TV / COM Introduces Newest Line of Set-Top Boxes for Digital Cable and DTH
Satellite Services
04/06/98
Business Wire
(Copyright (c) 1998, Business Wire)
LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 6, 1998--
Designed for the World: Modular, Low-Cost, Strong Base Feature
Set, and Upgradable with Options for Particular Markets
TV / COM International, Inc., a subsidiary of Hyundai Electronics and a world leader in
supplying open architecture delivery solutions for cable, satellite, PC and terrestrial
television networks, today announced two new set-top boxes: the TVC-3100 for digital
cable services, and the TVC-3200 for Direct-to-Home (DTH) satellite services. Both
products address a growing need for low-cost, highly flexible, consumer set-tops for
receipt of digital video, audio and data services.
"Built on a solid foundation of basic features, the TVC-3100 and TVC-3200 deliver
crystal clear digital pictures and CD-quality sound to standard television sets," said Mark
Zisek, product marketing manager, TV / COM International. "These versatile,
high-quality and cost-effective units are integrated platforms designed for high volume
and low cost. Modular in design, they fully satisfy today's requirements, yet can be
readily upgraded with a host of options to meet future needs."
The TVC-3100 and TVC-3200 represent TV / COM 's new generation of low cost,
high-value set-top boxes focused on world standards -- MPEG-2 and DVB -- to ensure
interoperability between different broadcasters' systems. Video format standards include
both NTSC and most PAL variants.
Strong Base Feature Set
The TVC-3100 and TVC-3200 come with competitive features, allow multiple options to
be added, and customization to the operator's specific requirements. Special
revenue-enhancing operator features include:
- Software downloadability for addition of new feature sets
- A strong suite of diagnostic capabilities
- Subscriber messaging
- Teletext/subtitling/closed captioning
- Virtual channels that allow the service provider to combine programming and offer a
suite of programs, e.g., sports, on a given physical channel on the set-top
For consumer convenience and ease of use, both set-top boxes provide:
- TV / COM 's fully-interactive electronic program guide (patents-pending), the Gateway
Navigator(TM), for easily navigating the expanding number of digital channels and
services
- Parental control and individual PIN numbers for locking out undesirable content
- Favorite channel, clock functionality and many other features consumers have grown to
expect
The core feature set, as well as the set of options, can be used across several modulation
techniques, including QAM (Quadrature Amplitude Modulation), QPSK (Quadrature
Phase Shift Keying) or COFDM (Coded Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing).
TV / COM 's patented QAM technology, used in the TVC-3100 for digital cable
services, is more bandwidth efficient than competing products, thus enabling more
channels in the same bandwidth. The QPSK version, used in the TVC-3200 for digital
DTH satellite services, offers a patented, fully variable (2-90 Mbps) rate modulation
technique, the broadest in the industry.
Optional Features
"The TVC-3100 and TVC-3200 also accommodate many optional features that operators
can consider on a market-by-market basis to provide revenue-earning services to their
subscribers," added Zisek. These features include:
- Modems (high and low speed)
- Data ports (high and low speed)
- 2nd sets of baseband outputs (RCA style and SCART)
- Branding options (on the set-top boxes, the packaging and the remote control)
- High-end features (analog tuning, S-Video output)
- A variety of remote control units, from basic to fully-featured
- Internet connectivity
Future features include software downloadable applications such as stock quotes, sports
scores, weather reports and other information of interest to consumers.
The TVC-3100 and TVC-3200 will form the basis for an upcoming digital terrestrial
(wireless cable) set-top box based on COFDM modulation to be released in 1999. A
complementary set-top box in development by TV / COM , exclusively for BSkyB in
England, includes many of the features listed above, as well as other features such as
OpenTV(TM) for interactive applications and a Mondex card slot for electronic
commerce.
Conditional Access and Smart Cards
TV / COM 's patented Conditional Access (CA) is an integral part of the service
provider's equipment, both at the headend or uplink and in the subscriber's set-top. The
scrambling and encrypting process assures service providers that their programming
services will be protected from unauthorized or illegal access. CA also assures
subscribers that the services they buy and their credit status can be used only by the
service provider. The optional CA Smart Card, available for both the TVC-3100 and
TVC-3200, provides authentication, decryption and impulse pay-per-view (IPPV)
capabilities, as well as providing the operator with renewal security protection.
Information about TV / COM
TV / COM has aggressively expanded into the world market for secure distribution of
information and entertainment programming, focusing on high-performance digital
delivery systems for cable, satellite, PC and terrestrial networks. TV / COM 's products
include MPEG-2 DVB compliant compression systems, network management,
conditional access and scrambling, satellite and cable modulation (QPSK and QAM), as
well as consumer set-top boxes and commercial IRDs.
Founded in 1973, TV / COM became a subsidiary of Hyundai Electronics America
(HEA) in 1995, and is one of the most successful companies supplying broadband
communication systems. With Hyundai's extensive resources, TV / COM has
accelerated its research and development and expanded its strategic development in the
delivery of complete end-to-end solutions. As the future unfolds with communications
technologies converging, these corporate resources uniquely position TV / COM to
continue in the forefront of technological innovation.
For more information about TV / COM and its products, visit the company's Web site at
www.tvcom.com or
contact: Merritt Doyle, 17066 Goldentop Road, San Diego, CA 92127, USA, tel.:
619/618-4876, fax: 619/618-3650.
CONTACT: TV / COM Merritt Doyle, 619/618-3500 mdoyle@tvcom.com or The
Townsend Agency, Carol Foster or Sarah Thailing, 619/457-4888
saraht@townsendagency.com
13:27 EDT APRIL 6, 1998
Contact: contact: Merritt Doyle, 17066 Goldentop Road, San Diego, CA 92127, USA,
tel.: 619/618-4876, fax: 619/618-3650.
CONTACT: TV / COM Merritt Doyle, 619/618-3500 mdoyle@tvcom.com or The
Townsend Agency, Carol Foster or Sarah Thailing, 619/457-4888
saraht@townsendagency.com
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