Let’s say that a company buys into our IP reuse proposition. What is the best use of our technology in relation to its portfolio?
First and foremost the market defines everything. Every semiconductor company that designs more than one ASIC has to choose whether to build the portfolio or design new IPs. There are many factors that could potentially impact a decision but from a market point of view it’s all about the revenues these IPs or ASICs could generate – and that is about what the market wants and will pay for and a company’s relationship with its customers.
If an IP that a company builds in a new technology can generate a reasonable amount of money, then the number of licenses or units it sells before it recovers the cost could justify the work.
That in turn is driven by the number of resources required. Should third party help be sought.
What about opportunity cost? Does one choice completely negate another?
You might think that Thalia can impact every one of these considerations. You would be wrong. But there is still a lot we can do.
The cost to redevelop an analog or mixed signal complex IP block can be between half a million to a million Euros, that raises some obvious questions. Can enough licenses be sold to justify the outlay and make a profit? But if the cost to get that IP in silicon validated came down by up to 50%, that’s a game changer. That is something we might be able to help with. Our focus on targeted automation – which we are constantly evolving and improving – means we are able to reduce the design cycle time and hence the cost.
What about resources? How can a company identify them and bring them on board? If a third party–like Thalia – can do that, it might speed up the process and save money.
Opportunity cost, meanwhile, doesn’t need to be either/or. If you have your IPs in different nodes and technologies you don’t need to think in such absolute terms.
A company can look at all of these factors and choose a vendor, though first ensuring that the vendor can scale up to meet its requirements and do so reliably. And if that’s something you are considering, don’t forget to check the vendor’s bona fides and its reputation too. Has it ever promised more than it can deliver?
We have not. We understand our skillsets, the focus of our expertise and t the technologies we work with (though we are constantly evolving on all fronts). We also know that, if the time, place and customer needs fit our offering, then a shorter design cycle in a shorter time – and thus lower costs – are part of our USP.
