Qualcomm and ARM outline mobile gaming ambitions
Published: 24 March, 2009
As the cellphone prepares to make the handheld games console redundant, the mobile chipmakers are jostling for position. ARM has outlined its roadmap for mobile gaming, while one of its major partners, Qualcomm, is pushing its platform for emerging markets into the games sector.
Qualcomm last year expanded from its cellphone heartland with a wider range of products for consumer electronics, plus the Kayak 'PC alternative' platform for ultra-low cost wireless internet devices for emerging economies. Less heralded, but also targeted at the 'next billion' users, was a project to bring a sub-$200 games console to market, relying on over-the-air downloads rather than disks, to circumvent piracy. Now this is to see the light of day at this week's San Francisco Games Developer Conference.
The device was designed by Zeebo, a start-up partly owned by Qualcomm, and will be launched first in Brazil by video game company Tectoy. The system provides a low cost alternative to the Nintendo Wii and is powered by a standard Qualcomm phone chip (the same used in the G1). Users play games using the TV screen. The system runs Qualcomm's Brew software platform and versions may be created with the Snapdragon processor to support higher end graphics. The first iteration has capabilities somewhere between those of the original Sony PlayStation and the PlayStation 2 - but will sell for $199 in Brazil, with games at $10, rather than about $1,000 for a Wii.
Qualcomm says using off-the-shelf phone chips will take this silicon into new markets and change the economics of specialized devices. It is so interested in gaming that it has appointed Mike Yuen, co-founder of Zeebo, as senior director for games. Although Qualcomm does not own Zeebo outright, this looks like a stealthy re-entry into the consumer devices segment, which it exited when it sold its handset line to Kyocera.
After the Brazil launch next month, there are plans to roll out in Mexico later in 2009 and India early next year.
Meanwhile, ARM used the same conference to show off the roadmap for its Mali graphics processor design and aims to build an ecosystem around the platform this year. Borgar Ljosland, director of product marketing for ARM's media processing division, said: "Today's consumer devices are based on yesterday's platforms and there is a tremendous opportunity for a revolution in the gaming market that hinges on the collaborative efforts of IP providers, foundries and OEMs alike".
ARM was one of the first to create a licensable graphics processor IP in the mobile world and its 3D software engine, Mali-JSR184, is widely deployed along with graphics hardware - it is installed in about 80m phones, including the LG Renoir, which also supports ARM's new Flash-based user interface. But ARM wants to expand this to make Mali a de facto standard by working with partners on a new range of applications. Existing licensees include Broadcom, ST-Ericsson, LG, Motorola, NXP, Pantech, Samsung, Zoran and others.
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