Top 10 Taiwan SoC Design Company Takes ARC License to Produce Cellular Baseband Designs

SAN JOSE, Calif., and ST. ALBANS, England, October 29, 2008 –  ARC International (LSE: ARK), a leading provider of consumer IP to OEM and semiconductor companies globally, announced today that one of the top 10 system-on-chip (SoC) design companies in Taiwan has taken an ARC® license. The new customer is incorporating ARC’s low power solution into cellular baseband designs targeting the worldwide cellular handset market.  The company chose ARC IP because it could custom tailor the performance, while achieving the small size and battery efficiency demanded of chips servicing the growing global handset market.

Research firm iSupply estimates that worldwide mobile handset baseband semiconductor revenue will rise to $16 billion in 2008.  To remain competitive in this market, handset chip vendors are using inventive single-chip solutions that will enable their customers to provide differentiated cellular products to consumers.

“Our new Taiwan-based customer is the latest example of how ARC’s solutions are being integrated into high volume consumer electronics devices,” said Paul Holt, ARC’s vice president of its SoC products business unit. “ARC IP is well known for its ability to enable unique products that provide high levels of differentiation.  The result is a device that can more easily compete in a crowded marketplace at higher price points.  We’re very pleased to welcome this new customer to the growing list of ARC licensees, and to be an important part of their cellular baseband strategy.”

About ARC International plc

ARC International is a world leading provider of consumer IP to OEM and semiconductor companies globally.  ARC’s award-winning, vertically integrated audio and video solutions enable high quality multimedia content to be captured, shared, and played on a wide range of electronics devices.  ARC’s 150+ customers collectively ship hundreds of millions of ARC-Based™ chips annually in products such as Mobile TVs, Portable Media Players, WiFi-/WiMAX-enabled computers, flash storage, digital cameras, network appliances, and medical and government systems.

ARC International maintains a worldwide presence with corporate and research and development offices in San Jose and Lake Tahoe, Calif., St. Albans, England, and St. Petersburg, Russia.  For more information visit www.ARC.com.  ARC International is listed on the London Stock Exchange as ARC International plc (LSE: ARK).