MIPS has sharp year-over-year revenue drop

MIPS has sharp year-over-year revenue drop
By EBN
April 11, 2002 (5:35 p.m. EST)
URL: http://www.eetimes.com/story/OEG20020411S0040

Declining royalties due to waning sales of Nintendo64 video game products and the ongoing semiconductor demand drought contributed to a sharp year-over-year decline in MIPS Technologies Inc.Õs March-quarter revenue, although the embedded processor developer mustered 6% growth from the previous quarter.

Sequential growth was attributed to new licenses, even though a chill on new semiconductor design starts has slowed MIPSÕ royalty revenue stream.

MIPS, Mountain View, Calif., today said total revenue for its fiscal 2000 third quarter ended March 31 was $12.7 million, down 55% from the $28.1 million reported the same quarter a year ago. Excluding Nintendo64-related revenue, MIPS saw a 28% decline from the prior year.

Nintendo64 products accounted for about $1 million of MIPSÕ royalty revenue in the quarter. Royalty revenue was $4.1 million, down 74% from $16.1 million in the year-ago quarter. Excluding Nintendo64 royalties, the decline was 3% s equentially, and 26% year-over-year.

Contract revenue was $8.6 million, up 19% sequentially, but down 28% from a year ago.

ÒAlthough we had another strong quarter of new licensing activity and reasonable license revenue growth, we continue to see many of the elements in the market that have frustrated a faster recovery,Ó said John Bourgoin, chairman and chief executive of MIPS, in a released statement. ÒDelayed decisions and lowest-cost-of-entry licenses are still the rule of the day.Ó

MIPS is hoping a new development agreement with Toshiba Corp. and the addition of Advanced Micro Devices Inc. as a licensee through its acquisition of Alchemy Semiconductor will help drive the MIPS architecture into new, high volume markets, Bourgoin said.