Agere Systems incorporates Hantro Multimedia solutions in reference platform for mobile phones

-- Hantro, the leading mobile multimedia solution expert, announced today that they have licensed a suite of hardware and software products to Agere Systems (NYSE: AGR.A, AGR.B).

Agere is a leading supplier of silicon and software for mobile phones based on GPRS, EDGE and UMTS technologies. The company provides a comprehensive reference platform that reduces time-to-market and volume production for feature-rich, multimedia phones by up to three months. By licensing both software and hardware for MPEG-4/H.263 video and JPEG still image codecs, Agere is able to provide a ‘one-stop-shop’ to device manufacturers looking to implement multimedia capability in existing and future devices.

“Multimedia functionality plays a significant part in our future mobile products as we look to meet growing demand for such high-performance applications as video playback and record, as well as interactive gaming,“ says Andy Craigen, marketing director for Agere’s mobile phone solutions business. “Hantro’s extensive product portfolio offers the video quality required to deliver these solutions, enabling Agere to deliver cost-effective multimedia solutions, without the need for additional multimedia co-processors.”

Hantro’s hardware codecs enable the capture of full motion video at resolutions of up to VGA at 30 frames per second and still images of up to 6 megapixels. This core technology enables the ultimate in device convergence - mobile phone, digital video camera, digital video player and the digital still camera.

“Since the outset, our strategic focus has been on the user creation of video within the handset – the future of mobile video is not just passive viewing; the ability to create near DVD quality video within a mobile handset kicks open the door to a plethora of new and exciting applications.” Says Eero Kaikkonen, CEO of Hantro “The roadmap synergy between Agere and Hantro serves to further ratify our strategy and ensures that video capability will be one of the core functional requirements in future mobile devices.”

About Hantro
Focussed on mobile, Hantro is committed to continually advancing video enabling technology to deliver capabilities that exceed the expectations of the marketplace. As the leading provider of hardware and software based MPEG4 / H.263 and H.264 video solutions specifically tailored for handheld devices, Hantro is uniquely positioned to provide technology solutions for silicon providers, device manufacturers and network operators.

Hantro’s investors are funds managed by CapMan, Startupfactory, Menire and Nexit Ventures.