CAST Embraces New Xilinx Spartan-3 Platform as Low-Cost

FPGA IP Alternative To ASICs

WOODCLIFF LAKE, NJ, April 15, 2003 — CAST, Inc., a leading soft IP core provider, today announced its immediate support of the Spartan-3 platform FPGAs from Xilinx, Inc. (NASDAQ: XLNX), announced April 14, 2003. CAST offers over eighty general purpose IP cores, including processors, peripherals, multimedia, networking, encryption, serial communications and bus interfaces. This broad portfolio is now available to the high-volume markets that the new Spartan-3 platform addresses with its compelling price of one million gates for under $20.

“The Spartan-3 platform will certainly expand the opportunities for our FPGA-based IP core products by dramatically reducing the total cost of our customers’ solutions,” said Hal Barbour, president of CAST. “The combination of higher densities and lower price points provides an exciting programmable alternative for our ASIC customers.”

“CAST is a long-time AllianceCORE™ member and the largest contributor of IP to the catalog,” said Sandeep Vij, vice president of Worldwide Marketing at Xilinx. “We welcome their support of the Spartan-3 platform which rapidly expands the portfolio of quality 3rd-party IP available for customer designs today.”

All CAST IP cores are available for license under terms of the SignOnce IP License, the industry’s first multi-vendor common license for FPGA-based IP. Visit www.xilinx.com/ipcenter/signonce for more information.

Spartan-3 Platform FPGAs
Ranging from 50K to 5M system gates, the 90nm Spartan-3 platform is the world’s lowest-cost FPGA with unrivaled price points to address customer demand for low-cost solutions. With Spartan-3, Xilinx is poised to address entirely new high-volume applications in the “sweet spot” of mid-range ASICs - such as low cost routers, storage servers, medical and industrial imaging, and residential gateways - to significantly expand the total available market for the Spartan Series. For complete information about Spartan-3 FPGAs, visit http://www.xilinx.com/spartan3/.

About CAST, Inc.
CAST provides general purpose IP (gpIP), a broad range of popular and standards-based cores that includes processors, interfaces, and application-specific functions for multimedia and encryption. Designers use these cores so they can concentrate on the more unique, creative aspects of their system designs, or to quickly incorporate technology beyond their normal expertise.

Privately owned and operating since 1993 with a focus on making IP practical and affordable, the company has established a reputation for high-quality products, simple licensing, and responsive technical support. CAST is located near New York City, and works with an international network of IP developers and distributors.

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