TI Drives the Standard for Customer Care During Design Process; Innovative Online Tools and Site Upgrades Revolutionize Digital Signal Processing Support

HOUSTON, Aug. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Recognizing the role accessible, multi-dimensional customer support has in accelerating the digital signal processing (DSP) design process, Texas Instruments Incorporated (NYSE: TXN - News; TI) today announced from the TI Developer Conference that it is setting a new standard for the level of customer care DSP developers should expect from providers. Scott Roller, TI's DSP Internet strategy manager, presented TI's approach to customer support during his Access TI presentation at the conference, which highlighted the activities TI is pursuing in an effort to put the customer first.

"As developers confront shrinking design cycles and increasingly complex designs, we want to ensure they can tap into TI's signal processing expertise and broad network of TI DSP developers as quickly and easily as possible," Roller said. "We continue to invest in our portfolio of online resources and are adding new applications, such as the discussion groups and KnowledgeBase, all the time. These improvements in online capabilities complement our product information center and field application engineers, who dedicate themselves to helping customers with the most complex questions."

The Web has become an integral part of the design process and is simply the fastest way for customers to access 24/7 support. One way TI has demonstrated the commitment to this effort is the launch of the new and improved DSP Developers' Village (www.dspvillage.ti.com/launch2 ), a portal to all TI products and services related to DSPs, which has been designed to map to the way developers think and navigate to make the wealth of TI resources even more accessible. This upgrade includes the addition of new content supporting TI's new OMAP5910 processor, and it is the first in a series of upcoming Web innovations, content and new tools that will enable a new level of operating efficiency for DSP designers.

DSP Developers' Village is uniquely positioned to maximize the strength of TI's DSP developer network by providing a forum for customers to tap into the unmatched depth and breadth of TI's technical information. New and updated features customers will now see on the site include:

• At-a-glance DSP product tree that provides consolidated information on each of TI's platforms, including a product overview, supporting devices, development tools, software and third parties
• "Quick DataSheets" that provide one-click navigation from any point in the site to datasheets, pricing, availability and samples for all devices
• Multimedia tutorials to give customers guidance on how to get started with different TI devices, tools and software
• "New and Featured" sections that highlight relevant technical resources, events and special offerings
• Simplified, more intuitive navigation that reflect the way developers approach seeking information on DSP technology

"The emphasis TI is placing on providing strong customer support and developing new and innovative support tools and programs, such as discussion groups, can prove to be a key differentiator in the DSP market space," said Will Strauss, president, Forward Concepts. "Though engineers may not have focused on their suppliers' support offerings in the past, the shrinking design cycles mean they will want more effective support services to ensure smooth and timely development."

Over the last year, TI has launched a number of other support tools, which are in addition to the traditional resources available to customers through the product information center and field applications engineers. New online tools include:

• Discussion Groups -- Linking the DSP design community through an easy-to-use, online tool, TI introduced five online discussion groups that allow designers to tap directly into the wealth of expertise shared by more than 50,000 TI DSP developers, more than 500 third parties and thousands of universities that know and use TI products. See www.dspvillage.ti.com/discussi .
• E-Store -- The E-Store simplifies placement of product and documentation orders for customers, and it currently features more than 50 products, including those of TI's third parties, and makes products, such as TI's DSP starter kits, available to customers the day they are announced. See http://www.dspvillage.ti.com/tiestore1 . Customers can also order a free copy of the "The Essential Guide to Getting Started with DSP" CD that includes a 90-day trial of Code Composer Studio. See www.dspvillage.ti.com/ordercd3 .
• Getting Started -- This Web site walks engineers new to digital signal processing through the selection process and provides introductory DSP content, including multimedia tutorials. See www.dspvillage.ti.com/gettingstartedc .
• DSP KnowledgeBase -- The DSP KnowledgeBase provides engineers access to a library of technical information, such as users guides, data sheets, white papers and application notes. See www.ti.com/sc/dspkbaseb .

For more information on TI's renewed emphasis on support see www.dspvillage.ti.com/launch2 .

Texas Instruments Incorporated provides innovative DSP and analog technologies to meet our customers' real world signal processing requirements. In addition to Semiconductor, the company's businesses include Sensors & Controls, and Educational & Productivity Solutions. TI is headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and has manufacturing, design or sales operations in more than 25 countries.

Texas Instruments is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol TXN. More information is located on the World Wide Web at www.ti.com .

TRADEMARKS

All trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.