Q5 Interview - Hossein Yassaie, Imagination Technologies

Hossein Yassaie, CEO of graphics processor specialists Imagination Technologies, talks to Electronics Weekly about mobile 3D graphics, partnerships with Intel and Apple, and the biggest challenge facing the chip IP community in 2009.

1. How would you describe Imagination Technologies business model?

As an IP licensing business you need to have a very consistent business model. Our business model is based on the silicon IP licensing model, with up-front license fees and per-unit royalties. Additionally, we offer a wide range of services including tools, support, customization and even full SoC design to help our partner's design and time-to-market.

In the case of start-ups in markets where we have a specific strategic interest we have occasionally taken some of our fees in equity.

We offer innovative silicon IP processor cores and supporting software for key areas including graphics, video, communication/broadcast, general processing and DSP. Our technologies are complex and yet efficient in terms of delivering optimal performance for minimal power consumption and silicon area. They are designed with the latest trends in mind and, in fact, they often become drivers for change, progress and advancement.

Our expertise is highly specialised - we have large engineering teams for each of our main products - so increasingly our licensees see us as a shared R&D resource that can address complex and expensive developments, allowing them to apply their own engineering teams to solution delivery and areas where they can deliver more differentiation and added value. This is where the IP model really wins, particularly in the sort of economic climate we're experiencing now.
 
2. What are the core technologies which will make 3D graphics possible in a handheld terminal or mobile?

Our POWERVR graphics IP cores achieve class-leading performance by using an advanced technique known as Tile-Based Deferred Shading. POWERVR divides the screen into small tiles so that more processing can take place on-chip rather than in external memory. This is well suited to mobile and embedded applications because of its power efficiency - and power consumption is king in the mobile field.

We also remove almost all of the objects that won't result in pixels before we start, which minimises processing, saves system bandwidth and thus more power. Due to the architectures we've developed, POWERVR graphics cores are also uniquely scalable from small and battery operated systems to higher-end applications such as mobile Internet devices, laptops, TVs, games consoles and netbooks.

3. You have partnerships with Intel and Apple, so what would your advice be to someone trying to create a world class chip IP company in the UK?

Making success of an IP business is complex and involved. Be prepared to hang in there for the long haul. Patience and deep pockets are essential. You need to hire the best people in the field, and UK engineers have a great track record in developing world class technology. Develop an innovative technology that has sufficiently broad applicability that you can see a significant number of licensees and volume opportunity. Make sure you focus on design wins with greatest chance of volume production - the customer must ship for you to be successful!

Remember many of your potential customers will be much, much bigger than you. Work hard to make your relationships with key partners increasingly strategic to them. And you must have a long term plan and roadmap.

4. What is the biggest challenge facing the chip IP community in 2009?

The macro-economic conditions, which have touched every business and every person. Thankfully, we are predominantly engaged in new markets that are still growing rapidly, or segments in established markets that are going through massive transitional growth - though there is less momentum than there would have been if there'd been no recession. We had a record level of new licensing business booked during the first half of this financial year, and we continue to see growing demand for our technologies. But we've also seen that the economic environment has resulted in slower and more cautious decision making by customers.

History tells us that future winners in our industry are those who design themselves out of a recession - fortunately a good number of our key licensees share that view with us. Recession or no recession or customer's key projects continue.

5. Does the Government recognise the global success of IP firms such as Imagination, ARM and CSR?

We have yet to meet a company that feels it is sufficiently recognised by government! However, given the strength of UK companies in a global market increasingly dominated by large global companies primarily based in USA or Far East, we feel much more could be and should be done by the UK to leverage the tremendous intellectual prowess here that has been recognised by every leading semiconductor and OEM manufacturer world-wide.

We have a tremendous collection of highly innovative small start-ups in silicon, software and systems engineering that if correctly nurtured could make a significant contribution to the UK's future. Right now such start-ups have seen funding sources suddenly disappear. Compared to the levels of investment being made into banks at the moment, a relatively modest initiative by government organisations such as the Technology Steering Board could deliver amazing results!

Overall we strongly believe we need to ensure that as 'UK PLC' we have a technology strategy that takes the current environment - including the industry mega-trends, and our expertise and skill sets into account - and actively steers the UK towards a strong and vital position for the future. There are many in the industry that are ready to help. Most importantly we need to start and implement that strategy yesterday!

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.