This month Texas Instruments announced that it will begin selling multimedia software to the mass market. TI already offers some software, but this software is usually available only to select customers. In contrast, the new multimedia software will be widely available.
The new multimedia software will include most of the popular audio, video, imaging, and speech codecs. The software will be available for both the ‘C64x and the ‘C64x+ platforms, including chips that use the “DaVinci” architecture. TI will also offer audio codecs for the ‘C55x architecture.
Although TI is developing the software in house, it will not sell the software directly. Instead, TI will sell the software through ten “authorized software providers.” These software providers will also provide technical support for the TI software. TI says it chose this distribution model partly because it is not prepared to support a large number of customers on its own.
TI will offer three payment schemes. Specifically, system designers can choose to pay:
- A small upfront licensing fee plus large per-unit royalties;
- A large upfront licensing fee plus small per-unit royalties; or
- A one-time licensing fee. (This last option is available only for select codecs.)
TI says it will charge all buyers the same prices, and that it will publish this pricing on its web site. In addition, TI will offer free evaluation licenses for all of its codecs.
TI’s pricing model is unusually flexible and open compared to the pricing models of 3rd-party vendors. Typically, 3rd-party vendors do not offer the option of paying a small upfront fee. This is particularly true if the buyer is a small company whose products may never make it to production. In addition, 3rd-party vendors typically do not publish their pricing. Instead, each buyer must negotiate pricing on a case-by case basis.
TI claims that its software will also be more robust than typical 3rd-party software. TI claims to have expert knowledge of a wide range of applications and a large library of test vectors. TI says these factors enable it to ensure that its codecs operate properly under realistic conditions. For example, TI tests the interoperability of software that is likely to be used together, such as its H.264 decoder and
Without performing hands-on testing—something BDTI has not done yet—it is difficult to evaluate TI’s software. However, it is clear that this software will be an attractive option for some multimedia system developers. System developers are increasingly reliant on off-the-shelf software, but using 3rd-party software can be a risky proposition. Software quality is uneven, and some vendors cannot provide sufficient support for their software. In addition, software vendors often go out of business or are acquired. As a result, licensing 3rd-party software can be a stressful and problematic process. By providing its own software components, TI will enable system developers to use off-the-shelf software with greater ease and confidence.
Despite its advantages, TI’s software offerings will be at best a partial solution. Although TI claims its library of codecs will offer customers “one-stop shopping,” this will not be true for all customers. For one thing, multimedia applications typically require components other than codecs. For example, many multimedia applications require digital rights management (DRM) software. Perhaps more importantly, TI’s offerings do not include software for non-multimedia functions.
TI’s codec library seems particularly limited when compared to the software available for application-specific standard products (ASSPs). ASSP vendors—including vendors such as Broadcom as well as TI itself—typically offer hardware/software packages that include most of the software needed for a particular application. For applications where ASSPs are available, the ASSPs will likely have the advantage: Building a product with an ASSP will likely be much easier than building a product using TI’s codec library.
However, some ASSP vendors offer their products only to large customers—and there are many applications for which no ASSP is available. In such cases, TI will mainly compete with other processor vendors, such as Analog Devices and Freescale. Compared to these vendors, TI appears to offer a wider range of multimedia codecs. Hence, TI’s codec offerings are likely to give it an advantage in multimedia applications.
It is also worth noting that TI’s software offerings represent a major change in its 3rd-party strategy. Third party vendors have been a key contributor to TI’s success, and TI has often promoted the depth of its 3rd-party network as a key differentiator. By offering its own software, however, TI is likely to take business away from some of these vendors—possibly even putting some of them out of business. It remains to be seen if this will be a wise move for TI.
TI plans to make its multimedia codecs available over the course of this year. The first codecs are available now. TI says it will post pricing for the codecs on its web site, but has not done so yet.
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