Atheros Communications
Named EDN 2004 Innovation of the Year Winner
Atheros Communications’ AR5006X single-chip
802.11a/b/g WLAN chipset named best “Application Specific Standard Part/System
on a Chip” solution
SUNNYVALE, Calif., March 8, 2005—Atheros
Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATHR), a leading developer of advanced wireless
LAN (WLAN) chipsets, has been selected from a field of hundreds as a winner in
the 15th Annual EDN Innovation Awards. Atheros’ AR5006X WLAN chipset won
in the “Application Specific Standard Part/System on a Chip” category. This
exclusive awards program honors truly outstanding electronic products ranging
from integrated circuits to test equipment-as well as the creative engineers who
invent them. Atheros received the award during the 15th Annual Innovation Awards
dinner on March 7, 2005, in San Francisco.
The EDN
Innovation Awards recognize significant advancements in products and
technologies which were shipped in volume in the 2004 calendar year. This year’s
program featured 13 product categories: Analog; Application-Specific Standard
Products/Systems on Chips (SoCs); Communications/Networking ICs; Digital ICs;
Electronic Design Automation; Embedded Systems; Intellectual Property; Passive
Components/Sensors; Power ICs; Power Supplies; Processors; Software; and Test
and Measurement.
“Atheros is extremely
honored to be recognized by EDN as a leading innovator in the WLAN
semiconductor market,” said Craig Barratt, president and chief executive officer
of Atheros Communications. “In 2004, Atheros led innovation in the wireless LAN
market with the introduction of three single-chip wireless LAN solutions. This
year, Atheros will continue to work to provide the industry’s most innovative
wireless solutions at the most competitive price.”
The AR5006X is the
world’s first complete single-chip IEEE 802.11a/b/g wireless LAN chipset. Its
highly integrated design reduces the size of the chipset from two chips to one
chip and reduces the number of required components, enabling 802.11a/b/g
reference designs that have 15 percent fewer parts and a correspondingly less
expensive BOM (bill of materials). The AR5006X also supports connectivity to all
Wi-Fi networks, the IEEE 802.11i security standard and Atheros’ XR™ (eXtended
Range) and Super AG® performance enhancements.
This breakthrough
single-chip IEEE 802.11a/b/g solution complements Atheros’ previous two-chip and
three-chip 802.11a/g solutions, which are available in a wide range of retail
and enterprise products as well as notebook PCs, and further defines the
company’s position as a market leader in high-performance, low-cost wireless LAN
semiconductors.
“Innovation is the heart
and soul of engineering, and these awards demonstrate that the search for new
technologies to improve quality of life is alive and well in the global
semiconductor industry,” said John Dodge, EDN editor in chief. “We
applaud all the engineers who are dedicated to nurturing the spirit of discovery
and invention.
About EDN
EDN, the premier design magazine of the electronics
industry, is published by Reed Business Information. Headquartered in Newton,
Massachusetts, EDN serves the vital information needs of design engineers
and engineering managers worldwide. The EDN franchise includes EDN,
EDN Europe, EDN Asia, EDN Australia, EDN China,
EDN Japan, and EDN.com.
EDN is a publication within Reed Electronics Group,
part of Reed Elsevier plc group (NYSE: RUK and ENL) -- a world-leading
publisher, trade-show producer, and information provider operating in the
science and medical, legal, educational, and business-to-business industry
sectors.
About Atheros Communications, Inc.
Atheros Communications is a leading developer of
semiconductor system solutions for wireless communications products. Atheros
combines its wireless systems expertise with high-performance radio frequency
(RF), mixed signal and digital semiconductor design skills to provide highly
integrated chipsets that are manufacturable on low-cost, standard complementary
metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) processes. Atheros technology is being used by
a broad base of leading customers, including personal computer and networking
equipment manufacturers. For more information, visit
www.atheros.com or send email to
info@atheros.com.
# # #
Atheros, the Atheros logo, Atheros XR, and
Super AG are trademarks of Atheros Communications, Inc. All other trademarks
mentioned in this document are the sole property of their respective owners.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS:
Except for the historical information
contained herein, the matters set forth in this press release, including
statements regarding the future of wireless technology and Atheros’ ability to
continue to innovate and develop new and cost-effective solutions, are
forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject to
risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially,
including, but not limited to, the difficulties inherent in developing new and
enhanced products; the effects of competition; the rate of growth of the market
for WLAN solutions; general economic conditions; and other risks detailed in
Atheros’ Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2004
as filed with the SEC and in other reports filed with the SEC by Atheros from
time to time. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof.
Atheros disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements.
Cheryl Patstone, 408-773-5344,
cheryl@atheros.com or Greg Wood, A&R Partners, 650-762-2838,
gwood@arpartners.com.
