Blue-eyed CSR

The steady growth in the use of wireless technology and the increasing adoption of Bluetooth across a range of platforms helped

(CSR) to another strong financial performance.

The UK-based world-leading provider of Bluetooth technology benefited from a plethora of design wins, a couple of acquisitions and introduction of new technology to record a 92 per cent increase in sales in 2005 to £277m.

With the Bluetooth market estimated to have doubled last year, CSR secured 460 new design wins and shipped 150 million units. As a result the company's profits before tax almost doubled to £65m.

The fifth generation of its BlueCore suite was launched, and featured in more than 50 per cent of all Bluetooth devices shipped and 60 per cent of all qualified Bluetooth-enabled products from the likes of Nokia, Dell, Panasonic, Sony and Apple.

According to chief executive John Hodgson, the strong performance was the result of CSR's strategy of driving down the cost of Bluetooth solutions while reducing size and increasing functionality. He claimed that the market offers promising conditions for product development and manufacture. 'Looking ahead, we see the Bluetooth market continuing to expand,' said Hodgson. 'The attach rate in mobile phones is rising both as the demand for handsfree calling grows and as mobile phones increasingly move into services such as music streaming and gaming.'