Initio Corp. Takes an ARC License Targeting Rapid-Growth USB 3.0 and Solid State Disk Controller Markets

SAN JOSE, Calif., and ST. ALBANS, England -- July 2, 2009 - Initio, a leading provider of high-quality cost-effective integrated circuits and solutions for storage devices, has taken an ARC® 600 license to address the explosive growth USB 3.0 and solid state drive (SSD) controller market.  The ARC 600 will be embedded within USB 3.0 bridge controllers and SSD controllers to provide a Serial ATA2 to USB 3.0 Bridge and/or individual SATA2 and USB 3.0 outputs. The ARC 600 replaces an 8051 which is overwhelmed by the processing requirements of this application. The ARC 600 also has the advantage of occupying the same silicon area and operating at the same level of power as the 8051 it replaces.

The USB 3.0 (SuperSpeed USB) market is expected to begin shipping as discrete silicon this year with broad deployment of SuperSpeed USB-enabled products expected in 2010 according to market research firm In-Stat. The interface will target applications requiring high rates and volumes of data transfer, such as external storage, consumer electronics, and communications devices with increasing amounts of storage. The replacement potential for USB 3.0 is enormous. In-Stat counts more than 2.6 billion USB-enabled devices shipped in 2007 and expects annual shipment growth of USB-enabled devices through 2012 to be 8.3 percent. SSD unit shipments will also enjoy strong growth.  IDC predicts a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 76 percent from 2007-2012.

"We're extremely pleased with the performance of the ARC 600 in our USB 3.0 chip design," said Jui Liang CEO at Initio Corp.  "The core provides just the right silicon area and power consumption for the solid state disk controller and USB 3.0 application.  It has more than enough processing power to handle the 5.0 Gbit/s data rate of USB 3.0 as well as the more complex USB 3.0 control logic."

"We're thrilled to be part of Initio's innovative new silicon design in the two high growth applications of SSD control and the USB 3.0 interface," said Serene Shaw, Greater China Sales Director at ARC International.  "The ARC 600 is well suited for applications where the computing headroom of 8-bit CPUs like the 8051 has finally topped out and designers need a compact CPU core that can accommodate current and future design requirements, while maintaining the silicon footprint and power profile of the CPU it's replacing."
 
About Initio

Initio is a leading ASIC supplier for storage applications with offices in Taiwan, USA, and China. Initio's product lines including interconnect bridge controllers for USB, Firewire 400/800, eSATA, SATA 1.5G/3G, and SSD controllers.  Initio is the key suppliers to many first tier storage companies. For more information, please visit Initio at www.initio.com.
 
About ARC International plc

ARC International is a world leading provider of consumer IP to OEM and semiconductor companies globally.  ARC's award-winning, vertically integrated audio and video solutions enable high quality multimedia content to be captured, shared, and played on a wide range of electronics devices.  ARC's 150+ customers collectively ship hundreds of millions of ARC-Based™ chips annually in products such as PCs and laptops, digital and mobile TVs, portable media players, flash storage, digital cameras, network appliances, and medical and government systems.
ARC International maintains a worldwide presence with corporate and research and development offices in San Jose and Lake Tahoe, Calif., St. Albans, England, St. Petersburg, Russia, and Hyderabad, India.  For more information visit www.ARC.com.  ARC International is listed on the London Stock Exchange as ARC International plc (LSE: ARK).