D&R Headline News (July 2012)

Headlines for Tuesday Jul. 31, 2012

• World's Lowest-Cost Android 4.1 "Jelly Bean" Tablet Shipping Now - It's MIPS!
• Altera Shipping Industry's Fastest Backplane-capable Transceivers in 28-nm Stratix V FPGAs
• MOSAID Demonstrates Single-Controller, Terabyte-Class Solid State Drive
• CEVA, Inc. Announces Second Quarter 2012 Financial Results
• DMP 3D Graphics IP Core "PICA200 Lite" is adopted for OLYMPUS Tough TG-1
• Synopsys Acquires Ciranova

Headlines for Monday Jul. 30, 2012

Top Story

Apple To Buy AuthenTec For About $355 Mln

Apple Inc will buy fingerprint sensor technology developer AuthenTec Inc for about $356 million, striking a deal that could put its iPhone at the center of the emerging mobile payments market.

• A. Blaine Bowman Joins Altera Board of Directors
• Lattice Semiconductor Announces Serial Image Sensor Bridge Support For Sony IMX136/104
• UMC Obtains LEED Gold Certification for Fab 12A P3 & P4
• Tensilica Joins Wi-Fi Alliance to Provide Wireless Multi-Standard Modem Solutions

Headlines for Friday Jul. 27, 2012

• Faraday Reported 2012 Second Quarter Results
• UMC set to beat TSMC to FinFET process
• Garmin Announces Victory in Patent Dispute with Rambus
• Arasan Chip Systems Releases Universal Flash Storage (UFS) 1.1 IP
• Samsung Regains Smartphone Leadership
• Reports: Fujitsu is trying to sell its main fab
• FinFETs-on-SOI can double battery life, says GSS

Headlines for Thursday Jul. 26, 2012

Top Story

ARM, TSMC lead Intel in SoC, says CEO East

ARM CEO Warren East is not concerned that Intel Corp. is developing a lead in process technology of the foundries that ARM licensees usually deal with.

• Cadence CEO sees design activity keeping pace
• Semtech Launches First Sub-GHz Multi-Mode PHY Transceiver
• Digital Core Design announces 10/100 Mb Media Access Controller with RMII
• Intilop's 76-nanosecond Nano-TOE system establishes a record 93% TCP/IP bandwidth measured at a major customer's 10G Network deployment
• Xilinx Delivers First Public Access Release of its Next-Generation Vivado Design Suite
• Cadence Reports Second Quarter 2012 Financial Results

Headlines for Wednesday Jul. 25, 2012

Top Story

ARM Holdings plc Reports Results for the Second Quarter and Half Year Ended 30 June 2012

ARM Holdings plc announces its unaudited financial results for the second quarter and half year ended 30 June 2012. Total dollar revenues in Q2 2012 were $213.0 million, up 12% on Q2 2011.

• ARM's Q2 continues climb in sales and profits
• 13 Companies Cited for Infringement of MMP Portfolio in ITC Complaint
• Vitesse's SynchroPHY Family Sets New Standard for Timing Accuracy in Mobile Networks
• Nufront Selects Sonics' Complete Line of System IP for Family of Advanced Applications Processors
• Rambus and GLOBALFOUNDRIES Demonstrate Outstanding Performance and Power Results in 28nm Silicon Test Chips
• Broadcom not threatened by Samsung's CSR buy
• GLOBALFOUNDRIES Extending Fab 8 to Meet Strong Customer Demand
• Altera Announces Second Quarter Results, Revenue Up 21 Percent Sequentially
• Innovation at Risk: IP Infringement Challenges the Semiconductor Equipment Industry

Headlines for Tuesday Jul. 24, 2012

Top Story

Intel vindicated by TSMC/ARM announcement

ARM and TSMC are teaming up to optimize next-generation 64-bit ARM cores for FinFET process technology. And that must be leaving Intel feeling rather smug.

• Latest Synopsys Virtualizer Release Speeds Virtual Prototype Creation by up to 3X
• VIA Announces First Embedded ARM Based Pico-ITX Board, VIA VAB-800
• eMemory's Embedded MTP Solution Passes Verification in 65nm Process Node
• Driving ST's auto IC strategy: Manufacturing line can't stop
• SMIC Raises Second Quarter 2012 Revenue and Gross Margin Guidance
• Synopsys Mixed-Signal IC Design Solution Qualified for TowerJazz Power Management Reference Flow 2.0

Headlines for Monday Jul. 23, 2012

Top Story

ARM and TSMC Collaborate to Optimize Next-Generation 64-bit ARM Processors for FinFET Process Technology

TSMC and ARM today announced a multi-year agreement extending their collaboration beyond 20-nm technology to deliver ARM processors on FinFET transistors, enabling the fabless industry to extend its market leadership in application processors.

• Boston Limited Ships First ARM-Based Servers to Bring Low-Power Economics to High-Performance Data Centers
• QuickLogic's CSSPs Enable TI's Sitara AM335x ARM Cortex-A8 Processor to Support High-Resolution Cameras
• ISSI to Acquire Chingis Technology Corporation

Headlines for Friday Jul. 20, 2012

Top Story

IDT Acquires NXP's Data Converter Assets and Alvand Technologies

IDT today announced that it has acquired NXP’s high-speed data converter assets and Alvand Technologies, a leading analog IP company specializing in data converters.

• Genesys Logic USB 3.0 Hub Controller - GL3520 is Certified by Microsoft Windows 8 Hardware Certification Kit (WHCK2.0)
• MoSys, Inc. Reports Second Quarter 2012 Financial Results
• Arasan Chip Systems Announces support of new JEDEC standard; eMMC 4.51
• TSMC's Chang cuts forecast, sees stall coming
• Lattice Semiconductor Reports Second Quarter 2012 Results
• Rambus Reports Second Quarter Financial Results

Headlines for Thursday Jul. 19, 2012

Top Story

Arteris FlexNoC Interconnect IP licensed by Rockchip for Android-Based Tablets

Arteris today announced that Rockchip has selected Arteris® FlexNoC™ interconnect IP as the backbone SoC interconnect for its upcoming Application Processor.

• TSMC profit soars despite 28-nm supply shortage
• TSMC Reports Second Quarter EPS of NT$1.61
• Qualcomm sees 28-nm capacity crunch through 2012
• Xilinx Announces Q1 Fiscal 2013 Results; Q1 Sales Increase 4% Sequentially
• Cadence Encounter Digital Technology Helps Renesas Gain Advantage in Design Power, Area and Productivity
• TVS Validates UVM based VIP with Aldec's Riviera-PRO Platform
• North American Semiconductor Equipment Industry Posts June 2012 Book-to-Bill Ratio of 0.94

Headlines for Wednesday Jul. 18, 2012

Top Story

First ARM Technology-Powered Cloud Debuts on OpenStack

A handful of vendors have created a trial version for ARM-based servers of the OpenStack cloud computing software now available for testing online. The open source offering fills in another small piece of software puzzle for the low power architecture working its way into the data center.

• u-blox uses SiliconGate power management IP for u-blox 7, the world's lowest-power multi-GNSS platform
• Silicon Laboratories Files Patent Infringement Lawsuit Against MaxLinear
• Does RedMere + Fresco = Spectra7?
• Semiconductor Capital Spending Trend Update
• CAST Opens IP Cores Sales Office in China
• Latest Release of Synopsys IC Compiler Enables Giga-Performance Design
• Imagination Technologies: Andrew Heath appointed a non-executive director
• ST-Ericsson reports second quarter 2012 financial results

Headlines for Tuesday Jul. 17, 2012

Top Story

Samsung Electronics and CSR Announce Strategic Partnership

Samsung Electronics and CSR today announced a strategic collaborative relationship by aligning their respective business visions, investments and key technologies. Under the terms of the agreement, Samsung will gain full access to CSR’s mobile connectivity and location technology and transfer certain relevant patents, as well as employ over 300 CSR employees in the selected field for the cash consideration of $310 million.

• RedMere, Fresco and Leading Investors Partner to Create Spectra7; Backed by $10 Million in New Equity
• Cadence Encounter RTL-to-GDSII Flow Enables Sharp to Achieve 2X Improvement in Turnaround Time
• WiLAN Acquires Patent Portfolio from Siemens AG
• Xilinx Ships First Artix-7 FPGAs - Raising the Performance Bar for Portable and Small Form Factor Applications at the 'Edge'
• New SystemC Library Now Available from Accellera Systems Initiative
• Agilent Technologies Signs Agreement to Acquire AT4 wireless' Test Systems Business
• Atmel Introduces First Reconfigurable Processor That Enables On-the-Fly Adjustment of Space Applications

Headlines for Monday Jul. 16, 2012

Top Story

Creonic Celebrates 1,000 Downloads of its Open Source Viterbi Decoder IP Core

1,000 Viterbi Decoder IP Core Downloads in Six Months Today Creonic celebrates 1,000 downloads of its open source Viterbi decoder IP core from the OpenCores platform. "We are thrilled about the huge interest in our open source IP core", says Matthias Alles, CEO of Creonic. He adds, "It took less than six months to achieve this milestone". The VHDL source code of the Creonic Viterbi decoder is published under the GPL license. It is adaptable to many standards of communications, e.g., GSM, UMTS, CDMA, WiMAX, and WiFi. The AXI4-Stream interface allows simple integration. Shortly after publication OpenCores awarded the IP core the OCCP certificate emphasizing that the core is stable and satisfies an abundance of quality criteria. The publication under GPL makes it possible to use the IP core free of charge and enables the adaptation of the decoder to individual needs. Besides support, Creonic offers commercial licenses that grant the user of the IP core more rights than the GPL. About Creonic Creonic provides IP cores as ready-for-use solutions for several algorithms of communications such as forward error correction (LDPC and Turbo coding), synchronization, and MIMO. The product portfolio covers standards like DVB-S2, DVB-C2, WiFi, UWB, and GMR. Our products are applicable for ASIC and FPGA technology and comply with the highest requirements with respect to quality and performance. Viterbi decoder at OpenCores.org Viterbi decoder at Creonic

• Samsung Selects AuthenTec's VPN Security to Enhance Enterprise Security in New Android Smartphones & Tablets
• SENSIO Hi-Fi 3D and SENSIO S2D Switch will be available to TCL customers
• Lattice Diamond 2.0 Software Unleashes Powerful Design Tools for the New Low Cost, Low Power LatticeECP4 FPGA Family
• Microsemi Announces Completion of 26 Million Device-Hours of FPGA Reliability Testing

Headlines for Friday Jul. 13, 2012

Top Story

Will GlobalFoundries buy IBM's chip business

Will GlobalFoundries Inc. or some other manifestation of the oil-rich state of Abu Dhabi, be buying the chip R&D and business interests of IBM any time soon? And what would be the price?

• Systemcom Ltd launches new Current Input Analog Front-End with 13-bit ADC at TSMC 180nm
• Xilinx CTO: Focus on what matters to customers
• Xylon now shipping upgraded logiCAN CAN2.0B Bus Controller IP Core
• Logic design optimization takes a quantum leap with Dolphin Integration's standard cell library enriched with pulsed latches

Headlines for Thursday Jul. 12, 2012

Top Story

Breker Verification Systems Secures $5 Million in Funding

Breker Verification Systems today announced that it has raised $5 million in Series A funding. Funding was provided by Astor Capital Group, a private equity fund out of Far East Asia.

• ACE's CoSy compiler framework outperforms LLVM for the ARM9 processor
• Lattice Semiconductor and Leopard Imaging, Texas Instruments Design Network Members, Announce Dual Camera Kit for Black Box Car Drive Recorders
• Ricoh Adopts EVE's ZeBu to Enable ESL Co-Emulation for Early Development of Embedded Software
• Ecosystem emerges around new mobile chip tech
• InvenSense Sets a New Industry Benchmark with the World's Smallest Six-axis Integrated MotionTracking Device

Headlines for Wednesday Jul. 11, 2012

Top Story

Cadence Adds Powerful New Capabilities to Its PCI Express Verification IP Including PIPE4 Support

Cadence today announced powerful new capabilities in its PCI Express® Verification IP (PCIe® VIP) which result in more in-depth verification of the most current PCI Express specification at both the block and system-on-chip (SoC) levels.

• Whatever happened to evolvable hardware?
• EDA Consortium Reports Revenue Increase for Q1 2012
• Marmalade's Cross Platform SDK for Mobile Applications Coming to the MIPS Architecture
• Cryptography Research and Discretix Sign Developer Agreement for DPA Countermeasures
• TSMC June 2012 Sales Report
• SMSC Stockholders Approve Merger with Microchip
• Elliptic Technologies Expands Into New Corporate Headquarters
• Aldec and Agilent Technologies Bridge the Gap Between ESL and RTL by Linking Simulation Environments

Headlines for Tuesday Jul. 10, 2012

Top Story

Cosmic Circuits' announces the silicon availability of MIPI M-PHY in 28nm

Cosmic Circuits today announced the silicon availability of its MIPI M-PHY solution in 28nm. Cosmic Circuits M-PHY solution supports both the HS-G1 (1.5Gbps) and HS-G2 (3Gbps) modes. The silicon has been characterized across supply, temperature and process corners and detailed characterization reports will be available very soon.

• Altera Reduces Design Complexity in High-Performance 40GbE/100GbE Designs with Latest IP Core Offering
• Synopsys and SMIC Announce DesignWare IP for 40-nm Low-Leakage Process
• Socle Tapes Out 28nm ASIC Design at GLOBALFOUNDRIES
• App Developers Embrace the MIPS Architecture using Latest Release of Android NDK

Headlines for Monday Jul. 09, 2012

Top Story

Synopsys' DesignWare IP for PCI Express with Support for Low-Power Sub-States Successfully Taped Out in Multiple Designs

Synopsys today announced that its industry-first PCI Express controller IP with support for low-power sub-states has successfully taped out in multiple designs. The addition of the L1.1 ("snooze") and L1.2 ("off") sub-states to Synopsys' DesignWare® controller IP for PCI Express 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0 enables designers to reduce power consumption in key market segments, including camera, card reader, networking and wireless applications serving the ultrabook and tablet markets.

• Lattice Announces Strategic Partnership with UMC
• Ziptronix Licenses its Direct Bond Technology for Mobile Handsets
• Mentor Graphics Announces Support for the Multi-threaded MIPS32 34K Core with the Nucleus SMP RTOS
• Xylon announces logiI2C Master Controller IP core for Xilinx FPGAs
• Major SoC Provider for China's Power Grid Market Licenses MIPS Technologies' Processor IP for Smart Grid Solutions
• Open-Silicon's Interlaken IP Core Selected for Netronome's Next-Generation Flow Processors
• Sonics Names Mark McMillan as Vice President of Worldwide Sales
• Socle Technology Hit Consecutive Record High Revenue
• GUC Monthly Sales Report - June 2012
• UMC Reports Sales for June 2012
• MIPS-Based iPPea Device Brings "Smart" Android Experience to any HDMI-Enabled DTV for $50
• New MIPS-Based Android 4.0 Tablet Coming Soon to India, Latin America and Europe

Headlines for Friday Jul. 06, 2012

• Dolphin Integration empowers the Smart Metering market with a dense and low BoM panoply for class 0.1 reaching 1:10,000 systems
• Novocell Semiconductor announces the expansion of the firm's one-time programmable non-volatile memory IP product line
• Samsung Samples Industry's First 16-Gigabyte Server Modules Based on DDR4 Memory Technology

Headlines for Thursday Jul. 05, 2012

• ARM won the processor wars? Hardly!

Headlines for Wednesday Jul. 04, 2012

• Report: TSMC's Chang says no to buying Renesas fab
• Global Semiconductor Sales Increase in May, Remain on Track for Modest Growth in 2012
• Broadcom extends MIPS deal but does not buy firm
• Xilinx Announces Intention to Invest $50M in Expansion of Electronic Engineering Operations at EMEA Headquarters in Ireland
• Qualcomm signs UMC, Samsung for 28-nm chips, says report
• Analyst lowers chip market forecast for 2012

Headlines for Tuesday Jul. 03, 2012

Top Story

MIPS Technologies and Broadcom Sign Broad Patent and Technology License Agreement

MIPS Technologies announced that it has entered into a multi-faceted patent and technology license agreement with Broadcom Corporation, a global innovation leader in semiconductor solutions for wired and wireless communications.

• ITC Extends Target Date of Rambus Matter
• Cadence Acquires Sigrity, a Leader in High-Speed PCB and IC Packaging Analysis
• Cadence Digital PHY Design IP Adopted By Brite Semiconductor

Headlines for Monday Jul. 02, 2012

Top Story

Dolphin Integration's breakthrough offering to spread Audio Codecs over AP and PMIC

Splitting efficiently an Audio Codec, into its Analog Front-end (AFE) and its logic filters, requires a wise interface and Dolphin's proprietary Bow interface makes the difference.

• ChipStart and Digital Core Design Partner to Bring the Power of Innovation to the Market
• Sonix Introduces a New series of Extremely Low Power Consumption and High Performance 32 bit MCU powered by ARM Cortex M0 processor
• TAKUMI Graphics IP Cores Reference Designs Available on S2C Prototyping Platform
• Sital Shows Significant Improvement of Noise Immunity on its 1553 IP Core
• GSA Announces the Fabless Sector Outperforms the Overall Industry in the First Quarter