Vecima Networks introduced a QAM for specific use in shipping digital video directly subscribers’ TVs, without going through a set-top box (STB). The company said it signed a multi-year engineering, supply and maintenance contract for the new QAMs with a leading, U.S.-based cable MSO that Vecima declined to identify.
Vecima said its new Terrace family of QAMs are designed to provide cable system operators with a means of delivering both high definition (HD) and standard definition (SD) digital video streams in a secure format connecting directly to newer flat panel TVs, eliminating the need for an STB.
This new technology, Vecima said, is especially appropriate for SMB customers such as hospitals, schools, and universities because it streamlines infrastructure requirements and reduces costs.
The market is expected to grow to a cumulative $600M worldwide over the next ten years and creates opportunities for operators to deploy all-digital services to new market segments.
The TerraceQAM is a modular system allowing simultaneous decoding of 32 QAM modulated channels to either MPEG-2/SD or MPEG-2/HD video channels, according to Vecima. The product allows bulk decryption and re-encryption of video streams and re-modulation to QAM format. The remodulated signals are distributed to subscribers via one of four output ports. The channel line-up is configurable for delivery to devices with QAM demodulating tuners. The TerraceQAM allows for insertion of local feeds by encoding baseband audio and video signals as either MPEG-2/SD or MPEG-2/HD video streams.