ARC Video Subsystem Family Now Supports Popular RealVideo Format, Extending ARC's Multi-Standard Advantage

ARC® Video Subsystems Decode RealVideo® Content up to 75 Percent Faster Than Competitive Offerings

CES LAS VEGAS, NV -- January  10, 2007 -- ARC International (LSE: ARK) the leader in configurable multimedia subsystems and CPUs/DSPs, today at the Consumer Electronics Show announced the availability of a RealVideo® decoder for the ARC® Video Subsystem family.  The new decoder supports RealVideo content encoded in versions 7, 8, 9 or 10 formats.  In comparison, the next best competitive solution required 75 percent more cycles than a member of the ARC Video Subsystem family to decode similar RealVideo bit streams.* ARC's leadership in porting and optimizing popular multimedia formats ensures customers have today's most widely used video codecs for their multimedia application.  ARC has contributed the optimized version of RealVideo in source code form to the RealNetworks® Helix™ Community, where the source code can be accessed by other Helix Community licensees for R&D or distribution.

“RealAudio® and RealVideo have been widely adopted by content providers and manufacturers of portable multimedia devices,” says Scott Nelson, director of business development at RealNetworks.  “Worldwide, over 180 million handsets incorporating the Helix and Real® technology have shipped and several dozen OEM's and IC manufacturers are currently licensees of RealAudio and RealVideo. We are extremely pleased to have ARC add its support and new level of performance to this expanding ecosystem.”

“Porting the increasingly popular RealVideo decoder to the ARC Video Subsystem family illustrates the multi-standard flexibility in ARC's multimedia subsystem products” said Bill Jackson, vice president of marketing at ARC International.  “Our customers are developing products for worldwide markets and every market region has different requirements for video standards. RealVideo format has gained significant market momentum in Asia, particularly in China.  The ARC Video Subsystem family allows our customers to deploy a single video-optimized subsystem that can be configured for many different markets by deploying ARC Video codec software specific to that market.”  

Availability

The RealVideo® decoder is available to ARC® Video Subsystem family customers worldwide via the RealNetworks® Helix™ Community (https://helixcommunity.org/).  .

About ARC International plc

ARC International is the world leader in configurable multimedia subsystems and CPU/DSP processors.  Used by over 140 companies worldwide, ARC's configurable solutions enable the creation of highly differentiated system-on-chips (SoCs) that ship in hundreds of millions of devices annually.  ARC's patented subsystems and cores are smaller, consume less power, and are less expensive to manufacture than competing products.

ARC International maintains a worldwide presence with corporate and research and development offices in Silicon Valley and St. Albans, UK.  For more information visit www.ARC.com.  ARC International is listed on the London Stock Exchange as ARC International plc (LSE: ARK).