Broadcom has released its fifth-generation chip for cable digital transport adapters (DTAs), with its latest system-on-a-chip including support for IP video streaming and integrated full-spectrum capture.
The company’s BCM7576 SoC can deliver up to four simultaneous HD programs by directly digitizing the entire 1 GHz cable spectrum, replacing multiple tuners with a single Full-Band Capture digital tuner.
An integrated “IP mini server” on the chip converts linear content to IP and streams it with DLNA over a home network.
In the U.S., Comcast has been the leading proponent of DTAs. Under its Project Cavalry inititiatve, the MSO deployed the relatively low-cost devices across its footprint nationwide to reclaim bandwidth by phasing out analog TV signals and switching all subscribers to digital TV.
"Broadcom's breakthrough E-DTA offering is designed to provide cable operators with a competitive advantage, offering enhanced basic digital cable services to consumers with streaming to a range of in-home IP video consumer electronics devices," Dan Marotta, executive vice president and general manager of Broadcom’s Broadband Communications Group, said in announcing the product.
The BCM7576 SoC doubles the application performance of Broadcom’s previous DTA chips, according to the company, and supports integrated power-management hardware to support “deep sleep” and exceed the EPA’s EnergyStar requirements for set-tops. The SoC also supports security for both Cisco Systems and Motorola headends.
Broadcom said the BCM7576 HD Cable DTA SoCs are currently sampling. The company will be demonstrating the solution at the CableLabs Winter Conference 2013 this week in Orlando, Fla.
