Nordic Semiconductor — Earnings Release 2010

Apr 28, 2010

Nordic Semiconductor reports record financial performance in First Quarter 2010

Oslo, Norway, April 28, 2010 - Nordic Semiconductor

today reported record financial results for the first

quarter 2010, with exceptionally strong growth in

revenue and operating profit.

Q1 2010 financial highlights include:

- Total Revenue of MUSD 29.5 (MUSD 10.5)

- Operating Profit (EBIT) of MUSD 8.2 (MUSD 0.7)

- Order inflows of MUSD 67 (MUSD 13)

- Cash Flow from Operations of MUSD -6.1 (MUSD -1.0)

- Earnings per Share of USD 0.15 (USD 0.01)

"Nordic Semiconductor's revenue and operating profit

in the first quarter far exceeded any quarter in our

company's history. This performance was driven by

Nordic's successful execution of its business

strategy, rather than by short-term market trends.

This strategy has enabled Nordic to differentiate and

build a strong niche position in the high growth

market for low-power wireless solutions, while

maintaining a lean and highly effective

organization," commented Svenn-Tore Larsen, Chief

Executive Officer.

Revenue growth

Group revenue in Q1 2010 was MUSD 29.5, an increase

of 182% from the prior year. The PC / Media

controller business segment grew by 249% during Q1

2010 to MUSD 19.9, and represented 68% of the

company's total revenues. The company notes that much

of this revenue increase was driven by the ongoing

conversion of wireless PC Peripherals vendors from

older 27 MHz radio frequency technology to Nordic's

2.4 GHz components.

"Wireless PC peripherals manufacturers worldwide are

today adopting Nordic's 2.4GHz technology due to its

performance advantages and low energy requirements,"

explained Larsen. "Our system-on-chip solutions and

reference designs offer excellent value to vendors

looking to upgrade their products to the latest 2.4

GHz wireless solutions without the challenge and risk

of integrating components from multiple suppliers."

Operating profit and cash flow

Nordic Semiconductor's revenue growth resulted in a

strong improvement in operating profit (EBIT), which

increased to MUSD 8.2 from MUSD 0.7 in Q1

2009. "Nordic Semiconductor's profit performance

demonstrates the scalability of its business model,

in which manufacturing and direct distribution of

standard components are subcontracted to specialist

partners," explained Robert Giori, Chief Financial

Officer. "For this reason, Nordic Semiconductor

achieved high revenue growth in Q1 2010 without a

comparable increase in its operating expenses,

resulting in a strong improvement in operating

profit."

Nordic's cash balance fell from MUSD 31 to MUSD 22

during the period. "The cash outflow in the first

quarter was driven by the company's exceptional

growth," commented Giori. "This had a particularly

significant impact during the period, as Nordic's

working capital requirements increased at the same

time as the company invested in new testing

equipment, and made large annual income tax and

employee bonus payments. Nordic Semiconductor

maintains a solid financial basis of cash and no

debt, and we expect to resume strong free cash flow,

particularly during the second half of 2010."

Business Outlook

The company indicated a positive outlook for

continued growth in 2010 and beyond. "Due to

exceptionally high order inflow, Nordic Semiconductor

finished Q1 2010 with a record high order backlog of

MUSD 71," explained Svenn-Tore Larsen. "This order

inflow was partially driven by strong underlying

demand, but was also greatly lifted by a lengthening

in order cycles from previous quarters, with delivery

dates spread throughout Q2 and Q3 2010."

"We believe that sales will continue to be strong for

the remainder of 2010, as leading electronics

manufacturers release new products with our wireless

components, and as the global economy recovers. We

also expect that there will be less seasonality in

2010 than in prior years, due to the fact that our

sales mix has shifted toward less seasonally-driven

sales of PC peripherals components and across all

international markets. Finally, we expect to see

order cycles stabilize rather than continue to

increase, which means that order inflow is likely to

return to a level closer to that of the company's

shipments."

Over the longer term, the company addressed numerous

growth opportunities. "Nordic's ultra-low power 2.4

GHz RF technology is well positioned to become the

preferred wireless solution within many emerging

product categories. Furthermore, we are confident

that the release of the Bluetooth Low Energy standard

will drive further market growth by opening mobile

phone handsets and other Bluetooth devices for

connectivity with low-energy wireless sensor and

monitoring devices," concluded Svenn-Tore Larsen.

A complete Q1 2010 financial report is attached

in .pdf format.

For more information, please contact:

Robert Giori, Chief Financial Officer. + 47 93409188

About Nordic Semiconductor:

Nordic Semiconductor ASA develops and sells

integrated circuits and related solutions for short-

range wireless communication. The company

specializes in ultra-low power (ULP) components,

based on its proprietary 2.4 GHz RF technology. All

manufacturing of components is outsourced to

specialist subcontractors. The company's operations

are managed according to an ISO 9001:2000-approved

quality assurance system.

The company is headquarted in Trondheim and Oslo,

Norway, with offices in the US, Hong Kong, Korea,

Japan, Taiwan and the Philippines. The company is

publicly traded on the Oslo Stock Exchange under the

ticker NOD.