Nordic Semiconductor — Earnings Release 2010

Apr 28, 2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Investor relations contact: Robert Giori

Phone: +47 93 40 91 88

Fax: +47 22 51 10 99

E-mail: Robert.Giori@nordicsemi.no

Website: www.nordicsemi.com

NORDIC

SEMICONDUCTOR

BUSINESS: NORDIC Q1 10 FINANCIAL RESULTS

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

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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 93 40 91 88

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.