Fujitsu Semiconductor Group Agrees to Purchase Magma's Physical Design Software.

CUPERTINO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 15, 1999--

Blast Fusion to Enhance Fujitsu's ASIC Design Methodology

Magma Design Automation, Inc., the technology leader in silicon design implementation solutions, today announced that Fujitsu Semiconductor Group has entered into a multi-year agreement to purchase Magma's Blast Fusion(TM) electronic design automation (EDA) software. This will allow Fujitsu to integrate the Blast Fusion physical design system into design flows targeted for its 0.25-micron process technology. Fujitsu will deploy the software to its design centers and internal design teams worldwide.

"Fujitsu's advanced Silicon on Chip (SOC) technology and Magma's innovative physical design system is a powerful combination for ASIC design implementation. Through constant enhancements to our design methodology, we continue to offer our customers the best solutions and time to market," said Kiminori Fujisaku, general manager of Worldwide System LSI Technologies (WWSLT) of Fujitsu Semiconductor Group.

The agreement is a direct result of a series of successful benchmarks completed by Fujitsu and Magma. Criteria evaluated included performance, turnaround time, signal integrity, area and timing closure.

"Blast Fusion has exceeded our expectations," said Gerry Atterbury, director of Advanced IP Methodologies of WWSLT of Fujitsu. "Benchmark results included 6 to 25 percent increases in performance and 5 to 30 percent area reductions over existing solutions. Most impressive was the dramatic decrease in turnaround time. A design that originally took six weeks was completed in less than one week with Blast Fusion."

"Fujitsu has done a very thorough job of due diligence, testing our software with multiple designs," said Rajeev Madhavan, president and CEO of Magma. "We are pleased that they have validated Blast Fusion's ability to accurately predict final timing prior to detailed physical layout. We look forward to a long and successful relationship with Fujitsu."

ABOUT MAGMA DESIGN AUTOMATION

Founded in April 1997, Magma Design Automation develops, manufactures and markets silicon design implementation tools based on Magma's patent-pending FixedTiming(TM) methodology. The company's Blast Fusion system achieves timing closure without iterations back through synthesis, and is the only EDA solution with the MPG(TM) (Magma Performance Guarantee) program. Through this program, Magma offers first-time users a money-back guarantee that Blast Fusion will accurately predict timing prior to detailed layout and will deliver designs with the best possible post-layout timing. To ensure compatibility with existing design environments, Magma is a partner in the following programs: Cadence Design Systems' (NYSE: CDN) Connections and Synopsys' (NASDAQ: SNPS) inSync and tap-IN. Headquartered in Cupertino, Calif., the company maintains sales and support offices in Silicon Valley, Austin, Boston, Germany, Israel, Japan, Korea, Taiwan and the United Kingdom. Corporate headquarters are at 2 Results Way, Cupertino, Calif., 95014. Visit Magma Design Automation on the web at www.magma-da.com.

Blast Fusion, FixedTiming, Magma and MPG are trademarks of Magma Design Automation. All other product and company names are trademarks and registered trademarks of their respective companies.