Resonant Inc. (NASDAQ: RESN), a leader in transforming the way
radio frequency, or RF, front-ends are being designed and delivered
for mobile handset and wireless devices, today issued a letter to
shareholders from its Chairman & CEO, George Holmes.
Dear Shareholders,
2020 was an important operational and financial year for
Resonant, even in light of the widespread effects of the COVID-19
pandemic. We hope all of you have stayed healthy and safe during
these difficult times.
Now more than ever, we have seen the trend towards a more
connected world, bringing the need for effective RF filtering
technologies front and center for many industry players. This trend
is driven by the insatiable demand for data on mobile devices for
streaming, as well as the need for speed by other emerging
applications, such as autonomous vehicles that rely on incredibly
fast communication to sense other objects and avoid collisions.
With this appetite for data and speed has come the need for wide
bandwidth, high frequency RF filters, which is the fundamental
benefit of what our ISN® technology can provide for not only 4G RF
filters, but also for next-generation 5G, Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi 6E RF
filters.
To our knowledge, Resonant remains the only company in the world
that can provide RF filter solutions that, by design, natively meet
the increasingly complex RF performance requirements for mobile and
non-mobile applications, without the need for doping or ancillary
components. In most cases, we can also shorten design time and help
our customers benefit from the use of more cost-effective
manufacturing processes. Put simply, our ISN technology platform
and XBAR® solutions have positioned us to benefit greatly from the
rapidly growing $9 billion RF filter market. To date, our customers
have cumulatively shipped over 50 million RF filters designed using
our technology, several of which continue to make their way into
Tier-1 smartphones, as well as the Wi-Fi and automotive
markets.
2020 will mark the highest revenue generating year in the
company’s history, and one in which we achieved a number of other
significant milestones. As we entered 2020, we had recently signed
a partnership with the largest RF filter manufacturer in the world,
which consisted of a strategic investment and a licensing agreement
to design 5G RF filters with our XBAR® technology.
Filter Market |
|
Duplexer Market |
Murata |
38 |
% |
|
Murata |
35 |
% |
Qualcomm |
25 |
% |
|
Broadcom |
20 |
% |
Wisol |
11 |
% |
|
Qualcomm |
12 |
% |
Broadcom |
7 |
% |
|
Skyworks |
11 |
% |
Qorvo |
6 |
% |
|
Taiyo Yuden |
10 |
% |
Skyworks |
6 |
% |
|
Qorvo |
6 |
% |
Taiyo
Yuden |
6 |
% |
|
Wisol |
5 |
% |
Other |
1 |
% |
|
Other |
1 |
% |
Leading RF Filter and Duplexer Manufacturers
(Source: Navian, 2019)
Work with this partner started quickly, and by
October 2020 we successfully delivered against our second milestone
ahead of schedule, which required us to achieve previously
determined target performance, packaging and initial reliability.
In conjunction with this milestone achievement, we received a $2.5
million payment and, more importantly, moved towards the next phase
of the agreement which focuses on building a commercial platform
and high-volume manufacturing of our XBAR® 5G RF filters. Our
strategic partner has exclusivity to our XBAR® technology for
mobile applications until March 2022, and with two of four
milestones already achieved, we remain extremely optimistic about
our strategic partnership.
We also continue to make significant progress with our 4G RF
filter solutions as a result of our standard product library that
we are leveraging with customers around the world. Leveraging
this solution, we signed a multi-year licensing agreement with a
dominant Asian filter foundry partner, which includes both prepaid
revenues and royalties. As we enter 2021, we will have completed
the designs for a total of seven 4G RF Filter designs covering
multiple bands, which collectively represent a worldwide total
addressable market of approximately $1.6 billion.
Through internal work and conversations with current and
potential partners, we’ve become increasingly aware that our XBAR®
technology is also ideally suited for high-frequency 5 and 6 GHz
Wi-Fi applications, such as Wi-Fi 6E, a rapidly emerging segment of
the market that represents a massive opportunity. To give you an
idea of scale, according to CISCO, Wi-Fi 6 hotspots will grow
13-fold from 2020 to 2023. Wi-Fi 6E has 1,200MHz of spectrum
available now, roughly 4x the size of the C-block spectrum, which
is currently being auctioned off and exceeding expectations by
nearing over $70 billion in proceeds. Clearly, this market is
exploding and will require efficient RF Filter solutions in the
Wi-Fi market for mobile, CPE and infrastructure applications. Where
we stand today, we have the potential to ship our first Wi-Fi 6E
samples in the first half of 2021.
Our progress has enabled Resonant to recruit what we believe to
be the industry’s leading advisory board, consisting of Jeff Ball,
Clint Brown, Brian Crutcher, Rubén Caballero, Peter Gammel, Josh
Jacobs, Luis Pineda and Glen Riley. Collectively, they bring
significant industry experience which spans over 150 years with
companies such as, Apple, Broadcom, JP Morgan, Microsoft, Skyworks,
Qorvo, Qualcomm, Texas Instruments and Yahoo!. Their tremendous
experiences have contributed to our winning strategy.
As we move through 2021:
- We expect unit volumes to grow significantly, providing ongoing
validation of our ISN® and IP platforms
- We will expand our relationship with the world’s largest RF
filter manufacturer, as we work with them to build a high-volume
manufacturing platform for XBAR® filters that will meet the
exacting demands of the largest mobile handset OEMs in the
world
- We expect to secure a contract in the first half of the year
focused on XBAR for non-mobile applications, which could include
autonomous and electric vehicles, other IoT , CPE or infrastructure
applications
To our stakeholders, thank you for your continued support. While
we accomplished much this year, there is plenty of work ahead to
address the urgent challenges facing our industry. Looking to 2021
and beyond, our momentum will continue to build. Our proprietary
ISN® EDA software tool has enabled us to build a strong IP
portfolio of over 300 patents filed or issued, with over 150
focused on 5G technology. Backed by a strong cash position, we
expect our revenues to continue to grow and annual volumes to
accelerate over the pace we saw in 2020, all while securing new
customers and contracts focused on mobile and non-mobile
opportunities. Together, we are in a stronger position than ever to
drive long-term value for our shareholders.
Sincerely, George HolmesChairman & Chief Executive
Officer
About Resonant Inc.Resonant
(NASDAQ: RESN) is transforming the market for RF front-ends (RFFE)
by disrupting the RFFE supply chain through the delivery of
solutions that leverage our Infinite Synthesized Network (ISN)
software tools platform, capitalize on the breadth of our IP
portfolio, and are delivered through our services offerings. In a
market that is critically constrained by limited designers, tools
and capacity, Resonant addresses these critical problems by
providing customers with ever increasing design efficiency, reduced
time to market and lower unit costs. Customers leverage Resonant’s
disruptive capabilities to design cutting edge filters and modules,
while capitalizing on the added stability of a diverse supply chain
through Resonant’s fabless ecosystem-the first of its kind. Working
with Resonant, customers enhance the connectivity of current mobile
devices, while preparing for the demands of emerging 5G
applications. To learn more about Resonant, view the series of
videos published on its website that explain Resonant's
technologies and market positioning:
- Resonant Corporate Video
- ISN and XBAR: Speeding the Transition to 5G
- Expert Insights on Unlocking the Potential of 5G
- The Technology Enabling the Transition to 5G
For more information, please
visit www.resonant.com. Resonant uses its website and LinkedIn
page as channels of distribution of information about its products,
its planned financial and other announcements, its attendance at
upcoming investor and industry conferences, and other matters. Such
information may be deemed material information, and Resonant may
use these channels to comply with its disclosure obligations under
Regulation FD. Therefore, investors should monitor the company’s
website and its social media accounts in addition to following the
company’s press releases, SEC filings, public conference
calls, and webcasts.
About Resonant’s ISN®
Technology
Resonant can create designs for difficult bands,
modules and other complex RF Front End requirements that we believe
have the potential to be manufactured for less cost and less time
than traditional approaches. ISN is a suite of proprietary
mathematical methods, software design tools and network synthesis
techniques that enable us to explore a much larger set of possible
design solutions that regularly incorporate our proprietary
technology. We then quickly deliver design simulations to our
customers, which they manufacture or have manufactured by one of
our foundry partners. These improved solutions still use Surface
Acoustic Wave (SAW) or Temperature Compensated Surface Acoustic
Wave (TC-SAW) manufacturing methods and perform as well as those
using higher cost manufacturing methods such as Bulk Acoustic Wave
(BAW). Resonant's method delivers excellent predictability,
enabling achievement of the desired product performance in roughly
half as many turns through the fab. In addition, because Resonant's
models are fundamental, integration with its foundry and fab
customers is seamless because its models speak the "fab language"
of basic material properties and dimensions.
Safe Harbor / Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking
statements, which include the following subjects, among others:
future shipments of RF filters designed using our technologies, the
capabilities of our filter designs and software tools, the
expanding use of RF filters in emerging markets, and our customers’
target applications for our technology. Forward-looking statements
are made as of the date of this document and are inherently subject
to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to
differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements,
including, without limitation, the following: our limited operating
history; our ability to complete designs that meet customer
specifications; the ability of our customers (or their
manufacturers) to fabricate our designs in commercial quantities;
our customers’ ability to sell products incorporating our designs
to their OEM customers; changes in our expenditures and other uses
of cash; the ability of our designs to significantly lower costs
compared to other designs and solutions; the risk that the intense
competition and rapid technological change in our industry renders
our designs less useful or obsolete; our ability to find, recruit
and retain the highly skilled personnel required for our design
process in sufficient numbers to support our growth; our ability to
manage growth; and general market, economic and business
conditions. Additional factors that could cause actual results to
differ materially from those anticipated by our forward-looking
statements are under the captions “Risk Factors” and “Management’s
Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of
Operations” in our most recent Annual Report (Form 10-K) or
Quarterly Report (Form 10-Q) filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission. Forward-looking statements are made as of the date of
this release, and we expressly disclaim any obligation or
undertaking to update forward-looking statements.
Investor Relations Contact:Greg
Falesnik or Brooks HamiltonMZ Group - MZ North
America(949) 546-6326RESN@mzgroup.uswww.mzgroup.us
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