Synopsys Launches Industry's First Technical Community Site Dedicated to Users of Verification IP

VIP-Central.org Serves as an Online Resource Connecting Protocol and Verification IP Experts to SoC Verification Engineers

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Aug. 8, 2012 -- Synopsys, Inc. (Nasdaq: SNPS), a world leader in software and IP used in the design, verification and manufacture of electronic components and systems, today announced the launch of VIP-Central.org, the first industry-wide, technical community site focused on system-on-chip (SoC) verification engineers and users of verification IP (VIP). The site provides a centralized online resource of relevant forums and blogs focused on verification of industry-standard protocols. VIP-Central.org is the go-to source for the latest technical information and discussions on the use of verification IP and advanced verification methodologies to verify protocol-based IP as well as IP integration, SoC sub-systems and full SoCs. VIP-Central.org aggregates information from industry experts across the verification community, providing best practices and ideas for better verification performance, protocol debug, methodology, verification planning, coverage management and ease-of-use.

"As each new SoC adds the next generations of different IP blocks, IP subsystems and frequent releases of new protocols, SoC companies are required to quickly ramp their verification teams to embrace these changes," said Rich Wawrzyniak, senior market analyst for ASIC and SoC at Semico Research. "The launch of VIP-Central.org as a technical resource for protocol-based verification will improve ramp times, act as a repository of knowledge and expertise for designers, and also enable the verification IP experts in the industry to share their best practices with the verification community."

With the increasing number of complex protocols used in SoCs, verification engineers face a tough challenge to quickly acquire the protocol expertise needed to verify a SoC as well as all of its on-chip fabrics and off-chip interfaces. The challenge is made tougher by the frequent release of new and more sophisticated generations of protocols to improve performance, power and quality of service. Verification engineers must complete many tasks requiring both protocol and methodology expertise including developing environments, integrating VIP, using and modifying test sequences, debugging complex protocol results and analyzing coverage data. VIP-Central.org is designed to help engineers quickly understand the intricacies and foibles of each protocol and how to effectively utilize industry-available verification IP to verify these protocols while employing methodologies such as UVM, OVM and VMM.

"VIP-Central.org represents an important milestone for the VIP user community," said Janick Bergeron, verification fellow at Synopsys. "As protocols become more intricate and SoC verification complexity continues to grow, VIP-Central.org offers a community-driven portal to share the learning from our successful customer VIP engagements, and enable exchange of ideas with other VIP experts, users and the entire SoC verification community."

About VIP-Central.org

VIP-Central.org is an industry-wide community site for system-on-chip (SoC) verification engineers and users of verification IP. It provides a centralized online resource of relevant forums and blogs focusing on verification of today's industry-standard protocols. Visit VIP-Central.org online at http://www.vip-central.org/.

About Synopsys

Synopsys, Inc. (Nasdaq:SNPS) is a world leader in electronic design automation (EDA), supplying the global electronics market with the software, intellectual property (IP) and services used in semiconductor design, verification and manufacturing. Synopsys' comprehensive, integrated portfolio of implementation, verification, IP, manufacturing and field-programmable gate array (FPGA) solutions helps address the key challenges designers and manufacturers face today, such as power and yield management, system-to-silicon verification and time-to-results. These technology-leading solutions help give Synopsys customers a competitive edge in bringing the best products to market quickly while reducing costs and schedule risk. Synopsys is headquartered in Mountain View, California, and has approximately 70 offices located throughout North America, Europe, Japan, Asia and India. Visit Synopsys online at http://www.synopsys.com/.