STMicroelectronics and Ember Partner to Develop Next-Generation ZigBee Chip Platforms
GENEVA & BOSTON—(BUSINESS WIRE)—Jan. 10, 2006—
STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM), one of the world's
largest semiconductor companies, and Ember Corporation have signed an
agreement to jointly develop complete solutions for the fast-growing
ZigBee(TM) wireless networking market. ZigBee is a wireless,
standards-based radio technology that addresses the unique needs of
remote monitoring, control and sensor network applications.
The companies will co-develop a complete roadmap of next
generation ZigBee solutions, including hardware, software and tools.
This non-exclusive partnership combines Ember's expertise and
intellectual property in 802.15.4/ZigBee radio hardware and software,
with ST's world-class capabilities in semiconductor technology and
development, as well as its global manufacturing and marketing
resources. The joint development by ST and Ember of these new
products, the first of which is planned for launch in early 2006,
means that customers will be able to take advantage of these fully
compatible offerings as reliable reciprocal second sources.
For ST, the relationship with Ember will significantly accelerate
its development of leading-edge ZigBee technology and offer its
customers a robust roadmap of new interoperable products.
ST's relationship with Ember is the result of an extensive market
evaluation of various ZigBee technology providers, according to
Jean-Claude Kaire, director of standard linear ICs,
STMicroelectronics. "ST chose Ember because its ZigBee platform is
more mature, feature-rich and well ahead of other vendors. Together we
can be strong leaders in the ZigBee market by combining the
complementary assets and expertise of our two companies."
For Ember, teaming with semiconductor giant ST represents the
deepest relationship yet, in its strategy to partner with leading
microcontroller manufacturers to offer a diverse choice of
interoperable, standards-based ZigBee platforms from which device
manufacturers can build new products.
"ST's decision to work with Ember in serving the ZigBee market is
a huge validation for both Ember and ZigBee," said Adrian Tuck,
Ember's executive vice president. "This relationship will enable Ember
to access the vast resources of an industry giant with dozens of
advanced R&D centers, design centers, cutting-edge manufacturing
technology, and sales offices in 36 countries."
About ZigBee: Wireless Control That Simply Works
The ZigBee Alliance is an association of companies working
together to enable reliable, cost-effective, low-power, wirelessly
networked, monitoring and control products based on an open global
standard. The ZigBee Alliance is a rapidly growing, non-profit
industry consortium of leading semiconductor manufacturers, technology
providers, OEMs, and end-users worldwide. Membership is open to all.
Additional information can be found at www.zigbee.org.
About STMicroelectronics
STMicroelectronics is a global leader in developing and delivering
semiconductor solutions across the spectrum of microelectronics
applications. An unrivalled combination of silicon and system
expertise, manufacturing strength, Intellectual Property (IP)
portfolio and strategic partners positions the Company at the
forefront of System-on-Chip (SoC) technology and its products play a
key role in enabling today's convergence markets. The Company's shares
are traded on the New York Stock Exchange, on Euronext Paris and on
the Milan Stock Exchange. In 2004, the Company's net revenues were
$8.76 billion and net earnings were $601 million. Further information
on ST can be found at www.st.com.
About Ember Corporation
Ember enables communication among embedded microcontrollers with
standards-based wireless mesh networking semiconductors and software.
Ember helps its customers to automate home appliances, lower energy
consumption in buildings, keep borders and infrastructure secure, and
control industrial processes, just to name four of the many diverse
applications being developed by Ember's more than 100 customers. Spun
out of MIT in 2001, Ember is headquartered in Boston and has its radio
development center in Cambridge, England and distributors worldwide.
Ember is a lead member of the ZigBee Alliance, and its platform is the
National Technical Systems' (NTS) "Golden Suite" for 802.15.4/ZigBee
interoperability testing. For more information, please visit
www.ember.com.
Contact:
Ember Corporation
Ravi Sharma, 617-951-1236
Email Contact
or
Beaupre & Co. Public Relations
Stefanie Guzikowski, 603-559-5836
Email Contact
or
STMicroelectronics
Michael Markowitz, 212-821-8959
Email Contact
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