Poly-Band Mobile Broadcast Tuner IC Launched By UK Start-Up

London -- Mirics Semiconductor, a new UK-based RF and mixed signal fabless semiconductor company operating in the mobile broadcast receiver market, launched the MSI001, a poly-band tuner for mobile digital broadcast reception. The device is a universal broadcast receiver that enables designers of mobile phones, portable media players and PDAs, to add mobile broadcast reception to support any global standard. Mirics claims the MSI001 has the lowest power consumption and highest performance of any mobile broadcast receiver currently available. Working samples of the MSI001 are available immediately.

The MSI001 chip is capable of receiving all broadcast standards announced to date, including DVB-H, T-DMB, ISDB-T, DAB-IP, MediaFlo, DAB, DRM and even AM/FM. Mirics also designed the MSI001 to be configured for the reception of other standards, or unknown future standards. An example of this flexibility is the impending release of the Chinese MDTV standards. The MSI001 was designed before these standards were announced, yet it supports them through a configuration option.

The device provides coverage for all major broadcast bands ranging from 100 KHz to 1.9 GHz (covering LW/MW/SW, L-Band and VHF Bands II, III, and UHF Bands IV and V). According to Mirics, the MSI001 also has the lowest power consumption of any tuner announced to date – for example using a mere 46mA in continuous DVB-H operation in the L-Band.

Following the launch of MSI001, Mirics will be announcing details of a mobile broadcast technology in Q4 2006, with a related product planned for launch in Q1 2007.

Simon Atkinson, CEO, Mirics comments: "The mobile broadcast market is extremely fragmented by multiple standards and band allocations. To date, companies have typically focused on supporting one or two of the multitude of standards. This fragmentation has been identified as the principal bottleneck to the wider adoption of mobile broadcast technologies; the small volumes available for any handset supporting a single standard do not justify its development."

Atkinson continues: "The multi-standard TV tuner has been heralded as the ‘holy grail ambition' for mobile handset design and is a key development target for our competitors for the next 12 months. Unlike our competitors, Mirics is delivering this technology today, in the form of working silicon which is available to sample now. MSI001 supports all current digital terrestrial broadcast standards, and analogue radio, across all terrestrial broadcast bands. It also has the lowest cost implementation and highest performance of any mobile broadcast receiver currently available."

Mike Gera, Pond Venture Partners, backing investment company for Mirics, comments: "Mirics is well positioned to gain an important first mover advantage in the rapidly emerging mobile broadcast receiver market. It has the perfect blend of industry experience, innovative talent, a breakthrough technology and a large and growing target market. We have high expectations for its success."

SOURCE: Mirics Semiconductor Inc.