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To: BillyG who wrote (48524)	2/1/2000 5:20:00 PM
From: John Rieman	Respond to of 50808

Sinclair still pushing COFDM..................... digitalbroadcasting.com{E272A16C-D8DE-11D3-8C1B-009027DE0829}&Bucket=Latest+Headlines Sinclair Calls Zenith VSB Demos ?Misleading and Possibly Flawed? 2/1/00 By Tom Butts Sinclair Broadcast Group (Baltimore) has criticized the recent VSB/COFDM comparative demonstrations carried out by Zenith Corp. (Glenview, IL). Zenith sponsored the demonstrations at the Consumer Electronics Show in early January (see Zenith Demos VSB at Consumer Electronics Show) and conducted a similar demonstration in Washington, DC last week. The demos were designed to show how 8-VSB has improved over time and as a counterpoint to growing criticism over the US DTV-based 8-VSB modulation standard, which Sinclair and others say is inadequate for indoor antenna reception. Sinclair has sponsored a petition that asks the FCC to add the European-based COFDM modulation standard as an option for US broadcasters. Sinclair engineers were invited to the Washington demonstration as part of a delegation from the Association for Maximum Service for Television (MSTV). The Sinclair engineers concluded that Zenith misled attendees by using simulated, rather than live, multi-path test signals that Sinclair had conducted in its Baltimore tests last summer and in recent tests conducted by Motorola to evaluate its newest VSB chip. COFDM Receivers ?Overloaded? Sinclair also pointed out that the tests were flawed, because Zenith used signal levels that were sent to the COFDM receivers that may have exceeded their operational design limits. This potential receiver overload, Sinclair says, may have distorted their capabilities and made all of the measurements erroneous at best. ?It would be a gross technical error to overload the COFDM receivers and then compare their resulting diminished performance to that of the non-overloaded 8-VSB receivers,? says Nat Ostroff, senior VP, new technology for Sinclair. During the demonstration, Zenith said that the input signals to the 8-VSB receivers were set to a power level of minus 30dbm or about 1 milliwatt. The maximum input specification to at least one of the COFDM receivers used in the demonstration is also minus 30 dbm and the second demonstration receiver is minus 35 dbm or about one third of a milliwatt. Sinclair says the signal levels into the COFDM receivers were raised above the minus 30 dbm level to compensate for the wider 8 MHz bandwidth used for COFDM in the demonstration. When the multi-path, bandwidth compensation power and noise simulation signals are added, the total overdrive condition to the COFDM receivers could easily have exceeded both COFDM receivers? capabilities. ?This demonstration would have been much fairer if there was no possibility of distorting the results by overdriving the test COFDM receivers,? says Mark Aitken, a senior engineer with Sinclair. Zenith?s Response Zenith spokesman John Taylor says he?s ?not surprised that Sinclair doesn?t like the data that shows the trade-offs with COFDM and how COFDM performance is affected by phase noise. Our engineers re-ran the tests at various signal levels and got the same results.? Taylor reiterated Zenith?s belief that lab demos are important because ?you can have repeatable conditions with multiple impairments to assure a fair comparison.? Taylor says response to the demos has been generally positive. ?The industry is pleased to see continual improvements?people are glad to see the coverage area superiority of VSB and I think most understand the receiver improvements that impact indoor reception,? Taylor says.

To: BillyG who wrote (48524)	2/2/2000 9:29:00 PM
From: John Rieman	Respond to of 50808

Harmonic win............................................. newsalert.com February 02, 2000 13:44 StarBurst Software Signs Agreement With Harmonic Data Systems to Deliver Broadband Content Distribution Solutions to the World of IP Jump to first matched term CONCORD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 2, 2000-- Agreement to facilitate scalable content distribution solutions for the delivery of digital content over global IP networks StarBurst Software(TM) today announced an agreement with Harmonic Data Systems Ltd. (HDS), a subsidiary of Harmonic Inc. (HLIT), to deliver highly scalable solutions for the distribution of digital video and audio, Web-content and business information over IP networks. StarBurst's OmniCast(TM) software, in conjunction with HDS' CyberStream data-over-broadband product family, will provide satellite and cable television (CATV) service providers, wireless providers and enterprises a faster, more reliable and efficient way to offer customers advanced Internet services, video-on-demand and digital business information. The StarBurst/HDS solution enables guaranteed, one-to-many content distribution to tens of thousands of remote receivers, including distributed Web farms, DSL and cable headends, remote kiosks and distributed corporate servers, without changing the network. HDS' CyberStream offers a complete line of DVB/MPEG 2 standards-based distribution products that enable network operators to provide fast Internet access, push services and other data and video distribution services. Combined with StarBurst's OmniCast, CyberStream can bring added efficiency and scalability to IP networks. This can allow providers and enterprises to package and modify digital content at the sending server while reliably distributing the content over any IP network, including satellite, cable, data or wireless. Unlike point-to-point delivery, StarBurst OmniCast can offer HDS' customers fast, secure and simultaneous distribution of content to hundreds or thousands of receivers in a single transmission. StarBurst's software is also easy to deploy and requires no changes to the network infrastructure. "StarBurst OmniCast is a natural companion to the CyberStream product family. OmniCast intelligently manages the distribution of assets over CyberStream-enabled broadband channels providing an optimal solution for all operators," said David Price, vice president of business development at Harmonic Data Systems. "CyberStream's complete, end-to-end solution for broadband IP networks is deployed in over 50 satellites worldwide with hundreds of CyberStream enabled uplinks. Our new relationship with StarBurst Software increases the power of CyberStream and further strengthens its market position." Combined with the CyberStream system, StarBurst OmniCast offers a scalable platform that can allow operators and enterprises to simultaneously distribute high-bandwidth content to hundreds or thousands of locations. This enables satellite and CATV operators, for example, to meet consumer demand for broadband services like enhanced TV, the convergence of traditional television and the Web. Using StarBurst OmniCast and CyberStream together, operators can update data at remote headends and automatically distribute the latest digital programming, business communications and Internet services to local broadcasters, enterprises and directly to the home. "HDS is dedicated to providing customers with a content distribution solution that can easily scale to thousands of networked receivers and operate over all IP networks. In conjunction with CyberStream, StarBurst OmniCast can distribute broadband applications from a single sending server to multiple receivers over any IP network," said Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Bill Andrews. "This relationship validates StarBurst's position as a leading provider of content distribution management software for the emerging broadband market. Together, StarBurst and HDS can link providers, enterprises and consumers with the latest broadband services." About Harmonic Inc. Harmonic designs, manufactures and markets digital and fiber optic systems that deliver video, voice and data over cable, satellite, telco and wireless networks. These advanced solutions enable cable television and other network operators to provide a range of interactive broadband services that include high-speed Internet access, telephony and video-on-demand. Harmonic is headquartered in Sunnyvale, Calif., where it also operates an R&D center and a manufacturing facility, and has a sales and support center in the U.K. The company also operates its Harmonic Data Systems subsidiary and an R&D center in Israel. In addition, the company maintains several sales and support centers worldwide. Harmonic is ISO 9001-certified and its stock is traded on the Nasdaq stock market under the symbol "HLIT." For more information, check the company's websites at www.harmonicinc.com and www.harmonicdata.com. About StarBurst Software StarBurst Software is the leader in developing e-business content distribution solutions that provide scaleable, simultaneous and guaranteed transmission of content such as video, audio, software and large data files to hundreds, thousands, or tens of thousands of remote sites, LAN servers, and distributed devices without changing the network. StarBurst customers include Internet sites such as eBay, Bloomberg.com, and Weather.com; automotive companies such as General Motors, Ford, Chrysler and Honda; retail companies like Wal-Mart, Kmart, The Gap, Sherwin Williams and Rite Aid; hospitality companies including Choice Hotels and Promus Hotels; financial companies such as Optimark, Nomura Securities and Thomson Securities Information Services; high tech companies such as Microsoft and WebTV Networks, Inc.; news and information providers such as Dow Jones and Bridge Information Systems, and many other industry leaders from a wide array of markets worldwide. More information can be found at StarBurst's World Wide Web site: starburstsoftware.com. StarBurst, StarBurst Software and OmniCast are registered trademarks of StarBurst Software. CyberStream is a trademark of Harmonic Inc. CONTACT: StarBurst Software Debbie Braunert, (978) 287-5560 dbraunert@starburstsoftware.com or Beaupre & Co. Public Relations, Inc. Christa Branscombe, (603) 559-5804 cbranscombe@beaupre.com