General Instrument and Sony to Demonstrate Home Networking Technologies at Cable-98 Show
PR Newswire - April 30, 1998 08:41
GI and Sony Collaborate to Show Enhanced Capabilities of Advanced Digital
Interactive Systems at the Cable-98 Show in Atlanta
HORSHAM, Pa. and SAN JOSE, Calif., April 30 /PRNewswire/ -- General
Instrument (NYSE: GIC) and Sony today announced that they will jointly
demonstrate interactive digital in-home networking utilizing a prototype of
GI's advanced interactive digital set top terminal, the DCT 5000+, and
incorporating Sony's i.LINK (IEEE 1394) based Home Networking Module and
"Aperios" real time operating system. The companies will demonstrate the
prototype at the National Cable Television Association (NCTA) Cable '98 show,
taking place in Atlanta from May 4 through 6.
"The prototype DCT 5000+ demonstrates the seamless convergence of
broadcast and home network applications that will enable a new range of
services in the home," said Edward D. Breen, Chairman and CEO of GI. "With
the expanded capabilities of our advanced digital platform, we can explore new
applications and additional ways to make our products even more consumer-
friendly. Our prototype showcases some of those new services and
applications."
The applications demonstrated at NCTA Cable '98 will include;
-- EPG (Electronic Program Guide) which offers a variety of programs, from
movies to news, as well as the new "Expanded TV" application that
provides new information services broadcast as part of the normal TV
program;
-- High speed Internet access -- up to 30Mbps (Mega bits per second);
-- Easy control of home networked AV devices equipped with an i.LINK
interface, such as MiniDisc recorders and camcorders of the future,
using an integrated 'on-screen' menu;
-- Home Monitoring with Sony's mini CCD camera, which enables monitoring
visitors at the door, babies in the bed room on a TV screen;
-- An Intelligent Search function which helps users find all of the
content related to a specific topic from all the sources on the home
network, including live broadcast, pay-per-view movies and users' DVD
or CD library;
-- Smooth video telephony over cable network.
"GI's digital set-top box prototype illustrates the feasibility of an open
home network architecture," said Gary Myer, president of Digital Network
Solutions Company America, a division of Sony Electronics Inc. "Sony's Home
Networking Module, Aperios real time operating system, and the i.LINK
interface provide comprehensive home network solution that will allow
different brands of products to be seamlessly interoperated and will enable
many new applications and services."
Sony's Home Networking Module is a middleware (the software that runs
between an operating system and application software) that allows digital
electronics appliances equipped with the i.LINK interface to be interconnected
and interoperated. The i.LINK interface offers the ability for devices to
send and receive digital commands and digital AV streams, such as video or
audio, at up to 200Mbps.
Aperios is a real time operating system that Sony designed to support the
requirements of digital AV products such as advanced digital set top boxes.
It is especially suitable for real time applications, such as video and audio,
because it can process continuous media efficiently without interruption. By
virtue of its modular object-oriented structure, it is highly configurable and
scalable and can be targeted at a range of digital AV products.
GI's DCT-5000+ advanced interactive digital terminal is designed to
deliver an unprecedented level of processing and graphics capabilities to the
digital set-top terminal. Built around a high powered processor and a high-
end 3D and picture-in-graphics capable graphics platform, the DCT-5000+
represents the leading edge in next generation digital cable terminals. The
processor in the DCT-5000+, the MIPS RM5230, delivers unparalleled processing
capabilities with a 233 MIPS (million instructions per second) 175MHz
processor. The DCT-5000+'s unique triple tuner architecture will enable users
to simultaneously watch TV and surf the Internet or watch and talk using cable
IP telephony functionality.
In January, GI and Sony announced that they planned to form a strategic
alliance, subject to definitive agreements, to jointly develop technologies
for digital cable TV devices and high definition products.
General Instrument is a world leader in the cable/satellite TV business,
providing both analog and digital systems that offer video, audio and high-
speed Internet/data services over cable television and satellite networks. It
is the only company commercially deploying interactive digital cable systems
in the North American market. To date, some 1 million units have been
shipped, and more than 500 headends have been deployed, passing more than
25 million households.
Sony is a global leader of audio, video, communications and information
technology products for the consumer and professional markets. Its music,
pictures and computer entertainment operations make Sony one of the most
comprehensive entertainment companies in the world. Sony recorded
consolidated annual sales of over $45 billion in fiscal year '97 and employs
more than 163,000 people worldwide.
SOURCE General Instrument Corporation
/EDITORS' ADVISORY: The prototype of the advanced digital set top box
will be demonstrated at GI's booth at the World Congress Center. The booth is
located No. 2106. (information needed from GI) Please contact Dick Badler of
GI or Mack Araki of Sony for the booth appointment./
/CONTACT: Dick Badler of General Instrument, 215-323-1618, or e-mail,
dbadler@gi.com, or Mack Araki of Sony Electronics, 408-955-5673, or e-mail,
mack_araki@ccmail.sel.sony.com/
/Web site: gi.com
(GIC SNE) |
