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Atmel and Celeno Collaborate on Wi-Fi Direct Remote Controls for Consumer Products

Reference Platforms for Set-Top Boxes and Remotes with

Atmel Wi-Fi Direct Technology to Be Unveiled at CES 2013

2013 International CES, Las Vegas, Nevada, January 8, 2013 – Atmel Corporation, a leader in

microcontroller and touch technology solutions, and Celeno Communications, a leading provider of

high-performance Wi-Fi chips and software, today announced that they are developing integrated

solutions for high-performance Wi-Fi Direct™ remote controls intended for next-generation set-top box

and video gateway platforms.

Leveraging Celeno’s Wi-Fi chipset, the joint solution enables wireless designers to bring their products

to market faster, while saving overall system costs and power consumption.

The two companies will demonstrate their new set-top box platform (STB) at 2013 CES at the Las

Vegas Hotel, Suite 530, January 8-13. Celeno’s video-grade Wi-Fi is integrated in the set-top box and

video gateway for whole-home HD video streaming to multiple devices. In addition to robust Internet

connectivity, Celeno solutions now simultaneously provide a connection to the Atmel-based remote

control. Atmel ultra-low power Wi-Fi Direct technology, acquired through its acquisition of Ozmo, Inc.

at the end of 2012, is ideally suited for use in RF remote controls as it eliminates the need to add

additional radio technologies to the host platform. Atmel Wi-Fi Direct solutions also offer the industry’s

best power consumption, resulting in better battery life for devices using this technology.

Universal Electronics, an early adopter of Wi-Fi Direct, will be showing their new demonstration

platform LEAF remote control at CES this year. UEI Leaf offers high data rate, low latency and ultra-

low power by utilizing Atmel Wi-Fi Direct RF technology to deliver features such as voice-based user

recognition, voice search and motion control in a small form factor with very low power requirements

and minimal integration compared to other RF technology choices.

ATMEL NEWS RELEASE January 8, 2013

Atmel Corporation • 1600 Technology Drive • San Jose CA 95110 • Phone (408) 441-0311 • Fax (408) 487-2600

“LEAF offers an enriched user experience, enabling new feature-rich interactive user interfaces,

content browsing, motion-based navigation, voice search and gaming,” said Ramzi Ammari, Vice

President of Global Product Planning & Strategy, Universal Electronics, the global leader in wireless

control technology for the connected home. “The STB’s Wi-Fi is expected to serve as the centerpiece

for in-home Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi Direct ecosystems, linking all sorts of peripherals, including smartphones,

game controllers, microphones, keyboards, headphones, speakers and, of course, the remote

control.”

“The use of the Atmel Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi Direct technology for connecting to peripheral devices, such as

remotes, is a logical choice,” said Lior Weiss, Vice President of Marketing at Celeno Communications.

“This solution eliminates the need to add other RF technology to the platform, while providing a more

intuitive and feature-rich user experience with existing Wi-Fi signals.”

RF remote controls are rapidly replacing traditional infrared (IR) remote controls, particularly in smart

TV and set-top box applications. Unlike RF remote controls, IR remotes cannot support non line-of-

sight operation, motion, bi-directional data streams or higher data rates.

Atmel technology offers high bit rates, low latency, support for motion/audio and compatibility with

existing Wi-Fi host platforms (the TV or STB), resulting in reduced costs and faster development

times. Atmel also provides driver software for host platforms, creating a “virtual USB connection,”

which allows system developers to use existing USB software stacks for any Wi-Fi connected

peripheral.

“The Celeno video-grade Wi-Fi technology is perfect for Atmel Wi-Fi Direct peripheral solutions,” said

Bill McLean, Vice President and General Manager of Wi-Fi Solutions, Atmel Corporation. “This joint

collaboration offers a proven, end-to-end solution to cable providers with seamless connections for all

peripherals, like the remote control, while enabling high data rate media streaming.”

About Atmel Wi-Fi Technology Atmel recently extended its wireless product offerings through the acquisition of Ozmo, Inc. With that

acquisition, Atmel now offers the world’s first single-chip, Wi-Fi personal area network (PAN) solution,

ideal for battery-powered human-interface device (HID) peripherals like remote controls, wireless

“mouses” and keyboards, wireless audio adapters and many other applications. The Atmel chip is

ATMEL NEWS RELEASE January 8, 2013

Atmel Corporation • 1600 Technology Drive • San Jose CA 95110 • Phone (408) 441-0311 • Fax (408) 487-2600

optimized for low latency, long battery life and Wi-Fi a/b/g compatibility. Able to directly communicate

with the integrated Wi-Fi technology found in millions of products today, the fully integrated Atmel Wi-

Fi solution can be used for many wireless HID and audio applications.

About Atmel Atmel Corporation (Nasdaq: ATML) is a worldwide leader in the design and manufacture of

microcontrollers, capacitive touch solutions, advanced logic, mixed-signal, nonvolatile memory and

radio frequency (RF) components. Leveraging one of the industry's broadest intellectual property (IP)

technology portfolios, Atmel is able to provide the electronics industry with complete system solutions

focused on industrial, consumer, communications, computing and automotive markets.

About Celeno Celeno provides high performance Wi-Fi chips and software for HD multimedia and entertainment

home networking applications. Celeno’s extensive chip portfolio and OptimizAIR™ technology enable

the wireless distribution of multiple and simultaneous HD video streams throughout the home with the

highest levels of performance and reliability while ensuring a superlative quality of service and user

experience. Celeno’s field-proven chips have been integrated into numerous OEM Wi-Fi devices and

have been deployed with over 75 service providers worldwide. Founded in 2005, the company has

offices and representatives in EMEA, the US and Asia-Pacific and is backed by blue chip investors

including Cisco Systems, Greylock Partners, Liberty Global, Pitango Venture Capital and Vintage

Investment Partners. www.celeno.com

© 2013 Atmel Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Atmel®, Atmel logo and combinations thereof are registered trademarks,

and others are trademarks of Atmel Corporation or its subsidiaries. Other terms and product names may be trademarks of

others.

Press Contact:

Agnes Toan, PR Manager

Tel: (+1) 408-487-2963, Email: agnes.toan@atmel.com