bp...LOGC...they had the hdtv mkt by the tail...without getting technical...until things got delayed..it is wll covered in the last 10k...here is a bit of it:
Beginning in November 1998, the Federal Communications Commission
directed that television broadcasters begin a transition from current analog
broadcasts to high definition digital television (HDTV). All analog broadcasts
are scheduled to cease by the year 2006. In addition to providing improved image
quality as a result of increased resolution, the image aspect ratio
(width/height) will be changed from the traditional, nearly square 4 by 3 size
ratio of current televisions to a wider screen 16 by 9 ratio more similar to
motion picture screens. Due to the large base of currently installed equipment,
both formats will co-exist for a number of years. In addition, due to the
initially limited availability of content in the wide format, the industry faces
the need to resize images back and forth between the two formats with
exceptionally high computational precision, so as to preserve the image quality
advantages of the newer digital format. It is generally acknowledged that the
industry is behind schedule in meeting this FCC mandate. The industry's slow
transition adversely affected the Company's revenues for fiscal 2001 and 2000.
With its significant presence in the broadcast equipment industry, the
Company and its customers jointly defined a family of very high-performance
digital image filtering circuits that facilitate the smoothing of edges as video
images are stretched and resized. The Company developed and sampled these to
OEMs for incorporation into HDTV studio production systems. During fiscal 2000,
many of those OEMs completed their system level product development on this new
generation of HDTV compatible studio systems. While sales of HDTV studio
equipment in fiscal 2001 and 2000 lagged behind market forecasts, the Company
believes that its products offer unique solutions to certain video image
filtering problems required in that equipment. When the HDTV studio equipment
begins to sell in higher volume, the Company should benefit from these
increasing sales.
As a result of its initial work on digital filtering and image resizing
circuits, the Company identified secondary applications for its product
technology. Many of the current products are also applicable to, and have been
incorporated into, advanced medical imaging equipment, such as computer aided
tomography (CAT) and ultrasound scanners. As a result of the recent need to
replenish stocks of advanced military weapons systems, the Company expects to
enjoy an increased level of sales for certain military programs during fiscal
2002.
Telecommunications, in all of its various forms, is a fast growing
market for DSP chips. The Company has found that its digital filtering
components also have applications in wireless base station processing. Analogous
to video image processing, major industry suppliers have tended to concentrate
their efforts on the high volume, handset side of the wireless link, while the
base station side receives far less attention. Due to demands for fewer,
smaller, and less intrusive antenna sites, the digital filtering required in
multi-channel wireless base stations is computationally intensive and power
limited. The Company continues to believe this area is an attractive target and
is focusing much of its product development efforts on this market. |
