ARC International Expands Authorized Design Center Network in U.S., China and Korea with e-MDT Partnership

e-MDT will partner with ARC and Hynix Semiconductor to provide full turnkey design services for products based on ARC’s industry leading SoC IP

San Jose, CA, July 22, 2002 – ARC International (LSE: ARK), a world leader in configurable System-on-Chip (SoC) platform technologies, today expanded its worldwide authorized design center network by partnering with e-MDT, a full turnkey SoC design center based in the U.S., China and Korea.

e-MDT will provide complete design services, back-end testing and verification for products based on ARC’s industry leading communications and consumer SoC IP portfolio, including the 32-bit RISC/DSP ARCtangent™ microprocessor core architecture. Full turnkey services will also include wafer fabrication and device assembly via their foundry partner, Hynix Semiconductor.

In a separate release today, ARC and Hynix announced ARC joining Hynix’s SoC IP Alliance program, which will enable Hynix to offer standard and custom products based on ARC’s SoC IP. By partnering with both e-MDT and Hynix, ARC has also authorized e-MDT to provide design services for its SoC IP-based solutions on behalf of Hynix’s worldwide customers.

“e-MDT’s expertise in ASIC and mixed signal design is a real benefit to customers throughout the U.S. and Asia who require the fastest time-to-market and reduced risks for ARC IP-based products,” said Mike Gulett, president and chief executive of ARC International. “With Hynix’s extensive and cost-effective manufacturing support, e-MDT is now fully positioned as one of the best ‘one-stop shop’ design centers in the world.”

ARC’s partnership with e-MDT will provide its customers direct access to e-MDT’s three state-of-the art design centers in San Jose, California, Seoul, Korea and Shenzen, China. Customers will benefit from e-MDT’s international design teams specializing in sub-micron ASIC and ASSP integrated circuits and license IP for communications and consumer products.

“Our design center partnership with ARC International is another important milestone for e-MDT,” stated Jay Jeong, CEO and president of e-MDT. “ARC is the number one RISC IP supplier in the world, and the addition of this IP to our portfolio allows us to offer our customers access to technologies that will significantly reduce their time-to-market. This partnership is not only clear recognition of the skills and experience of our design team, but also our commitment to bring our advanced SoC design resources closer to our customers.”

The 32-bit RISC/DSP ARCtangent microprocessor core architecture is an ideal choice for highly flexible and low cost ASIC, SoC, ASSP and FPGA designs for communications and consumer products. With its low power consumption and superior computational performance, it is a leading choice for variety of applications throughout the world.

About ARC International
ARC International is an industry-leading developer of embedded user-customizable, high-performance 32-bit RISC/DSP processor cores, with integrated development tools, peripherals, RTOS and software. These integrated products and solutions are a result of the acquisitions of MetaWare, VAutomation and Precise Software Technologies. ARC’s integrated intellectual property solutions assist customers in rapidly developing next generation wireless, networking and consumer electronics products, reducing the number of IP suppliers, reducing time-to-market, reducing costs, and reducing the risk for System-on-Chip product development. Products based on ARC’s technology include digital still cameras, set-top boxes, and network processors.

ARC International employs more than 200 people in research and development, sales, and marketing offices across North America, Europe and Israel. Full details of the company’s locations and other information are on the company's web site, www.ARC.com . ARC International is listed on the London Stock Exchange as ARC International plc (LSE:ARK).

ARC, the ARC logo and ARCtangent are trademarks of ARC International. All other brands or product names are the property of their respective holders.

About e-MDT
e-MDT, Inc specializes in the design of System-on-Chip (SoC), application specific integrated circuits. e-MDT was founded in 1994 and opened its first ASIC design center in San Jose, California. e-MDT became an international company in 2000 with the opening of additional ASIC design centers in Seoul, Korea and Shenzen, China. The three design centers are fully staffed and well positioned to access the Asia- Pacific foundries and support the US and Asia- Pacific markets. The design centers are interconnected and share the design tools and the engineering resources necessary to specialize in the design of complex, sub-micron, digital and analog, SoC and ASIC products. e-MDT’s design engineers are experience in all phases of turnkey, integrated circuit design, test and fabrication. This experience coupled with a vast portfolio of silicon proven Intellectual Property (IP), provide the most cost-effective and time efficient, turnkey solutions for SoC, integrated circuit products.