Ericsson Inc. (Stockholm, Sweden) Technology Licensing announced that it has signed a licensing agreement to provide its Bluetooth radio core, the K-D1, to National Semiconductor Corp. (Santa Clara, CA). National plans to introduce products incorporating Ericsson's radio next year.
"National's broad portfolio of Bluetooth products, from chip sets to modules to accessories, will be enhanced by our licensing agreement with Ericsson," said Jean-Louis Bories, executive vice president of National Semiconductor's IA and wireless division. "We are strong believers in Bluetooth and the added value Bluetooth solutions provide customers in applications such as mobile handsets and PDAs."
"By signing a licensing agreement with National Semiconductor, one of the world's top semiconductor companies, we have taken a big step toward reaching our goal of integrating our Bluetooth solution into mass market consumer products," says Maria Khorsand, president of Ericsson Technology Licensing. "This puts new fuel into the Bluetooth market - where the demand for chips is expected to grow more than 300 percent next year."
