SAN JOSE -- The time to market for new chips might be holding steady, but who is designing them is in transition, a top Cadence executive says.

"IP is becoming increasingly important (and) it's growing much faster than the core EDA business," says Geoffrey Ribar, chief financial officer of the EDA software developer. "Approximately 30% of the (new) chips are custom-designed" today, he asserted today at the Morgan Stanley Media and Telecom Conference. "System companies ... (have) vertically integrated back into chip design," he added, replacing chips that they previously would have purchased outside.

"I only see that business continuing to grow going forward," he added.

This swing is taking place while the time to market for chips is staying relatively consistent at 18 to 24 months, Ribar said.