MOT TTPCom stack to PXA800 and PXA900 allows MRVL to penetrate cellphone baseband biz
Exactly one yr has passed when MRVL acquired Xscale on 6/27/06
Marvell unlocks former Intel mobile business
By Richard Wilson -- Electronics Weekly, 2/20/2007
Is Marvell turning the former Intel mobile handset chip business into a mainstream supplier for the high volume 3G mobile phone market?
Last week’s license deal with Motorola indicates that it is and it is another example of how Marvell seems set on unlocking the potential of its expanded chip business.
Since Marvell bought Intel’s cellular handheld group last June, according to one senior executive in the company, the rate of design wins has gone up, investment in R&D has gone up, and the rate of new product introductions has gone up.
According to Stuart Robinson, director of the handset component technologies at Strategy Analytics: "Marvell has a good track record in the fabless chip business. It can supply high volume consumer chips profitably, despite aggressive price pressure. Marvell now commands two ARM-based designs, its existing Feroceon and Intel's XScale, giving it greater potential to penetrate the 3G handset market."
This latest deal covers the Motorola TTPCom cellular protocol software stack, developed in the U.K. that will allow it to offer hardware and software platforms for higher volume 3G smartphone manufacturers.
“As the protocols stack is the heart of the phone’s communications engine, it is critical to Marvell’s strategy of providing a complete smartphone platform to our customers.” said Sam Arditi, senior VP and general manager of Marvell’s cellular and handheld business group.
“The Marvell PXA family of communications processors has been running the Motorola TTPCom protocol stack for years. We know the code,” added Arditi.
Marvell PXA processors are currently shipping in volume in popular handheld devices like Motorola Q, Motorola A1200 Ming, Motorola ROKR2, and RIM Blackberry Pearl.
The software stack Marvell is licensing supports the design of dual-mode, low cost 2.5 and 3G handsets and so will open up low-cost, higher volumes designs for the chip firm.
Marvell has experience of porting the Motorola TTPCom stack to its PXA800 and PXA900 series of communications processors, which are already shipping in high volume. With this agreement Marvell will provide complete designs based on its wireless communications processors and platforms.
In June, Marvell acquired from Intel comms processors, based on the XScale technology, including the Intel PXA9xx communications processor which is used in Research in Motion’s (RIM) Blackberry 8700 device.
The terms of the agreement provide Marvell with a complete manufacturing and distribution license.
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