Entropic Announces Channel Stacking Switch for Free-To-Air Satellite Market

Single Cable Solution Adopted by Numerous OEMs for Free-to-Air Satellite Installations

SAN DIEGO — Entropic Communications, Inc. (Nasdaq:ENTR), a leading provider of silicon solutions to enable connected home entertainment, announced today that its next-generation Channel Stacking Switch (CSS) technology has been tapped by several OEMs for the large free-to-air (FTA) European satellite market. Entropic’s RF5218 and RF5219 CSS chips are the industry leading and de facto standard for single cable solutions that fundamentally change and dramatically simplify direct broadcast satellite (DBS) delivery to the home.

Single Cable Solution Now Available for FTA Market

The global increase in HD content and the wide adoption of digital video recorders (DVRs) is driving the need to easily and cost-effectively support multiple tuners in the home. Entropic’s CSS technology can support up to 12 tuners over a single cable and significantly reduces both the cost and the cabling complexity of single family and MDU satellite installations. Unlike traditional satellite installations, which require a unique cable run from the satellite dish to the set-top box (STB) for each tuner in the home, Entropic’s CSS chipsets enable multiple video streams from individual or multiple satellites into the home over a single cable.

New consumer premise equipment featuring Entropic’s CSS technology is being launched by top tier OEMS — Axing, Jultec, Unitron and Wisi — for retail, catalog and system integrator customers. These DBS products have been specifically designed to support the European FTA market and many of these products will be launched into the German FTA market. Germany boasts Europe’s largest DBS FTA market with over 15 million households currently receiving DBS service.
“We are pleased to collaborate with Entropic on next generation DBS products,” said Klaus Muller, CEO at Jultec. “Entropic’s Channel Stacking Switch technology allows full design flexibility in meeting the needs of the German FTA and service provider markets.”

The simplified cabling architecture enabled by CSS allows for the deployment of STBs with multiple tuner capabilities, in multiple rooms without the need for expensive installation or retrofitting. Additionally, CSS lets consumers and system integrators reuse existing coax cabling to quickly and cost efficiently set up a DBS system.

“A single cable solution provides a compelling value to both consumers and installers,” said Axel Bechler, managing director of Axing AG. “Entropic’s CSS single cable products lower end user costs in free-to-air single cable installations.”

Next-Generation CSS Delivers Energy Efficient Performance

Entropic’s second generation CSS chipsets, the RF5218 and RF5219, are low power consuming ICs specifically designed for both operators and FTA installers and retailers in the direct-to-home (DTH) outdoor unit (ODU) market. The new CSS chipsets, embedded in a Low Noise Block (LNB) or multi-switch, consume up to 40% less power than the previous generation and can support up to 12 tuners using a single coaxial cable enabling connection to multiple DVRs and STBs. By reducing the amount of cabling required to support DBS installations, customers can reduce costs and provide a more efficient, greener solution for the FTA market. In addition, CSS technology solutions enable consumer plug and play STB upgrades that lower costly truck rolls and reduce carbon emissions.

“Entropic’s energy efficient CSS products are a perfect fit in our product line,” said Willy Lamaire, general manager at Unitron. “We now have a robust, single cable solution to round out our full complement of FTA DBS solutions.”

Visit Entropic Communications and Partners at ANGA

Entropic Communications will be attending ANGA Cable in Cologne, Germany on May 26 – 29th. Please visit Entropic at Booth A-34. To see products with Entropic’s Channel Stacking Switch technology, visit Axing AG at Booth B-31, Jultec at Booth L-38, and Unitron at Booth D-60.