Amstrad PLC, an international digital STB manufacturer, has chosen a DVB-S2/MPEG-4 satellite set-top box from Conexant Systems for Amstrad's new HD satellite receiver. Both companies said in a statement DVB-S2 and MPEG-4 technologies will allow operators to offer additional HD channels and interactive services using their existing bandwidth and infrastructure.
Amstrad's STB (model DRX700i) will be based on Conexant's semiconductor software, which will be deployed by, among others, Sky Italia this summer.
Headquartered in Essex, England, Amstrad said it has begun shipments of the DRX700i, which uses six Conexant chips. One of the chips includes the CX24116 DVB-S2 demodulator/decoder, which the firm said provides as much as 35 percent increased capacity over the previous DVB-S standard.
Also, the CX24182 MPEG-4 includes H.264 compression for greater recording capacity on STBs (with DVR capabilities), and increases the number of HD channels that can be transmitted. Based in Newport Beach, Calif., Conexant is the former semiconductor division of Rockwell International.
