Advantest Standardizes on SpringSoft's Verdi Debug System with Multi-Year Contract

Verdi Deployed for RTL Verification in Advantest’s Enhanced ESL Design Flow

HSINCHU, Taiwan -- October 17, 2011 -- SpringSoft, Inc. (TAIEX: 2473), a global supplier of specialized IC design software, today announced that Advantest Corporation (TSE: 6857) (NYSE: ATE), the world’s leading supplier of semiconductor test equipment, has signed a multi-year renewal agreement expanding its deployment of SpringSoft’s Verdi™ Automated Debug System. Advantest will apply the Verdi software to verify register transfer level (RTL) designs synthesized by behavior synthesis tools in its enhanced electronic system level (ESL) design flow.

“We have been using Verdi for years as our standard debug platform for RTL simulation debug and design analysis for multiple generations of application specific integrated circuits (ASICs) in our automated test equipment (ATE) solutions. For those ASICs, we must meet extremely high standards for quality and performance. With its unique, enhanced debug automation capabilities, Verdi automates the process of tracking down problems and pinpointing root causes, which saves valuable engineering time and resources,” said Shinya Sato, manager of the Design Engineering Department at Advantest.

Mr. Sato added, “Verdi helps our engineers to meet time-to-market and quality goals. Using Verdi’s tools, we have built an advanced ESL C-to-RTL synthesis methodology to achieve higher engineering productivity. We believe that Verdi can be especially helpful in verifying synthesized RTL with this new methodology flow.”

“Advantest is integrated into some of the most advanced semiconductor production lines in the world, and has a long history of delivering technically superior solutions. We are pleased to see the results their ASIC teams have achieved using our automated debug solutions, enabling them to keep pace with the rapidly evolving automatic test equipment (ATE) market they serve,” said Thomas Li, director of product marketing at SpringSoft.

The Verdi Automated Debug System is SpringSoft’s flagship product for advanced debug. It cuts debug time in half by automating the process of comprehending how complex IC and SoC designs work, particularly unfamiliar legacy design elements or third-party intellectual property. The full-featured system automates behavior tracing over time with its unique analysis engines, provides a powerful set of design views to visualize and help analyze cause-and-effect relationships, and uses patented techniques to reveal the functional operation and interaction between the design, assertions and system testbench.

About SpringSoft

SpringSoft, Inc. is a global supplier of specialized automation technologies that accelerate engineers during the design, verification and debug of complex digital, analog and mixed-signal ICs, ASICs, microprocessors, and SoCs. Its award-winning product portfolio features the Novas™ Functional Closure and Laker™ Custom IC Design solutions used by more than 400 of today's leading IDM and fabless semiconductor companies, foundries, and electronic systems OEMs. Headquartered in Hsinchu, Taiwan, SpringSoft is the largest company in Asia specializing in IC design software and a recognized industry leader in customer service with more than 400 employees located in multiple R&D sites and local support offices around the world. For more information, visit www.springsoft.com.

About Advantest

Advantest Corporation is a leading supplier of automated test solutions for LSIs and mechatronics equipment. Based in Marunouchi, Tokyo, the company is listed on the TSE and NYSE (TSE: 6857, NYSE: ATE). For more information, visit http://www.advantest.co.jp/.