVA today announced that it has been ranked by leading research firm The Linley Group as the worldwide leader in DSP IP shipments in 2011, with a 90% market share. The market share numbers were published in The Linley Group’s recent report, titled ‘A Guide to CPU Cores and Processor IP’.

• Entropic Communications Unveils Next-Generation Set-Top Box System-on-a-Chip Solution for Cable and IP-Client Markets
• Aquantia Raises $35 M Financing
• Sagantec announces a new migration and DRC correction tool for 28nm and 20nm
• Four reasons why MIPS new cores may make it relevant again
• Sigrity Introduces XcitePI Chip IO Interconnect Model Extraction and Assessment Tool
• Tabula Extends Worldwide Sales Reach into Israel with Appletec Partnership

Headlines for Friday May. 11, 2012

• MIPS challenges ARM's Cortex with Aptiv launch
• Silicon Ventures tips plan to stem fabless VC drought
• STMicroelectronics Enters Production with New STM32 F0 Microcontrollers Targeting Budget Applications
• TSMC April 2012 Sales Report
• Intilop delivers Nano-TOE IP Core with another record breaking Ultra-Low latency of 76 nanoseconds & 20 G bit bandwidth for high performance networking applications
• V Semi Announces Availability of New IP
• Fast Processor Models of MIPS Technologies New Aptiv Generation Cores Released by Imperas and Open Virtual Platforms

Headlines for Thursday May. 10, 2012

Top Story

MIPS Technologies Introduces New Aptiv Generation of Microprocessor Cores

MIPS Technologies today introduced a new generation of microprocessor cores. The Aptiv Generation cores, including the proAptiv, interAptiv and microAptiv families, offer three distinct performance levels for applications across MIPS' target segments.

• SMIC Reports 2012 First Quarter Results
• Bozotti has a dream: to turn round ST's digital problem
• Counterfeit-Part Risk Expected to Rise as Semiconductor Market Shifts into Higher Gear
• ARM dominates 10B unit CPU core market
• Report: Abu Dhabi's chip unit still in the red

Headlines for Wednesday May. 09, 2012

• EVE's Hardware-Assisted Verification Platform Accelerates Embedded Software Development for Texas Instruments' OMAP 5 Platform
• UMC Reports Sales for April 2012
• MoSys Releases Carrier-Grade Bandwidth Engine IC to Production
• Intersil Introduces Next Generation 40nm Thunderbolt Solution
• Lattice Ships One Million MachXO2 Programmable Logic Devices
• iC-Logic Licenses Arteris FlexNoC And C2C Interconnect IP For Automotive Systems On Chip
• Moortec Semiconductor Sign Representative Agreement with Acetronix in Korea
• Sequans Introduces LTE Interference Rejection Technology

Headlines for Tuesday May. 08, 2012

• Posedge Partners with EDA4YOU for European Sales
• EVE Joins MIPI Alliance
• Micron Announces Its First Fully Functional DDR4 DRAM Module
• Lattice Announces Production Release Of iCE40 "Los Angeles" LP-Series And HX-Series mobileFPGA Device Families
• Fujitsu Semiconductor Adopts Cadence Chip Planning System for MCU Chips at Its Design Centers Worldwide
• Tensilica and VWorks Partner to Provide Virtual Prototyping Platforms

Headlines for Monday May. 07, 2012

Top Story

Evatronix Launches Display Processor based on Latest ARM Security Technology

Evatronix SA has announced the release of the first member of its PANTA high performance display controller core family. Developed using ARM technology the PANTA DP20 is targeted specifically at high-end mobile/portable products, like smartphones and tablet PCs, with ultra-low power consumption that does not sacrifice processing performance.

• Mindspeed Extends Lead in TD-SCDMA Small Cells with New Reference Design
• DMP Introduces High-End OpenGL ES 2.0 IP Cores and Multi-Core Configurations to Its SMAPH-S Product Family
• Lattice Announces Revolutionary Power Management Architecture
• GUC Monthly Sales Report - April 2012
• Jasper Design Automation Releases JasperGold Apps to Solve Tough Challenges and Improve Productivity Throughout the Design and Verification Flow

Headlines for Friday May. 04, 2012

• Grand Opening of the training center of Dolphin Integration in Shanghai, China

Headlines for Thursday May. 03, 2012

Top Story

PLDA Introduces QuickTCP - Full Hardware 10G TCP/IP Stack IP core for FPGA

PLDA today unveiled its 10Gb TCP/IP Hardware stack IP core. PLDA’s QuickTCP IP solution is a 100% RTL designed IP, compliant with the IEEE802.3 specification and supporting the ARP, IPv4, ICMP, and TCP protocols. QuickTCP features an industry-standard AMBA AXI4 user interface that enables instant integration into either Altera-based or Xilinx-based FPGA designs.

• CriticalBlue announces broader support for Renesas' multicore platforms within Prism
• NXP Brings ARM Cortex-M0 to DALI and DMX512 Lighting Control Systems
• TSMC's 28nm Based ARM Cortex-A9 Test Chip Reaches Beyond 3GHz
• MoSys, Inc. Reports First Quarter 2012 Financial Results
• Activist investor Icahn chastises Mentor again
• Imagination licenses multiple multimedia IP cores to HiSilicon

Headlines for Wednesday May. 02, 2012

Top Story

Arasan Chip Systems Announces MIPI compliant Low Latency Interface (LLI) IP solution

Arasan announced today the availability of their MIPI LLI controller IP along with a matching Type 1 M-PHY, the latest additions to its prominent MIPI portfolio.

• Microchip Technology and SMSC Announce the Acquisition of SMSC by Microchip Technology
• Cosmic Circuits announces silicon-proven PLLs in multiple process nodes
• Latest Android NDK Fully Supports the MIPS Architecture
• CEVA, Inc. Announces First Quarter 2012 Financial Results
• 3D Graphics on Xilinx ZC702 Board
• GlobalFoundries, Infineon, IBM, ST linked to Indian fab plan
• eMemory NeoBit Silicon IP to Play an Important Role in MEMS Applications
• IDT to Acquire PLX Technology, Inc.
• Six hurdles Intel must clear to be a major foundry
• Script for the Intel foundry story is unwritten
• Intel is a technology explorer, not a foundry
• Intel as foundry: Don't hold your breath
• Silicon Image Announces First Quarter 2012 Earnings
• Imec demonstrates a low-power 7Gbps 60GHz transceiver for the wireless consumer market
• eASIC Enables 3X Increase in Energy Efficiency for Astrophysical Simulation Supercomputer
• Triad Semiconductor Deploys Numetrics Analytics Software