GOODWILL AND INTANGIBLE ASSETS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2011

Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]

GOODWILL AND INTANGIBLE ASSETS [Text Block]

GOODWILL AND INTANGIBLE ASSETS:

The carrying amount of goodwill was $14.8 million as of December 31, 2011 and December 31, 2010. In the fourth quarter of 2011, goodwill was evaluated in accordance with ASC 350-10, Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets, and no impairment charge was deemed necessary during the year ended December 31, 2011.

Intangible assets consist primarily of acquired licenses, in-process research and development and patent rights, and are reported net of accumulated amortization. In August 2010, the Company acquired an early-stage research and development company, resulting in the addition of in-process research and development of $4.7 million. In December 2010, the Company acquired Qspeed Semiconductor resulting in the addition of customer relationships of $0.9 million, and developed technology of $1.8 million (see Note 11, Acquisitions, below). The Company amortizes the cost of all intangible assets over the shorter of the estimated useful life or the term of the acquired license or patent rights, which range from five to ten years, with the exception of $4.7 million of in-process research and development which will be amortized once the development is completed and products are available for sale. The Company does not expect the amortization of its in-process research and development to begin in 2012. Amortization for acquired intangible assets was approximately $0.9 million, $0.7 million and $0.7 million in the years ended December 31, 2011, 2010 and 2009, respectively. The Company does not believe there is any significant residual value associated with the following intangible assets:



	December 31, 2011							December 31, 2010
	Gross		Accumulated Amortization			Net		Gross		Accumulated Amortization			Net
	(in thousands)
In-process research and development	$	4,690	$	—		$	4,690	$	4,690	$	—		$	4,690
Technology licenses	3,000		(1,725		)	1,275		3,000		(1,425		)	1,575
Patent rights	1,949		(1,949		)	—		1,949		(1,760		)	189
Developed technology	2,920		(829		)	2,091		2,920		(489		)	2,431
Customer relationships	910		(114		)	796		910		—			910
Other intangibles	37		(37		)	—		37		(37		)	—
Total intangible assets	$	13,506	$	(4,654	)	$	8,852	$	13,506	$	(3,711	)	$	9,795

The estimated future amortization expense related to intangible assets at December 31, 2011 is as follows:



Fiscal Year	Estimated Amortization (in thousands)
2012	$	755
2013	755
2014	754
2015	592
2016	367
Thereafter	939
Total (1)	$	4,162

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(1)	The total above excludes $4.7 million of in-process research and development which will be amortized upon completion of development over the estimated useful life of the technology.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the aggregate amount of goodwill and a description of intangible assets, which may include (a) for amortizable intangible assets (also referred to as finite-lived intangible assets), the carrying amount, the amount of any significant residual value, and the weighted-average amortization period, (b) for intangible assets not subject to amortization (also referred to as indefinite-lived intangible assets), the carrying amount, and (c) the amount of research and development assets acquired and written off in the period, including the line item in the income statement in which the amounts written off are aggregated, if not readily apparent from the income statement. Also discloses (a) for amortizable intangibles assets in total and by major class, the gross carrying amount and accumulated amortization, the total amortization expense for the period, and the estimated aggregate amortization expense for each of the five succeeding fiscal years, (b) for intangible assets not subject to amortization the carrying amount in total and by major class, and (c) for goodwill, in total and for each reportable segment, the changes in the carrying amount of goodwill during the period (including the aggregate amount of goodwill acquired, the aggregate amount of impairment losses recognized, and the amount of goodwill included in the gain (loss) on disposal of a reporting unit). If any part of goodwill has not been allocated to a reportable segment, discloses the unallocated amount and the reasons for not allocating. For each impairment loss recognized related to an intangible asset (excluding goodwill), discloses: (a) a description of the impaired intangible asset and the facts and circumstances leading to the impairment, (b) the amount of the impairment loss and the method for determining fair value, (c) the caption in the income statement or the statement of activities in which the impairment loss is aggregated, and (d) the segment in which the impaired intangible asset is reported. For each goodwill impairment loss recognized, discloses: (a) a description of the facts and circumstances leading to the impairment, (b) the amount of the impairment loss and the method of determining the fair value of the associated reporting unit, and (c) if a recognized impairment loss is an estimate not finalized and the reasons why the estimate is not final. May also disclose the nature and amount of any significant adjustments made to a previous estimate of an impairment loss.

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