Broadcom Announces First High Definition DVD Player/Recorder

26th Jan 2005 16:22 #1

Член

LAS VEGAS, 2005 International , Jan 2005 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ --

Broadcom Corporation (Nasdaq: BRCM), a leading provider of highly integrated semiconductor solutions enabling broadband communications, today announced a high definition (HD) DVD player/recorder reference design targeted specifically to the emerging HD consumer DVD equipment market. The new reference design leverages the company's expertise in developing silicon implementations of the H.264 video compression technology, which is a standards-based technology that enables the development of high definition DVD players, recorders and personal video recorders (PVRs).

The introduction of HDTV video content by both television broadcasters and movie studios has substantially increased the storage requirements of DVD players and recorders and hard drive-based PVRs. The increased compression efficiency of the new H.264 compression algorithm (also known as MPEG-4 Part 10/Advanced Video Coding (AVC)) not only allows these devices to record as much as 3-times the number of hours of standard definition programming, it also allows them to effectively handle the significantly higher bit rates associated with high resolution HDTV content. In addition, the high definition DVD formats, Blu-ray™ and HD-DVD, have specified H.264 as a mandatory compression standard for future HDTV applications. These factors establish a new high-volume market opportunity for HD DVD players and recorders enabled by Broadcom® silicon.

One of the key enabling technologies for the new Broadcom\BCM97435 HD DVD reference design is the BCM7411 MPEG-4/AVC video decoder/audio processor chip. This recently announced device supports the H.264 video compression standard, which represents the current leading-edge compression technology in the industry. The chip is designed to improve video compression performance by a factor of two to three times when compared to existing MPEG-2 solutions. This improved performance provides greater digital media capacity for storing video and audio programs on DVDs and hard disk drives.

The BCM97435 high definition DVD player/recorder reference design showcases three of Broadcom's leading edge components in a highly efficient and cost-effective design. The components include the BCM7038 dual-channel high definition digital video chip, the BCM7411 MPEG-4/AVC video decoder/audio processor chip, and the BCM3520 plug-and-play digital TV receiver chip. In addition, the BCM97435 reference design features a complete suite of software that provides OEMs with PVR capabilities, DVD navigation (standard and high definition), and DVD burn and EPG (electronic program guide) functions.

"The BCM97435 high definition DVD reference design represents an important milestone in this nascent consumer platform as it allows OEMs to quickly and cost-effectively transition to high definition DVD applications," said Peter Besen, Vice President, Consumer Electronics of Broadcom's Broadband Communications Group. With our extensive SoC experience in the set-top box market, and our patent-pending advanced video codec technology, Broadcom is ideally positioned to offer leading silicon solutions for next-generation DVD products."

The BCM97435 reference design supports playback as well as a combination of player/recorder capabilities. It also supports next-generation DVD standards that are being defined by the DVD Forum and Blu-ray Disc Association. These new standards include high definition video support, advanced video codecs (such as MPEG-4 Part 10/AVC), blue laser drive support, network connectivity and advanced DVD navigation features. The BCM97435 reference design also supports the OpenCable™ standard, which is an important specification that allows consumers to directly record digital content onto their DVD recorders and PVRs without requiring set-top boxes.

Included with the BCM97435 reference design is a software architecture that is designed to allow OEMs and strategic partners to integrate their value added components onto the BCM97435 reference design platform. Sonic Solutions, Broadcom's software partner for DVD navigation and burn software, is demonstrating its Authorscript™ CE DVD playback and recording software running on Broadcom's reference design platform at 2005 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES). "A key element of Broadcom's strategy is to provide OEMs with a complete and proven DVD solution," said Don Shulsinger, Broadcom's Vice President of Business Development for Consumer Products. "Sonic's industry leading software brings the same ease of use and compatibility that end-users experience on their PCs using the Broadcom reference design platform."

Product Availability

The BCM97435 high definition DVD player/recorder reference design is available today. The BCM7038 digital video chip, the BCM7411 MPEG-4/AVC video decoder/audio processor chip and the BCM3520 digital TV receiver chip are all sampling today.