No WinTel animosity is intended. MIPI is just another warm and fuzzy alliance.
Never the friendliest of allies, Intel Corp. and Texas Instruments Inc. were quick to rebut the wide speculation that the formation of the Mobile Industry Processor Interface alliance created to focus on peripherals, microprocessors and software interfaces for mobile devices, was competitively charged.
“We’re in discussions with dozens of companies, including Intel,” said Tom Vial, manager of strategic alliances, wireless business unit at TI.
He said he expects high-profile companies with operating systems as well as device manufacturers and semiconductor companies to join MIPI, adding that the “objective is to get enough companies for a critical mass.”
“Intel is currently exploring the impact of MIPI in the wireless industry as well as what our contribution to this alliance will be,” commented Intel spokeswoman Mary Minow, adding that any report to the contrary is against Intel’s history and position.
The founders of the MIPI alliance include Nokia Corp., TI, STMicroelectronics and ARM Ltd. The alliance highlights trends toward open standards in the industry, which also has created tensions.
Vial said although these companies and the prospective joiners will work together, each company will differentiate themselves.
“The MIPI alliance goals will enable the faster adoption of smart phones, reducing the barriers that exist today through simplifying the supply chain for mobile terminals,” said Mike Inglis, executive vice president of marketing at ARM.
“There is more tension but there is also more convergence,” said Ed Matluck, chief executive officer at FastTrack Wireless.
He said because handsets are becoming like personal computers, most industry players will want specific configurations that interface with most services and applications.
“Technologically, there is no way to stop that,” said Matluck, especially with operators driving convergence and prices coming down.
Minow said Intel has been invited to join MIPI, but the company is looking at the technical and legal details of joining the alliance. She explained that Intel supports open standards and that explains why it cannot dismiss MIPI. WinTel, which derived the name from the duopoly of Microsoft Corp. and Intel in the PC space, has drawn speculations of a possible showdown with other competitors.
“It’s wrong,” commented Vial, on the view that MIPI is a counterpunch to WinTel. “It’s a step by industry leaders to do things in an open way to reduce obstacles to deployment of services.”
MIPI said the alliance evolved from the OMAPI standards and will complement the Third Generation Partnership Project.
“By establishing consistency in application processor interfaces, the alliance expects to ease implementation and design of hardware and software, promoting reuse and compatibility in mobile devices to accelerate time to market,” said the alliance. Since OMAPI came into being last December, an industrywide interest propelled the creation of a broader alliance, said Oliver Gunasekara, director of wireless at ARM in the United Kingdom. He added that the founders have had to batten down details like making MIPI a legal entity and creating its Web site.
ARM said it will upgrade its PrimeXsys platform to allow semiconductor partners to develop MIPI-compliant application processors. Nokia, which leads the world in mobile sales, also brings its clout to the alliance.”This means that Nokia and other hardware manufacturers can deploy interoperable building blocks faster and at a lower cost,” said Jari Pasanen, vice president, Nokia mobile phones.
TI will bring its OMAP application processors to the alliance, while STMicroelectronics will offer its Nomadik line of application processors.
