Sonics' Research Reveals Dramatic Gains in Volume, Market Share, and Profits Using Third-Party Intelligent Interconnect Strategy for SoC Design

“Measuring the Value of Third-Party Interconnects” White Paper Now Available On Company’s Web Site

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., - May 5, 2005 - Sonics Inc.®, the premier supplier of system-on-chip (SoC) SMART Interconnects™, today announced findings from a four-month long research project on the economic benefits of using third-party intelligent interconnects for complex SoC design. Information contained in the company’s newly released white paper is consistent with semiconductor industry trend data, previously released by market research firms, and Sonics’ customers that find the utilization of third-party IP is more economical than developing equivalent in-house solutions. The Sonics paper quantifies the positive impact of outsourcing as a low-risk, cost-effective alternative to maintaining intelligent internal interconnect designs in house that can gain companies millions of dollars in profits. These findings can be accessed free on the Sonics Web site at www.sonicsinc.com

Highlights of the white paper include a mobile handheld market analysis quantifying how time-to-market advantages can have a major impact on gross profits. The paper discusses why the productivity of a company’s SoC development process permanently increases as a result of outsourcing, and how this delivers the competitive advantages that increase gross profits. Finally, the paper details how compounding benefits are realized by extending the outsourcing strategy to include a family of SoC products using a platform approach.

“The results of our study show that even though internal design teams can eventually approach technically equivalent intelligent internal interconnect solutions to what third-party providers offer, given enough time and money, it no longer makes economic sense to keep these designs in house. The significant gross profit impact of small time-to- market changes, within high volume, highly competitive markets, drives the shift to an outsourcing strategy as competitors using third-party solutions enter the market early and secure premium sockets,” says Phil Casini vice president of marketing for Sonics.

About Sonics

Sonics, Inc. is a leading provider of SMART Interconnects that deliver high SoC design predictability and increased design efficiency. Major semiconductor and systems companies including Broadcom, Samsung, Texas Instruments and Toshiba have applied Sonics SMART Interconnects in leading products in the wireless, digital multimedia and communications markets. Sonics is a privately held company funded by Investar Capital, Smart Technology Ventures, TL Ventures, Easton Hunt Capital, JAFCO Ventures, and H&Q Asia-Pacific. For more information, see www.sonicsinc.com