British ARM Holdings reported a 25 percent rise in profits on Wednesday, and predicted its royalty income was set to get a big boost from smartphones. The company reported a pretax profit of 118.9 million pounds ($182 million). Revenue, up 19 percent at 225.9 million pounds, was split evenly between licensing and royalties.

"In Q4 and throughout 2014 ARM has seen strong licence revenue growth, driven by market-leading semiconductor companies increasing their commitment to use ARM technology, and a broadening range of new customers choosing ARM technology for the first time," said Simon Segars, Chief Executive Officer. "As expected, ARM’s royalty revenue growth rate increased in the fourth quarter. As the ARM Partnership continues to gain share, and as chips based on ARMv8-A processors and Mali graphics IP start shipping in higher volumes, the outlook for royalty revenues in 2015 and beyond is encouraging."

"2015 will bring exciting opportunities and challenges as ARM invests in new products and technologies, and continues to establish itself in competitive new markets."

ARM signed 53 licensing deals during the quarter, including eight for version 8 of its Cortex-A architecture.