MAGNOLIA BROADBAND PARTNERS WITH JAZZ SEMICONDUCTOR FOR DIVERSITYPLUS™ CHIPSET
Jazz RF and Mixed-Signal Process Technology Leveraged for New Radio Chip Architecture that
Provides Performance Breakthroughs in Cell Phone Battery Life, Coverage, Network Capacity
and Data Throughput
CLINTON, N.J. and NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., Mar. 29, 2004 -- Magnolia Broadband, Inc., a
fabless semiconductor company and innovator of radio frequency (RF) solutions for the
cellular industry, today announced that it has selected Jazz Semiconductor as its
foundry for the DiversityPlus™ chipset, the company’s flagship product.
DiversityPlus is a technology platform designed to exploit antenna diversity
architectures in mobile terminals. The new architecture extends cellular phone
battery life and improves coverage, capacity and data rates of existing cellular networks.
Magnolia utilized Jazz Semiconductor’s specialty silicon germanium (SiGe)
BiCMOS manufacturing process technology to design DiversityPlus.
"Jazz was selected as our foundry partner because of its leadership position in
this industry and its expertise in RF and mixed signal process technology," said
William Reinisch, Magnolia Broadband senior vice president, operations and engineering.
"We were confident that Jazz could meet our aggressive schedule, cost and performance
requirements while providing us with a comprehensive design platform and exceptional
customer service."
Through DiversityPlus, Magnolia is the first to improve both transmission and reception
capabilities in mobile terminals using dual antenna inputs and outputs to create more
robust signals through its diversity algorithm processing. Cell phones powered by
DiversityPlus will have longer battery life and enable carriers to improve coverage
and data throughput, as well as serve twice as many subscribers with the same
infrastructure.
"As the cellular industry continues to grow at a steady pace, wireless carriers
continue to face ongoing challenges with coverage and network capacity," added
Reinisch. "DiversityPlus provides these operators with the necessary performance
improvements that will enable them to expand their infrastructure and enhance the
user experience at a fraction of the cost of other solutions."
"Jazz is pleased to partner with Magnolia to enable design and manufacture of
innovative RF solutions that provide measurable advancements in the mobile handset,"
said Paul Kempf, Jazz Semiconductor Chief Marketing and Technology Officer. "We
look forward to an ongoing partnership with Magnolia as they continue to deliver unique
wireless solutions to other markets."
DiversityPlus is initially targeted to wireless service providers using CDMA
technology, however, Magnolia is planning to expand to other markets including WCDMA,
Wi-Fi, Wi-Max and EDGE. Magnolia is currently shipping engineering samples,
with full production slated for the second half of 2004.
About Magnolia Broadband
Magnolia is an innovative developer of semiconductors for the wireless industry and the
first company to provide diversity antenna technology using unique RF chipset products
that incorporate both transmit and receive diversity. By using a unique RF
(Radio Frequency) chipset product and algorithm, it incorporates a novel way of
combing RF signals from two antennae for both transmit and receive signals in the
mobile terminal, enabling carriers to serve twice as many subscribers within the same
wireless infrastructure while boosting phone coverage, data rates and battery performance.
Carriers and consumers also benefit from more reliable connections, improved quality of
service while having small impact on cost.
Leading CDMA carriers and mobile terminal manufacturers have tested Magnolia’s
technology. Since its inception in 2001, Magnolia has raised $17 million in capital
from notable investors like Draper Fisher Jurvetson Gotham, ECentury Capital Partners,
SCP Private Equity Partners, Selway Partners and Silverstar Holdings. Magnolia has
filed numerous patents related to its core technology and partnered with semiconductor
industry notables such as Jazz Semiconductor, and Amkor Technology. For more
information, go to
www.magnoliabroadband.com.
DiversityPlus™ is the trademark of Magnolia Broadband Inc.
About Jazz Semiconductor
Jazz Semiconductor is an independent semiconductor wafer foundry that specializes in
mixed-signal and radio frequency (RF) technologies for use in wireless communications,
optical networking, power management and other ultra-high performance applications.
The company, based in Newport Beach, California, was founded in March of 2002 as a
privately held company with the Carlyle Group as the majority shareholder.
Jazz expands on the offerings of a traditional pure play foundry by focusing on
mixed signal and RF technology processes, design platforms, and experienced
engineering support. To learn more, visit
www.jazzsemi.com.
Magnolia Contact
Joesph Dans
(212) 651-4215
joesph.dans@fusionpr.com
Jazz Contact
Paul Kempf
Cheif Marketing and Technology Officer
(949) 435-8194
paul.kempf@jazzsemi.com
Jazz Media Contact
Kerry Fedro
(949) 453-8080
kerry@lages.com
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