Broadcasting

September 21, 2006
TANDBERG Television Extends Market Lead

AMSTERDAM -- TANDBERG Television has unveiled its next-generation high definition (HD) and standard definition (SD) MPEG-4 AVC encoding solutions at IBC 2006. The move continues the company’s market leading momentum in the MPEG-4 AVC arena and brings a step change in digital video distribution by combining the broadest choice of density and enhanced features with the industry’s leading picture quality versus performance through bandwidth improvements of up to 50 percent over currently deployed MPEG-4 AVC units.

TANDBERG Television’s next-generation compression platform is being launched simultaneously across its encoding family with the introduction of the new EN8030 MPEG-4 AVC SD and EN8090 MPEG-4 AVC SD/HD ultracompression broadcast encoders, alongside the introduction of new MPEG-4 AVC HD and SD ultracompression encoding modules for the Plex range of high density, multi-channel encoders. The new encoders enable HDTV services to be delivered at data rates below 6Mbits/s, with similar improvements to SD services, and are designed to enable operators to deliver HD and SD multi-channel and single channel services across cable, satellite, telco and terrestrial networks.

The new TANDBERG encoders use a comprehensive tool-set of advanced compression video processing features, combined with new pre-processing techniques. They have a common form-factor to previous units and therefore existing users of TANDBERG Plex and broadcast encoders have a simple upgrade path.

“Based on four years of first-to-market advanced compression experience and over 4,000 MPEG-4 AVC HD and SD encoders commercially deployed, we know that broadcasters and operators need a unique combination of industry leading performance, reliability and choice. With the launch of this new encoding generation, we are continuing our market lead in providing customers with the performance and product features they need on which to confidently build their digital video businesses,” says Eric Cooney, president and CEO of TANDBERG Television.

Industry leading performance

The new EN8000 and Plex encoders use TANDBERG’s Intelligent Compression Engine (ICE) version 3 and are setting new bandwidth benchmarks thanks to a number of innovative features. These include improved motion estimation processes, single slice video processing architecture, dedicated processing for low resolution encoding of Picture-in-Picture services, and a number of performance boosting features such as Multi-Pass analysis and enhanced video pre-processing which are the basis of 12 new patent applications.

At IBC, TANDBERG Television will be demonstrating ICE3 powered products delivering 6Mbits/s full resolution HD and improvements of up to 50 percent over currently deployed units. This step change in bit-rate performance represents tangible benefits to broadcasters and telcos.

For satellite broadcasters it delivers transponder cost savings and the opportunity to add in more HD channels.