Settop boxes, part-3.................................................
asiansources.com
R&D
R&D aims at cost cuts, power boost <Picture>
Cost reduction through silicon consolidation is one of the key R&D trends in the set-top box field. The current chipset supplied by component maker SGS-Thomson, for instance, is designed for boxes compliant with the DVB-Satellite standard. Previously a five-chip solution, it now consists of just three chips, and the company expects to move to a two-chip solution later this year.
The benefits of such work can already be seen. For instance, a year ago, Scientific-Atlanta's set-top boxes required 12 to 14 separate parts, but this has since been reduced to six parts. The company's objective is to bring the IC count down to three or fewer.
New models are also being built with more processing power. Whereas satellite boxes have employed 16-bit microcontrollers, the latest digital cable boxes now feature 32-bit and 64-bit processors. Moreover, the new codec chips available from a few suppliers will enable the boxes to handle videoconferencing functions by compressing and decompressing data simultaneously.
Responding to the more general trend toward greater interactivity, SGS-Thomson is also seeking to provide set-top box chips with increased processing power. A prototype with a 64-bit micro-core has already been developed. "We feel that this type of processor will be required in a couple of years time to handle the increased interactive and multimedia functions of set-top boxes," said the company spokesman.Another area of development is in providing support for HDTV. The component maker expects to be supplying silicon for set-top boxes supporting HDTV by the end of this year.
While hardware advancements are boosting the processing capabilities of set-top boxes, much of the functionality of a digital set-top box is determined by the software that operates on it. Thus, it is in this area that some of the most intense development activity is concentrated.
Set-top box operating systems are proliferating as major vendors from the computer industry -- including Microsoft with Windows CE and Sun Microsystems with Java -- enter the field to compete with the existing players. Hardware manufacturers are having to design their new products to match the new software requirements. "It's an interesting time," said Pace Micro's Farmery. "The goal posts aren't just moving in one direction; their moving up and down as well as from side to side."With competition between the different operating systems intensifying, it is difficult to predict which one -- if any -- will eventually emerge as dominant. "They've all got different strengths and weaknesses, in terms of the ease of use for the end-user, in terms of reliability or in terms of the specifications they require for the box," Farmery said. Providing compatibility with different operating systems is also a key issue for SGS-Thomson in the design of future-generation set-top box chipsets. To provide support for Windows-based software, for instance, the component maker is considering offering a version with an embedded x86 core in place of the current RISC core.
Applications
VOD just the start of application list <Picture>
The range of applications for digital set-top boxes varies widely between markets, as service providers in different areas have different focuses. In general, through set-top boxes, telephony companies, by-pass carrier providers and cable TV companies can provide services such as VOD, NVOD, pay-per-view, education on demand, karaoke on demand, electronic games on demand, cached Web pages, on-line shopping channels and interactive commercial advertisements.
Tatung has signed a contract to supply a multilocation fiber-to-the-curb VOD system for the Guangdong Post and Telecommunication Administration (GPTA) in China. The project will deliver VOD services to nine cities in Guangdong province. The field installation began in May 1997 for two cities, Guangzhou and Shenzhen. About 600 subscribers were being served by the end of 1997, and more than 4,000 are expected to be on line by mid-year. Continued expansion is planned for the future.
Tatung also supplied New York-based TeleVideo with its MPEG-2 compliant digital set-top boxes under a joint development deal. Tatung has a commitment to supply 100,000 boxes through the end of this year.
The company is also committing to a few supply contracts for NC set-top boxes. One is to supply a European customer with NC set-top boxes with a cable modem interface for VOD. Another is to provide ATM set-top boxes to a customer in Hong Kong.
US-based Time Warner Cable, a service provider with 12.3 million subscribers, is busy building on the applications it provides. "We have a two-phase strategy," said Mike Luftman, vice president of corporate communications. "The first phase will allow us to offer pay-per-view movies, 30 channels in a digital format, multiplexed pay TV services and 31 channels of digital music. The second phase will add full VOD. We expect to test that as early as the second half of 1998. Once we know we can deploy Web servers and routers and the necessary software at an economical cost, we'll begin rolling out full Internet access."
Time Warner Cable currently uses a variety of set-top boxes, all of them analog, to provide its special services. Half of the boxes are addressable and half are non-addressable. "We are in the process of having two-way digital boxes developed for us by several makers, including Scientific-Atlanta and General Instrument," Luftman said.
Over the life of Time Warner's current contracts with all set-top box makers, the company will average just under $400 per unit. Luftman estimates the charge to subscribers for the second-phase services will be $10 a month above current cable fees.
In Europe, BIB will launch additional services later this year as part of the BSkyB digital network. The company promises to provide home shopping, banking and travel services, along with Internet and e-mail capabilities. In addition, BSkyB set-top boxes are to be equipped with a bank smart card reader to facilitate banking transactions and purchases. Other services offered will include specialist local and national information services and educational programs.Service providers in Singapore are also coming up with content for set-top box services. For instance, Philips and MyWeb are at the moment building up localized content and services in different categories like news, business, education and home shopping. And M-cash provides an on-line transaction service. It is used to pay on-line student assessments and bills as well as donations to charitable organizations.
Prices fall within consumer range
As component integration increases and economies of scale are pursued by hardware manufactures, the cost of owning a set-top box is dropping dramatically. Internet set-top boxes can now be purchased for about $300, and makers are working to drive prices down below $200.
Dataquest's Cassell said that the codecs for simultaneous compression and decompression, which were initially priced from $600 to $1,200 each, will eventually drop to as low as $50 each. Thus, low-end NC nodes that just support Internet connection via a fax-modem are priced from about $300, while mid-range models with a cable modem interface sell for $400 to $450 each. High-end set-top boxes that can be used as game machines can carry a price tag of more than $500.
Although higher volumes and falling component costs are pushing the prices of set-top boxes lower, broadcasters are demanding higher performance to support new interactive services, which is, to an extent, counteracting the downward price movement. For instance, General Instrument's DCT1000 models sell for just above $300 each, but its new DCT5000 is expected to be priced at slightly more than $400 for system operators.
For the most part, digital set-top boxes are being bought from the manufacturers by broadcasters, who usually heavily subsidize the cost when selling to end-users. This price model can result more in specification improvements than price cuts, according to Ovum's Moroney. "The question a service provider will ask is 'how much does the business case allow me to pay?'," he said. "If it is, say, $660, then it's a matter of what you can get for the money -- whether you can get more memory in it, whether it can be more interactive or offer better graphics." |
