Date: 11/06/2010

Synopsys acquires Virage to strengthen its IP portfolio

Semiconductor chip design software and IP vendor Synopsys has inked agreement with another VLSI IP vendor Virage Logic for an acquisition deal. Through this expansion Synopsys enhances its growing IP portfolio with Virage's embedded SRAMs, embedded NVM, embedded test and repair, and processor and logic interface IP libraries. This will enable Synopsys to offer single shop solution for many of the needed IP cores for designing system-on-chip (SoC). Synopsys is leading supplier of IP for USB, DDR and PCIe. Synopsys is estimated as 2nd biggest semiconductor IP vendor in the world, this acquisition will strengthen Synopsys' position further.
Synoysys to pay approximately $315 at $12.00 cash per Virage Logic share. The deal subject to regulatory and Virage Logic shareholder approval and other such conditions. Virage Logic will become part of Synopsys, and Virage Logic stock will cease trading.

"With more functionality being integrated into a single device, high-quality IP continues to be key for enabling designers to reduce integration risk and speed time-to-market," said Dr. Aart de Geus, chairman and CEO at Synopsys. "Bringing Synopsys and Virage Logic together broadens our portfolio and builds on two very strong technical teams. It is also in line with what so many customers are looking to Synopsys to address: a way to quickly incorporate standard functions into their SoCs so they can focus on developing differentiated products."

"When I co-founded Virage Logic in 1996, it was with the belief that a semiconductor IP company could provide the technically superior building blocks that the industry needed to accelerate development of high quality, cost-effective end products," said Dr. Alex Shubat, president and CEO of Virage Logic. "Today, the transition to a fabless, or 'fab-lite' model, coupled with the explosion in SoC product development costs at the advanced process nodes, has resulted in an escalating need by the semiconductor manufacturers for production-proven IP. By joining forces with Synopsys' impressive engineering team and by gaining access to their global channel, we will be able to accelerate the development and delivery of our broad product offering to help customers meet their design-for-profitability goals. I am excited to join Synopsys to further my original vision."

Synopsys has also acquired technology, engineering resources and other assets of Synfora. Synopsys plans to use Synfora's C/C++ high-level synthesis tools used to design complex systems-on-chips (SoCs) and FPGAs to enhance it's FPGA-based prototyping solutions. The financial details of the deal have not been disclosed.

Synfora's software uses high level language such as C and C++ to quickly and easily create and synthesize semiconductor chip's building blocks compared to complex and time consuming HDL coding.