Harmonic and Leading Open-Standards Proponents Demonstrate Low-Cost Video-On-Demand.LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 15, 1999-- New Interoperable Approach Makes Large-Scale Video-On-Demand Deployment Feasible for the First Time Harmonic Inc. (Nasdaq:HLIT) today announced a live, open-standards, multi-vendor demonstration of video-on-demand (VOD See video-on-demand. VoD - video on demand ) at Harmonic's booth at the Western Show in Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. . With this demonstration, open-standards proponents join forces to overcome one of the most significant barriers to wide-scale VOD deployment: cost. By combining best-of-class, interoperable hardware and software products from multiple vendors, cable operators for the first time can deliver on the promise of large-scale VOD to end-users around the world. This multi-vendor initiative enables cable operators to retain a competitive edge by quickly coming to market with VOD and other bandwidth-intensive interactive services. Harmonic's proven expertise and ingenuity in digital cable headend technology enables full interoperability with all the leading vendors in the VOD arena. By championing open standards Specifications for hardware and software that are developed by a standards organization or a consortium involved in supporting a standard. Available to the public for developing compliant products, open standards imply "open systems;" that an existing component in a system can be replaced , Harmonic is committed to consistently enabling leading-edge system solutions that meet the business objectives of cable operators providing VOD and other interactive services. Two significant cost hurdles are overcome as a result of this collaborative effort. First, open-standards system solutions have historically driven down the prices of consumer electronics. "Choice of set-top-box is fundamental to the success of VOD deployment," said Patrick Harshman, vice president of marketing. "In the open standards arena, technical innovation and high-volume manufacturing by a variety of consumer electronics vendors leads to superior set-top-box solutions. Both cable operators and the end-user are the real winners with a lower cost, superior product and service." In the network, additional savings can be realized as innovative vendors engineer products that are optimized for narrowcast To transmit to selected individuals. Cable TV and satellite radio are examples of narrowcast services because they reach only their subscriber base. Mailing lists are another example. Contrast with broadcast. See multicast. services. Yvette Gordon, SeaChange's vice president of interactive technologies, said, "Open standards proponents have embraced the opportunity to deliver fundamental efficiencies for the cable operator in interactive services. With open conditional access Conditional Access (acronymized CA) is the protection of content by requiring certain criteria to be met before granting access to this content. The term is commonly used in relation to digital television systems, most notably satellite television. support and significant ROI (Return On Investment) The monetary benefits derived from having spent money on developing or revising a system. In the IT world, there are more ways to compute ROI than Carter has liver pills (and for those of you who never heard of that expression, it means a lot). potential, VOD can quickly become widespread and gain favor with growing populations of viewers." Large-scale deployment of VOD service can be much faster in an open-solutions environment. "Market forces rather than production schedules can dictate VOD deployment," said Dan Sheeran, nCUBE's senior vice president of product management. "Maintaining market share is critical in this increasingly competitive market for delivering broadband services. We are giving cable operators an edge with an innovative service that can be rapidly deployed," continued Sheeran. "This multi-vendor, open standards VOD demonstration marks a turning point for the cable industry and is a harbinger for multimedia broadband service deployment in the future," said Gerry Kaufhold, principal analyst with Cahners In-Stat Group, a Scottsdale, Arizona-based consultancy (www.instat.com). "With this interoperable demo, and other open- standards initiatives, we are seeing the cable industry position itself for greater service availability with rollouts of key interactive applications. Consumers are going to love it." Note: Harmonic's video server gateway is optimized for the access network, and is targeted at narrowcast services. It is fully compliant with DVB (Digital Video Broadcasting) An international digital television (DTV) standard that is the European and Far Eastern counterpart of the North American ATSC standard. Simulcrypt I, a standards-based technology that ensures conditional access interoperability and multiple set-top box The cable TV box that sits on "top" of the TV "set," although it is often located several feet away in an equipment rack. The set-top box descrambles the premium channels and provides a tuner for the higher cable numbers that very old TVs did not support. vendor support, which greatly facilitates implementation of the OpenCAS specifications submitted to the Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers in November 1999. To learn more about the OpenCAS initiative and its participating companies, visit www.opencas.com. About nCUBE Founded in 1983, nCUBE is a privately held company privately held company A firm whose shares are held within a relatively small circle of owners and are not traded publicly. specializing in broadcast-quality video delivery systems. nCUBE's expertise and unique system scalability has made it the video server of choice in the world's leading video-on-demand trials and deployments. nCUBE's video servers incorporate Oracle Video Server software. nCUBE recently acquired SkyConnect, a premier supplier of digital advertising insertion systems to the cable television industry. Together, nCUBE and SkyConnect have shipped more than 24,000 MPEG (Moving Pictures Experts Group) An ISO/ITU standard for compressing digital video. Pronounced "em-peg," it is the universal standard for digital terrestrial, cable and satellite TV, DVDs and digital video recorders (DVRs). video streams, giving it the world's largest installed base of MPEG server systems. As an Oracle Business AllianceSM Program Partner, nCUBE is solidly positioned to meet the demands of a rapidly expanding interactive CATV (Community Antenna TV) The original name for cable TV. It used a single antenna at the highest location in the community in order to deliver a quality signal to homes in areas with hilly terrain or other interference. , telco and Internet marketplace See vertical portal and Web hub. . The company is based in San Francisco San Francisco (săn frănsĭs`kō), city (1990 pop. 723,959), coextensive with San Francisco co., W Calif., on the tip of a peninsula between the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay, which are connected by the strait known as the Golden , Calif., with offices worldwide. More information about nCUBE is available on the Internet at http://www.ncube.com or by calling 800/654-2823. About SeaChange SeaChange is supporting numerous VOD installations around the world, including Time Warner in Austin, Texas; Rogers Cable Rogers Cable Inc., a subsidiary of Rogers Communications Inc., is Canada's largest cable television service provider with about 2.25 million television customers, and over 930,000 Internet subscribers, in Southern Ontario, New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador. in Canada; Telewest Communications in the UK; and Guandong Cable TV in China. Additionally, a number of other cable operators have begun deployments or final preparations toward true VOD services, which are expected to be announced To be announced (TBA) A contract for the purchase or sale of an MBS to be delivered at an agreed-upon future date but does not include a specified pool number and number of pools or precise amount to be delivered. later. Serving 25,000 television channels for broadcast and cable television companies worldwide, SeaChange International, Inc. (http://www.schange.com) is the leading provider of MPEG-2 digital video systems. SeaChange's products, incorporating the Company's patented software and hardware technologies, automate the management and distribution of video streams including advertisements, movies, news updates and other broadcast-quality video programming requiring precise execution. Founded in 1993, SeaChange is headquartered in Maynard, Massachusetts. About Harmonic Inc. Harmonic designs, manufactures and markets digital and fiber optic systems that deliver video, voice and data over cable, satellite, telco and wireless networks. These advanced solutions enable cable television and other network operators to provide a range of interactive broadband services that include high-speed Internet access, telephony and video-on-demand. Harmonic is headquartered in Sunnyvale, Calif., where it also operates an R&D center and a manufacturing facility, and has a sales and support center in the U.K. The company also operates its Harmonic Data Systems subsidiary and an R&D center in Israel. In addition, the company maintains several sales and support centers worldwide. Harmonic is ISO (1) See ISO speed. (2) (International Organization for Standardization, Geneva, Switzerland, www.iso.ch) An organization that sets international standards, founded in 1946. The U.S. member body is ANSI. 9001-certified and its stock is traded on the Nasdaq stock market Nasdaq stock market The first electronic stock market listing over 5000 companies. The Nasdaq stock market comprises two separate markets, namely the Nasdaq National Market, which trades large, active securities and the Nasdaq Smallcap Market that trades emerging growth companies. under the symbol "HLIT." For more information, check the company's website at www.harmonicinc.com. This press release contains forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, expectations of superior set-top-box solutions, widespread deployment of VOD service, speed of VOD deployment and consumer acceptance, within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Actual results could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of the risk factors set forth in documents that Harmonic files with the SEC, specifically reports on Form 10-K Form 10-K A report required by the SEC from exchange-listed companies that provides for annual disclosure of certain financial information. Form 10-K See 10-K. and 10-Q. Note to Editors: Product and company names used here are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. nCUBE is a registered trademark, and MediaCUBE is a trademark, of nCUBE. Oracle is a registered trademark, and Oracle Alliance is a trademark, of Oracle Corporation. MediaCluster is a registered trademark of SeaChange International. |
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