NewsLightspeed Provides Pre-Verified Netlist Cores from CAST, Inc. Enabling Low-Cost, Fast Time-to-Production MBA Solutions

Sunnyvale, California – January 4, 2000 – LightSpeed Semiconductor today added the complete library of high-performance IP cores from CAST Inc. to its InstantCore offering of pre-verified netlist IP cores for integration into its Module Based Arrays (MBAs). Under the terms of the agreement, LightSpeed now offers its customers more than 68 cores from CAST, including microprocessors and related peripherals, and functions specific to communications, digital signal processing, and multimedia applications. By providing a netlist version, rather than RTL, LightSpeed offers a one-stop shop for IP cores at a significant discount, while providing the fastest means to successful integration and ramp to volume production.

MBAs Offer Functionality, Flexibility, and Fast Time to Production

LightSpeed’s MBAs are the best solution for many designs that require high performance, capacity, and flexibility at a reasonable price, especially in the communications arena. With the addition of CAST’s high-performance cores, such as JPEG and Viterbi decoders, LightSpeed offers greater functionality and flexibility to designers who need a cost-effective combination of integration, performance, and fast time to production that is difficult or impossible for them to achieve using FPGAs or standard cell devices. Together, LightSpeed MBAs and CAST IP offer designers a solution that is extremely cost-effective, yet enables them to quickly implement their designs and achieve the required level of integration and performance while getting into production quickly.

“We developed our MBA architecture with the express purpose of helping our customers complete their designs and get to production as quickly as possible,” said Dave Lautzenheiser, vice president of marketing for LightSpeed. “CAST has a long history with designing IP cores and offers us a wide range of proven functions that are critical pieces in many of our customers’ designs. The pre-verified netlist, in conjunction with our no-design-for-test rules architecture, ensures that the cores and the customer’s logic will perform in our MBAs, allowing designers to focus on system design verification.”

“Ensuring the real-world design success of our customers is more important to us than just producing excellent IP products,” said Newton Abdalla, CAST’s vice president for IP. “The combination of LightSpeed’s MBA technology and use of pre-verified netlist IP cores make this easier than ever, and their proven track record gives CAST core users an even greater sense of confidence.”

The Advantages of Using Silicon-validated Netlist Cores

Through its InstantCore IP program, LightSpeed offers designers a one-stop shop for silicon-validated cores, MBA silicon, and support, making it easy for designers to integrate a wide variety of core functions into an MBA. Use of silicon-validated netlist cores further simplifies the integration process because the netlist blocks reduce both processing time and the risk of functionality changes due to re-synthesis. LightSpeed ensures customers’ success by implementing critical IP functions into silicon. Silicon validation demonstrates the actual timing and utilization, reducing the uncertainty inherent in buying “soft” IP. Customers can obtain a 30- day license for the cores prior to purchase to ensure their IP investment will meet all technical requirements.

About CAST, Inc.

CAST offers high-quality, affordable IP and design data management products backed by consulting, training, and custom development services. For more information, contact Newton Abdalla, 11 Stonewall Court, Woodcliff Lake, NJ 07675 Phone: 201-391-8300 Fax: 201-391- 8694, E-mail: info@cast-inc, Web site: www.cast-inc.com

About LightSpeed Semiconductor

LightSpeed Semiconductor Corp. is a privately held corporation located in Sunnyvale, Calif. LightSpeed targets the highly competitive mainstream market consisting of companies that design and manufacture high-value products for building global communication and computing infrastructures. Mainstream products typically require moderate volumes of application-specific componentsæbetween 1,000 to 100,000 parts per yearæand demand fast time to production. LightSpeed is the premier supplier of Module-Based Array solutions that enable customers to significantly reduce their design and production cycle times in order to meet their market timelines. For more information, contact: Fochson Fung, LightSpeed Semiconductor, 1151 Sonora Court, Sunnyvale, CA 94086; Phone: 408-616-3200; Fax: 408-616-3201; E-mail: info@lsscorp.com; Web site: www.lightspeed.com.