Samsung comes back to Imagination Tech

This morning the following exciting news was released:

Licenses high-performance multiprocessor graphics core to Samsung Electronics

Imagination Technologies Group plc (LSE: IMG; "Imagination"), a leader in System-on-Chip Intellectual Property ("SoC IP"), has signed a license agreement with Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. ("Samsung") for IP from Imagination's PowerVR SGX MP multiprocessor graphics family.

Samsung will deploy Imagination's technologies in multiple SoCs targeting mobile and consumer markets.

Under the terms of its licensing arrangements, Imagination receives licence fees and royalty revenues on SoCs incorporating Imagination's IP.

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It is not clear at this stage which SGX MP core/s are licensed but either way this is a hugely significant move. Many analysts had interpreted/misrepresented Samsung LSI's graphics agreement with ARM as a wholesale move away from IMG.

HY had continued to point out IMG have an ongoing relationship with Samsung,(indeed Hummingbird SoCs still ship in large volumes), and there would be future opportunities. It is also the nature of Samsung  to use several vendors.

This agreement today proves IMG remain an important partner for Samsung and is another setback for ARM Mali.