Q5 Interview - Joep van Beurden, CSR

Joep van Beurden, CEO of single-chip wireless device designer CSR, talks to Electronics Weekly about Bluetooth, the secret of running a global fabless chip firm from the UK, the acquisition of SiRF, and important targets for 2009...

1. How do you feel when people refer to CSR as just a Bluetooth company?

It's understandable that people still associate CSR strongly with Bluetooth - we are still the leader in Bluetooth and we are proud of the success we have had with Bluetooth. I frequently hear CSR referred to as 'the Bluetooth pioneer'.

CSR's single-chip CMOS Bluetooth was a world's first and now nearly ten years on, the company is still the leading supplier of Bluetooth technology and has always been at the forefront of the field in terms of developing new features and encouraging the development of the standard.

Our current Connectivity Centre products are integrating other functions such as GPS, Wi-Fi, FM and music processing around a Bluetooth hub. So in this sense, our strength in Bluetooth and the success of CSR's Bluetooth in penetrating the mobile handset market is crucial to our technology roadmap today.

CSR has expanded outside of Bluetooth to produce a wide range of solutions covering technologies such as GPS, Wi-Fi , FM, music processing, to name a few. However, Bluetooth remains a cornerstone of our technology development and because we have led its development, it has taught us a lot about the importance of wireless systems software.

2. As arguably the UK's most successful chip company what is the secret of running a global fabless chip firm from the UK?

First and foremost, by not being 'UK chip company'. A fabless organisation based in the UK needs to think and act globally, as CSR has done over the years. With offices around the world, CSR treats every territory according to its own unique needs, market and culture.

It's important to have a good understanding of your customers' needs, as well as the needs of the market more generally. You won't get anywhere without good customer relations and market analysis.

On the technology front, CSR has a successful track record of innovations and is often first to market. CSR also invests a lot in both R&D and industry standards groups, driving the development of emerging embedded wireless technologies.

CSR's product strategy is very customer-focused. We also view good hardware as only one part of the equation. CSR therefore understands the importance of developing chip-software early.

3. CSR recently acquired SiRF, what is your view on the GPS chipset market and when will GPS be a standard feature of mass-market mobiles?

The market for GPS in handsets is definitely growing, and this is something that CSR is taking a leading role in.
Our proposed agreement to merge with SiRF is not only timely but will also significantly strengthen CSR's proposition in GPS technologies.

GPS has the potential to bring location-based services to a much wider range of consumer products. We see a need for a range of GPS technologies to suit different applications: perhaps high end hardware based navigation for turn-by-turn Personal Navigation Devices (PNDs) to low end software based location-aware services embedded into low end mobile phones or other devices. It is CSR's intention to satisfy more than one sector in the growing market for navigation technologies and location based services.

With the recent launch of the BlueCore BC7830 product, CSR is bringing GPS functionality to many mid-low range feature phones where previously the cost was prohibitive. We believe that such low cost, mass market GPS will, in turn, enable a host of Location Based Services (LBS), especially those based on the Push to Fix usage model.

For example, geotagging photos/movie clips or using Google Maps are highly desirable GPS feature-phone applications. Social networking opportunities for geotagging also offer very exciting new use cases. With CSR's low cost GPS solutions such as the BC7830 Bluetooth, GPS and FM chip, these features will start to appear in a whole new segment of handsets.

4. If you had to name one threat for the company what would it be?

This year I think the issue on everyone's mind is the economic slowdown. As outlined in CSR's recent financial results, 98% of the company's products are supplied to customers who produce products serving the consumer technology market.

However, CSR remains the most popular supplier of Bluetooth in the market. Handset win momentum is very encouraging this year, with several high-profile names added to our lists, and CSR continues to own 80% of the Bluetooth headset market, despite strong competition.

5. What is your most important target (financial or strategic) for the company this year?

A prime ambition this year is to ensure that all our key OEMs understand the value of the Connectivity Centre.
The number of technologies in mobile handsets is increasing. As they increase, so too does the cost and effort involved in integrating them. Significant design and performance benefits can be had by intelligently combining technologies together to share common resources. CSR calls this its strategy of Smart Integration.

This Connectivity Centre approach can result in a reduced cost, improved data rates, reduced physical footprint, reduced power consumption, reduced processor load and the emergence of new use cases for the end user. The Connectivity Centre strategy has been behind many of CSR's recent leading products, including BC7830 and CSR9000 (Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPS, FM).

CSR recently demonstrated the benefits of its Connectivity Centre technologies at Mobile World Congress 2009. Our chief mission this year will be to get the Connectivity Centre products in of the hands of our customers and let them see the benefits for themselves.

See also: Q5 - Interviews with electronics industry leaders
Read all the Electronics Weekly Q5 interviews. From ARM's chairman, Sir Robin Saxby, to touchscreen technology firm Zytronic's MD, Mark Cambridge, the business leaders share their particular insights on the UK electronics industry.

See also: Electronics Weekly's Focus on Bluetooth, a roundup of content related to the near-range wireless networking technology