Share:

SAN JOSE, California, February 2, 2006 - ZiLOG (NASDAQ: ZILG), a leading  provider of integrated microcontrollers (MCUs), announced today that it is entering the 32-bit ARM-9 microcontroller market.

The ZiLOG ARM-9 will be targeting growing application-specific markets, with a focus on security and Point-of-Sale applications. The collaborative support of key security customers have been instrumental in driving ZiLOG's entry into the ARM9 product marketplace.

It's important to note that ZiLOG is not planning on entering the general purpose ARM-7 market. The ZiLOG ARM9 strategy is a direct extension of the company's application-specific product strategy.

According the figures published by The Nilson Report, in November  2005, the POS market for microcontrollers was 8.8 million units globally in  2004 and it is growing at a rate of 18.1 percent annually.

ZiLOG ARM9 Target Markets
Target applications  include:

• Secure payment terminals
• Vending kiosks
• Postage meters
• Wireless and mobile payment terminals
• ATMs
• Lottery and gaming machines
• other pay points

ZiLOG ZA9L Microcontroller Block Diagram

The first ZiLOG ARM9 device is called the ZA9L. It is a 200MHz device targeting the embedded security and card reader marketplace.

ZiLOG expects to begin shipping production parts around mid 2006.

"As with our existing 8-bit product portfolio, we are very much focused on an  application-specific standard product strategy within the 32-bit ARM-9 space," stated Jim Thorburn, ZiLOG CEO and Chairman. "We are entering an exciting phase for the company working with key 'tier one' customers in the security and POS markets to develop new, leading edge products. We; believe our first set of product introductions in the summer will further leverage our position as one of the leading suppliers of microcontrollers to these sectors."

Dr Norman Sheridan, ZiLOG's Executive Vice President of Technology Operations, added: "Whilst our core focus with the ARM-9 product has been on POS and security, we have identified additional opportunities for applications in physical access control, for example, transportation, ticketing and passport/ID, and data access control, such as fitness machines, remote monitoring and health cards. Although we are still at a very early stage in  these areas, the potential is certainly there for us to explore and the next  few months are an exciting time for our company."

About ZiLOG, Inc
ZiLOG, Inc. founded in 1974, won international acclaim for designing one of the first architectures in the microprocessors and microcontrollers industry. Today, ZiLOG is a leading global supplier of micro-logic devices. ZiLOG designs  and markets a broad portfolio of devices for embedded control and  communication applications used in consumer electronics, home appliances,  security systems, point of sales terminals, personal computer peripherals, as well as industrial and automotive applications. ZiLOG is headquartered in San  Jose, California, and employs approximately 500 people worldwide with sales offices and design centers throughout Asia, Europe and North America.