Actions Semiconductor and Dolphin Integration enable a solution for the next generation of portable audio players

Grenoble – May 11, 2009 – Actions Semiconductor, the leading Chinese Fabless Supplier of SoCs for portable audio and video players and Dolphin Integration, the pervasive supplier of high-performance and low-power Virtual Components, disclosed their cooperation in the field of Silicon IP components for Microcontrollers, Memories and Audio Converters.

The development of portable audio player applications is a dilemma for power consumption versus performance. This is not only the lesson of the analog and Memory components but also of the MCU design. With the breakthrough of the Dolphin Virtual Components of silicon IP, Actions Semiconductor could allow the application providers to target cost effective, performance excellent, portable multimedia players. The extremely cost effectiveness of Dolphin IP products on silicon, within any SoC, will enable Actions Semiconductor to provide end-users with continuous and instant enjoyment of the multimedia experience through new proactive applications and services.

“We are pleased to cooperate with Dolphin Integration to provide a professional music experiencing with the right cost and power consumption”, confides Vincent Lin, Vice-President of Marketing at Actions Semiconductor. “We had to by-pass its limits in terms of the old SoC computing power and we had initially contemplated replacing it with Dolphin’s silicon IP core offering better cost-performance rating”, adds Vincent Lin. “Our targeted users are sensitive to cost as as well as to power consumption. Dolphin Integration appeared as a better choice for our multimedia SoCs in many respects: overall silicon area saving, memory and power consumption reduction, while overall performance is improved”, concludes Vincent Lin.

“Most users are surprised to discover that our 16-bit core has been available as MCU since 2004”, says Jean-Francois Pollet, Vice President for Products at Dolphin. “We started to address the market of IC obsolescence, and proving in doing so the reliability of our 16-bit core in terms of code compatibility. We thus pave the way to further reduction of silicon costs by ensuring a smooth transition for companies with a lasting data base of application software.”

About Actions Semiconductor

Actions Semiconductor is one of China's leading fabless semiconductor companies who provide mixed-signal and multimedia SoC solutions for portable consumer electronics. Actions Semiconductor products include SoCs, firmware, software, solution development kits, as well as detailed specifications of other required components and leads to the providers of those components. Actions Semiconductor also provides total product and technology solutions that allow customers to quickly introduce new portable consumer electronics to the mass market in a cost effective way. The company is headquartered in Zhuhai, China, with offices in Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen. For more information, please visit the Actions Semiconductor website at http://www.actions-semi.com

About Dolphin Integration

Dolphin Integration is up to their charter as the most adaptive creator in Microelectronics to "enable mixed signal Systems-on-Chip", with a quality management stimulating reactivity for innovation. Their current mission is to supply worldwide customers with fault-free, high-yield and reliable sets of CMOS Virtual Components, resilient to noise and drastic for low power-consumption, together with engineering assistance and product evolutions customized to their needs.
More information on Microcontrollers at: http://www.dolphin.fr/rock