SAN JOSE, Calif., October 9, 1998—Xilinx, Inc., (NASDAQ:XLNX) today announced the appointment of Dr. Frank Seiji Sanda to the company's board of directors, expanding the number of members to six.

Dr. Sanda currently serves as chairman, president and chief executive officer of Japan Communications, Inc. (JCI), a Tokyo-based telecommunications service provider for the corporate market. Concurrently, he serves as president and CEO of L.T.S. & Co., Ltd., the founding parent organization of JCI. Sanda also serves as a member of the board of directors of Candescent Technologies Corp., a San Jose, Calif., flat-panel display company. Previously, Sanda was the chief executive of Apple Japan, Inc., and the senior executive responsible for starting the cellular telephone business in Japan for Motorola, Inc.

"Frank Sanda's knowledge and experience in worldwide markets will be a tremendous asset going forward," said Xilinx president and CEO Wim Roelandts. "We are delighted to have a seasoned bicultural executive of Frank’s stature on our board to support the Xilinx continuing globalization."

In addition to his experience in Japan, Dr. Sanda served in officer positions with Merrill Lynch & Co. in New York and with CitiBank N.A. in Hong Kong, Macau and Tokyo. He began his business career in the transportation sector, working for Canadian National Railways, Conrail and Long Island Rail Road Co.

Dr. Sanda earned his doctorate in electrical engineering and his master's and bachelor's degrees in mechanical engineering from the University of Detroit, and he completed the advanced management program at the Harvard University Graduate School of Business. 

Xilinx is the leading innovator of complete programmable logic solutions, including advanced integrated circuits, software design tools, predefined system functions delivered as cores, and unparalleled field engineering support. Founded in 1984 and headquartered in San Jose, Calif., Xilinx invented the field programmable gate array (FPGA) and commands more than half of the world market for these devices today. Xilinx solutions enable customers to significantly reduce the time required to develop products for the computer, peripheral, telecommunications, networking, industrial control, instrumentation, high-reliability/military, and consumer markets. For more information, visit the Xilinx website at www.xilinx.com.