Broadcom demos digital TV chip
By Nair Chendakera
EE Times
(01/20/00, 2:47 p.m. EST)
BANGALORE, India — Broadcom India is plunging into digital TV with the release of a high-definition video graphics subsystem chip that supports MPEG-2 video, AC-3 audio, 3-D graphics and studio-quality 2-D text and graphics for standard and high-definition displays.
Targeting digital-TV receiver makers, the company demonstrated the BCM 7020 video graphics subsystem last month at the Western Show. Rivals working on similar solutions are believed to include TeraLogic, ATI, Philips and STMicroelectronics.
Several consumer-electronics manufacturers have requested samples of the BCM 7020, Broadcom said. Most of the development work on the chip was done by Armedia Labs (Bangalore), which was acquired by Broadcom (Irvine, Calif.) in June.
Armedia founder Tushar Dave, president of Broadcom India, said the Bangalore center is working on a version of the graphics chip that will incorporate next-generation technology and new features. He said the company might be ready to release the upgrade by midyear.
Digital receivers near
Dave said digital TV receivers incorporating the BCM 7020 could also hit the consumer market by midyear. Selling at $50 each, the chip uses a unified memory architecture to reduce system costs.
Broadcom said it is targeting the graphics chip at receiver and set-top box makers as a video graphics back-end platform that is also HDTV-ready. The company hopes its approach will allow manufacturers to standardize on its back-end technology, providing customers with an affordable solution for both standard- and high-definition receivers.
Armedia, meanwhile, continues to focus on digital audio, video and graphics. "We greatly desire to grow our operations here, but our role will continue to be that of technology developer" for Broadcom, Dave said.
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