BridgeCo Introduces Highly Integrated Wi-Fi Digital Media Player Designs Leveraging Broadcom 54g Technology.

LAS VEGAS -- Turn-key Solutions Speed Time-to-Market for Consumer Products that Feature the Latest Wireless Innovations, including SecureEasySetup

BridgeCo (www.bridgeco.net), a leading provider of digital home entertainment networking solutions, announced at the Consumer Electronics Show today that it has developed two turn-key reference designs for high-performance digital media players (DMP) with wireless LAN capabilities. Featuring 54g(TM) wireless solutions from Broadcom Corporation, the reference designs are complete hardware/software solutions that enable OEMs and ODMs to rapidly develop cost-effective DMP products that can instantly connect any audio system to a wireless home network.

The Wireless DMP reference designs combine Broadcom's highly-integrated single-chip BCM4318 solution with BridgeCo's new DM850 or DM830 media network processors and BridgeCo firmware. The BridgeCo processor/firmware combination handles network protocols, digital rights management (DRM) decryption, audio and video format decoding, and user interface processing.

Together the BCM4318 and DM850 (or DM830) processor/firmware combination offer all of the functionality needed to transform any audio system into a node on a Wi-Fi(R) home network. With a high-speed 54 Mbps connection, audio systems can wirelessly stream MP3 and WMA music files from networked home PCs, or access radio stations and music services directly from the Internet. BridgeCo and Broadcom(R) expect that consumer DMPs based on their reference designs will retail for US$50 to US$150, depending on included features.

"Entertainment systems and other consumer devices are a significant growth area for wireless networking," said Michael Hurlston, Director of Business Development for Broadcom's Home and Wireless Networking Business Unit. "Broadcom is working closely with innovators like BridgeCo to address the growing demand for consumer products with cutting-edge wireless features."

Reference Design is a Complete, User-Ready DMP Solution

The reference designs leverage Broadcom's OneDriver(TM) software to deliver superior performance, ease-of-use and security features for Wi-Fi wireless networks. This includes Broadcom's SecureEasySetup(TM) software, an intelligent setup wizard that radically simplifies wireless LAN installation and automates WPA(TM) security. Using SecureEasySetup, consumer electronics can be added to a wireless network with the push of a button.

BridgeCo's new ARM-based, DSP-enhanced DM850 and DM830 processors run BridgeCo's comprehensive DMP firmware stack, which is the result of more than two years of field experience developing DMP solutions. BridgeCo firmware eliminates the need to write complex drivers and software, making it possible for OEMs and ODMs to achieve rapid market entry.

The DM850 (or DM830) processor/firmware combination handles TCP/IP and USB networking protocols; MP3, WMA and other audio format decompression; JPEG video decompression; DTCP/IP, Windows Media Connect and other DRM encryption/decryption processing and authentication; and UPnP, IR and LCD control functions. The BridgeCo processor/firmware solution is designed to be interoperable with a wide variety of consumer devices: it is expected to be based on Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) Guidelines in the future, and is compliant with Intel(R) Networked Media Product Requirements (NMPR). An intuitive application programming interface (API) expands flexibility and simplifies the learning curve, enabling OEM and ODM customers to easily customize and differentiate the user interface and other performance parameters.

The Wireless DMP reference designs are available now. Designers receive a system board, SDK (software developer's kit), a complete bill-of-materials and Gerber files. The reference design is being jointly marketed by Broadcom and BridgeCo.

"With the widespread adoption of 802.11g access points, there are now millions of wireless home networks," said BridgeCo's Founder and CTO Christof Heidelberger. "Hundreds of millions of legacy consumer products now require the same networking capability that PCs have long incorporated. Consumers are clearly interested in cost-effectively connecting all of these legacy audio systems to a home network so they can really enjoying all of the digital music on their PCs and on the Internet. The wireless DMP reference designs incorporate all of the necessary elements that enable OEMs and ODMs to bring real consumer products to market within months."

About BridgeCo

BridgeCo is a pioneer of digital entertainment networking solutions. The company's Entertainment Network Adapters(TM) (ENAs) are the world's most comprehensive, cost-effective and highly integrated silicon and software platforms for connecting Internet media sources, PCs and consumer electronics throughout the home. BridgeCo ENAs are used in a wide range of innovative and legacy products produced by the multi-billion dollar global consumer electronics industry, including Digital Media Players, Audio/Video receivers, DVD players, musical instruments and breakout boxes.

Underlying all BridgeCo solutions are proprietary, integrated semiconductor and software technologies that network PCs to CE devices via widely-used standards and protocols for network and signal processing, including IEEE 802.11/WiFi, IEEE 1394 and UPnP.

BridgeCo is an ISO 9001-certified company based in Zurich, Switzerland. Its key investors include Fidelity Ventures, Benchmark Capital, Earlybird, Infineon Ventures, and Intel Capital. For more information, please visit www.bridgeco.net.

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