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"Architectural License"

I found this section confusing, hoping this is a quick fix for someone who is well-informed:

-- "ARM licenses their instruction sets, allowing the licensees to design their own cores that implement one of those instruction sets. An ARM architectural licence is more costly than a regular ARM core licence,[52] and also requires the necessary engineering power to design a CPU based on the instruction set." --

The term "architectural license" was introduced here without being defined; does this refer to the instruction-set-only license described in the first sentence? The change in terminology is confusing.

And for someone who doesn't know a ton about ARM Holdings but is generally well-informed about CPU design, it seems *wildly* counterintuitive that buying a whole design from ARM costs less than just buying permission to use their instruction set. So counterintuitive that IMO it could use explanation in this article. — Preceding unsigned comment added by LittleWalrus (talk • contribs) 21:10, 22 July 2014‎ (UTC)

The term "architectural license" was introduced here without being defined; does this refer to the instruction-set-only license described in the first sentence?

Yes. I've updated the page; hopefully it now makes it clearer.
As for the cost of an architectural license, my guess would be that if you purchase a core design the cost is usually per-unit while, if you purchase an architectural license, it's a one-time purchase, so the price is high so that if Apple or Qualcomm or Nvidia or... sells a ton of chips, ARM doesn't lose out too badly. That's just a guess on my part, though so it's "original research" and not appropriate; if there are references giving the price schedules for various licenses, that would help. Guy Harris (talk) 23:18, 22 July 2014 (UTC)
My guess you can buy core or both, not just architectural. comp.arch (talk) 23:02, 23 July 2014 (UTC)
There is an article about seven ARM license types: "The ARM Diaries, Part 1: How ARM’s Business Model Works", Anand (image from ARM) or "A long look at how ARM licenses chips", Semiaccurate (ps: there is also some royalty per chip in every license).
  • There are 2 easiest licenses: Academic and DesignStart which can't be used for mass production. Then there is "single use license" - >=$1 mln per each IP core of Cortex-A* (for every project) + 2% from all chips sold.
  • "Multi-use license" allow company to develop several chips (any number of projects) with some fixed IP core from ARM in several years (e.g. 3).
  • "Perpetual multi-use license" is like multi-use but not limited in time. Company may use the licensed core in any number of projects, in any time (up to 10-20 years).
  • "Subscription license" allows to use several different cores from ARM portfolio for some fixed time term. The price is tens of millions dollars.
  • "Architecture license": specs of cores and full testsuite. "free to take that architecture and implement it however you’d like", so it allows to use ARM patents to freely develop ARM-compatible cores. Several opensource ARM cores were killed by ARM with patents on some instructions from ARMv3, ARMv6, v7... `a5b (talk) 15:02, 16 September 2014 (UTC)
And, in fact, those two articles are citations for ARM Holdings in the "Licensees" section. Guy Harris (talk) 19:07, 16 September 2014 (UTC)

ARM architecture licenses list

Current list of ARM architecture licenses, please update here (there should be 15 of them[1]): `a5b (talk) 15:02, 16 September 2014 (UTC)


Sansa acquisition in 2015

The acquisition section is out of date, sansa security needs adding to the list. See http://www.arm.com/about/newsroom/arm-expands-iot-security-capability-with-acquisition-of-sansa-security.php Danieljabailey (talk) 19:20, 17 September 2015 (UTC)

  1. ^ A long look at how ARM licenses chips. Part 1: 7 License types to rule them all, one company to bind them // SemiAccurate, Aug 7, 2013 by Charlie Demerjian
  2. ^ Fergie (Oct 31, 2012). "ARM Cortex-A50: Broadening Applicability of ARM Technology in Servers". ARM (Community portal). Retrieved 16 September 2014.: "Applied Micro announced their intent to develop a 64-bit ARM powered server device. ARM demands compatibility between companies that develop their own ARM processors (achieved through an architecture license) ... three publically announced ARMv8 architecture licensees (Applied Micro, Cavium and NVIDIA)"
  3. ^ Clarke, Peter (1/11/2013). "London Calling: Are ARM's core days numbered?". EETimes. Retrieved 16 September 2014. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help): "the number of architectural licenses seems to have increased with Applied Micro and Cavium"
  4. ^ ARM and Broadcom Extend Relationship with ARMv7 and ARMv8 Architecture Licenses. Business Wire (2013-01-08). Retrieved on 2013-08-02.
  5. ^ Broadcom takes two ARM architecture licenses // EETimes, Peter Clarke, 1/9/2013
  6. ^ "ARM and Cavium Extend Relationship with ARMv8 Architecture License" (Press release). 1 August 2012.
  7. ^ "Huawei announces global agreement to licence ARMv8 architecture" (Press release). 4 September 2013. Retrieved 19 September 2013.
  8. ^ Huawei to licence ARMv8 chip architecture // TechWorld, 04 September 2013
  9. ^ "NVIDIA Announces "Project Denver" To Build Custom CPU Cores Based On ARM Architecture, Targeting Personal Computers To Supercomputers" (Press release). 5 January 2011. Retrieved 19 September 2013.
  10. ^ "NVIDIA Charts Its Own Path to ARMv8" (PDF). Tirias. August 11, 2014. p. 1. Retrieved 16 September 2014.: "NVIDIA announced back in 2011 that it had taken an architecture license for the 64-bit ARMv8 instruction set and was building a custom ARM core. The result is Project Denver. "
  11. ^ "AMD Unveils Ambidextrous Computing Roadmap. Announces 64-bit ARM Core Architecture License and Future "K12" ARM-based Core". SAN FRANCISCO, CA: AMD Press-release. 05/05/14. Retrieved 16 September 2014. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  12. ^ Merritt, Rick (5/5/2014). "AMD Takes Swing at Custom ARM First up, pin-compatible ARM, x86 SoCs". SAN FRANCISCO: EETimes. Retrieved 16 September 2014. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  13. ^ "Samsung to Jump up Its Application Processor Competitiveness". etnews. 2013/07/29. Retrieved 16 September 2014. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help):"It is known that Samsung signed an architecture license with ARM two to three years ago ... also 64bit ARMv8 architecture is included in the contract."
  14. ^ "Faraday Technology Corporation - ARM Cores".
  15. ^ "HDD Markets and Technologies". Retrieved 19 September 2013. As one of a few select companies to hold a full ARM architecture license, Marvell is uniquely positioned to leverage the pervasiveness of the ARM architecture.
  16. ^ Clarke, Peter (23 July 2010). "Microsoft takes ARM architectural license". Retrieved 19 September 2013.
  17. ^ "Qualcomm's New Snapdragon S4: MSM8960 & Krait Architecture Explored". AnandTech. Octobet 7, 2011. Retrieved 16 September 2014. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help): "Qualcomm has an ARM architecture license enabling it to build its own custom micro architectures that implement the ARM instruction set."
  18. ^ Gwennap, Linley (7/19/10). "TWO-HEADED SNAPDRAGON TAKES FLIGHT" (PDF). Microprocessor Report. Retrieved 16 September 2014. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help): "The Scorpion CPU implements the ARMv7-A instruction set, ... under an architecture license from ARM."
  19. ^ "Intel adopts power conscious strategy to counter ARM". TGDaily. May 17, 2011. Retrieved 16 September 2014.: Intel CEO Paul Otellini, "we have an ARM architecture license. we have no intention to use [it] again to build chip."
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