Software Defined Radio Forum And The European Project E2R Formalize Relationship To Address Wireless End-To-End Reconfigurability.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 3, 2004

The Software Defined Radio (SDR) Forum and the FP6 European Union's project E2R on end-to-end reconfigurability jointly announced the formation of a formal liaison. The SDR Forum and E2R will now work together to exchange technical information and to develop system perspectives of end-to-end reconfigurability for wireless communications.

"This is an exciting opportunity in the effort to develop and promote end-to-end reconfigurability," said Allan Margulies, chief operating officer of the SDR Forum. "The Forum looks forward to working closely with E2R to develop joint interactions and workshops, and exchange information on SDR and reconfigurability."

"It made perfect sense to create a bridge between the SDR Forum and E2R," said Didier Bourse, Ph.D., E2R project manager. "Software Defined Radio and end-to-end reconfigurability are widely recognized as leading technologies for tomorrow's wireless communication."

The key objective of the E2R project is to devise, develop and trial the architectural design of reconfigurable devices and supporting system functions in order to offer an expanded set of operational choices for the users, applications and service providers, operators and regulators in the context of heterogeneous mobile radio systems. The European E2R project consortium is composed of major manufacturers, operators, academia and regulators.

The SDR Forum is an international industry association dedicated to support the development and deployment of software defined radio systems that enable flexible and adaptable architectures in advanced wireless systems. The membership spans commercial, defense, and civil government organizations, and includes wireless service providers, network operators, component and equipment manufacturers, hardware and software developers, regulatory agencies, and academia.

Under terms of the liaison agreement, representatives of the SDR Forum and E2R program will:

-- exchange information in areas of mutual interest;

-- submit contributions to, and participate jointly in,

conferences/workshops; and,

-- conduct common surveys among interested parties in the field

of reconfigurability, software defined radio and cognitive

radio.

This announcement comes on the heels of a Systems Issues workshop hosted by the Forum, in conjunction with the E2R project. The workshop--which took place prior to the Forum's April general meeting in Germany, was highlighted by reports on current European Union activities and E2R updates; sessions on regulatory, security, Hardware Abstraction Layer, Application Program Interface, and software download issues; and discussions on the implications for system vendors, chip an component suppliers, carriers, and regulators. The workshop gathered around 60 participants and was recognized by both Forum and E2R participants as very successful and promising for the future interactions.

About the Software Defined Radio Forum

The Software Defined Radio Forum is an international industry association dedicated to supporting the development and deployment of software defined radio systems that enable flexible and adaptable architectures in advanced wireless systems. The membership of the SDR Forum spans commercial, defense, and civil government organizations, and includes wireless service providers, network operators, component and equipment manufacturers, hardware and software developers, regulatory agencies, and academia. Presently numbering more than 100 organizations, the SDR Forum's membership includes major commercial wireless players from Asia, Europe, and North America. The SDR Forum's administrative office is headquartered in Denver, Colorado. Additional information is available on the SDR Forum website at www.sdrforum.org.

About the E2R Project

The European Integrated Project "End-to-End Reconfigurability (E2R) is led by Motorola. This project includes key players in the domain of reconfigurability, software defined radio (SDR) and cognitive radio (CR). E2R is seen by many in the wireless industry as a core technology to enable the full potential of Beyond 3G systems. It has the potential to revolutionize wireless just as the PC revolutionized computing.

E2R Project Contract and Consortium

The first phase of the E2R Project has duration of two years. The overall budget of this first phase is 16.2 MEuros, the associated budget funded by the European Commission is 8.9 MEuros. The associated effort corresponds to 55 person years per year invested by the consortium partners in the first phase. For more information on the E2R Project, please visit the Project Web Site: http://www.e2r.motlabs.com.