Qualcomm Inc (QCOM)

[khemara_qc]

MSM Chipset to Have GHz Processing Power by 2005: Qualcomm Exec

June 11, 2004 (SAN DIEGO, Calif.) -- Sanjay K Jha, executive vice president and group president of Qualcomm CDMA Technologies at Qualcomm Inc, delivered the keynote speech to open the final day of the BREW 2004 Developers Conference.



"The days of voice-only devices are gone," he announced. San Diego, Calif-based Qualcomm sponsored the conference and is the force behind Binary Runtime Environment for Wireless (BREW). BREW provides a software development environment for software developers making applications for cell phones. It also provides a business framework for the wireless industry.

Qualcomm's core CDMA technology, used in the chipsets it makes for cell phones and wireless networks, continue to advance and push BREW development to new levels, Jha said (photo). The arrival of BREW cell phones integrating cameras, MP3 players and other devices has been possible because of a focus on integration and cost with the internal chipsets. "We need to be able to delivery chipsets at a price point that is very compelling. The ways to achieve this are reduced cost of development and increasing the level of integration," he said.

He encouraged attendees by highlighting the opportunities available to develop applications for the growing number of BREW-capable phones available worldwide. More than 20 countries now have BREW service, and Jha specifically pointed to China, India, Southeast Asia and Latin America as market opportunities for BREW developers. "These are the fastest growing markets," he said.

Jha also provided a roadmap for Qualcomm's MSM chipset series, the core processor behind BREW phones. The MSM6100, currently used in most BREW phones, has integrated various functions while remaining cost effective, he said. There are some 16 variations of the MSM chipset to accommodate the needs of the 28 service operators Qualcomm works with worldwide. "At the end of the day carriers have significant input on defining what goes onto the handsets," he said.

Quickly ironing out handset specifications is especially critical to BREW developers, Jha explained, as now the market has become more complex. "The lifetime of a handset now is about six to nine months. If you miss that window your ability to make money is seriously challenged," Jha said.

He also announced that next generation MSM chips -- the MSM6550 and MSM6150 -- will be in the hands of developers later this year. Jha also anticipates the MSM chipset will have GHz processing power by next year. "The BREW environment around it will only turn on the GHz processor when it is required. If a job doesn't require that power, it runs the other processor running at 100 MHz, optimizing the power consumption," he explained.

(Michael Thuresson, Special Correspondent for BREW 2004, NE Asia Online)

http://neasia.nikkeibp.com/wcs/leaf/CID/onair/asabt/news/313055