OpenCable Standard Inches Toward Reality
From the Semiconductor pages of Electronic News: December 7, 1998 Issue
By Peter Brown
Anaheim, Calif.--Set-top box manufacturers are making a concerted effort to move to the
OpenCable standard in a bid to bring to the consumer electronics market a new revenue-generating
machine. This thrust ties directly to other digital moves taking place in the television, PC and satellite
markets.
Proof of this trend emerged here at the Western Cable show last week where a variety of
technologies and products that comply with the emerging OpenCable standard were introduced,
including a chipset from VLSI Technology.
VLSI is focusing its Vista '99 product plans toward OpenCable and has introduced a two-chip set for
the back end that, combined with its front end terrestrial, cable and satellite chips, enables one of the
first commercial OpenCable set-top boxes. The combination chipset is set to begin sampling in 1Q99
with volume production planned for 3Q99 priced under $30 in volume quantities.
In addition, many OpenCable prototype boxes and modules are in development from other companies
that could also help give the standard a needed push.
The OpenCable standard basically would require consumers to go out to a local retail store and
purchase a set-top box that has specific algorithms and instructions that each cable company would
conform to. After purchasing the box, a consumer would then have only to connect the cable wires
to the box.
Portable Set-Top Boxes
Even if the consumer changes location or goes on a business trip or vacation, the box could be taken
with the user and plugged immediately into another cable outlet at a different location, giving that
individual the ability to receive cable.
For the cable companies this is potentially a huge benefit because it would lower their cost of
materials. No longer will cable companies have to continually purchase and upgrade set-top boxes
for numerous users to have in their homes for a relatively small fee to the cable subscriber.
This will in turn enable cable vendors to move those funds elsewhere and to improve areas of
concern, these typically being customer support and the ability to carry all the demanded cable
channels.
This also will allow cable companies to plan ahead with their programming including offering features
such as video-on-demand and CD-quality music channels along with the regular programming.
Implementation of other data services, such as interactive advertising and digital cable, would also be
made easier through the standard because everything would all be planned ahead of time as well as
upgradable.
"OpenCable has to expand our business in North America where we have not had much of a
presence at all," said Amar Kapadia, product marketing manager at VLSI Technology.
VLSI is one of the set-top box manufacturers that are focusing on OpenCable as a potential high
revenue generator for the company. If the standard takes off, it could mean a potential continuous
source of revenue for chipmakers and consumer electronics manufacturers making the boxes for the
cable companies.
Waiting On A Standard
So far, however, only one draft of the OpenCable standard has been accepted although there are
indications that there will be additions and updates in the near future.
Meanwhile, based on a 0.20-micron process, VLSI Technology's OpenCable chipset consists of the
VES6200 and VES2750 chips that serve as MPEG-2 transport demodulation system control and
audio/visual decoding for the set-tops.
The VES6200 features an ARM7 thumb microprocessor core running at 108MHz and incorporates a
digital encoder compatible with PAL/SECAM/NTSC color broadcasting standards. The chip also
supports IEEE 1394 interface, which is an OpenCable specification.
The VES2750 adds the transport demultiplexing to the chipset needed to transport the signal from the
front to the back end. |
