LG Electronics Selects Broadcom® Solution for Its Second Generation Flagship Super Blu™ Dual-Format High Definition Disc Player

Broadcom’s Highly Integrated Blu-ray Disc®/HD DVD System-on-a-Chip enables LG’s BH200 to Play Back the Widest Range of High Definition Content

IRVINE, Calif. — Broadcom Corporation (Nasdaq: BRCM), a global leader in semiconductors for wired and wireless communications, today announced that its highly integrated Blu-ray Disc®/HD DVD system-on-a-chip (SoC) solution has been selected by LG Electronics to power its dual-format Super Blu™ BH200 high definition disc player. By combining full support for both Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD formats in a single SoC, Broadcom enables leading consumer electronics manufacturers to build universal high definition players capable of playing back all high definition movie titles thereby increasing the high definition entertainment choices for consumers.

The Broadcom® BCM7440 SoC solution is a single-chip platform that fully meets the requirements of next generation Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD player designs. It provides the multiple processing cores and the necessary performance required to support next generation interactive technologies and network connected applications currently being developed by Hollywood studios using sophisticated BD-Java (Blu-ray Disc) and HDi (HD DVD) technologies. This includes enhanced interactive menus, gaming capabilities, real time director’s comments, and full support of networked interactivity from select and forthcoming Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD titles. The Broadcom BCM7440 SoC continues to be the only solution in the industry that fully supports both Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD formats in a single monolithic IC, providing consumers with exactly what the film’s authors had intended — the best possible high definition multimedia experience.

Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD are the next generation of optical disc formats for recording, rewriting and playing high definition video and digital formats. With two high definition media player options currently available, consumers are often confused when it comes to choosing one format over the other. By leveraging the Broadcom BCM7440 SoC and its multiple processing cores, media player manufacturers can now design a single, high performance platform that is fully capable of meeting the demanding processing requirements of both Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD standards. With the availability of the LG Super Blu BH200 disc player, consumers can now purchase a dual-format high definition player that not only plays back the widest range of high definition content available, but also provides the core processing performance to handle advanced capabilities and requirements being embedded into Hollywood’s newest title releases.

“Together with Broadcom, we are proud to release our second generation Super Blu player, the BH200, the successor to our award-winning BH100, the world’s first, dual-format high definition player that was released earlier this year,” says Dr. Jin-Yong Kim, Vice President of LG Electronics’ Digital Media Research Lab. “Utilizing Broadcom’s BCM7440 SoC, our new Super Blu player provides the finest user experience for playing back the widest range of high definition titles.”

“Our universal BCM7440 SoC and software solution brings us one step closer to ending the confusion surrounding the current format war by supporting both HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc formats at the highest performance levels,” said Peter Besen, Vice President of Broadcom’s Consumer Electronics line of business. “As was the case with LG’s first dual-format player, LG has again chosen to leverage our industry leading solution for its flagship Super Blu BH200 player.”

Broadcom BCM7440 Product Information

The Broadcom BCM7440 SoC incorporates the decoding, processing and memory functions for both Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD media players, eliminating the need for manufacturers to build two different hardware platforms. Broadcom continues to be a pioneer in this field by also providing a universal software solution to complement the BCM7440 SoC which is now in mass production.

The BCM7440 is a highly integrated system-on-a-chip solution that offers the following advanced capabilities:

• Single-chip high definition SoC solution supports Blu-ray Disc, HD DVD and universal dual format high definition players.
• Highest performance platform with multiple processors, dual decoders and dedicated graphics engines assures robust applications performance.
• Robust and proven universal optical disc (UOD) software stack reduces development risks and supports all Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD profiles.
• Complete hardware and software reference design dramatically reduces OEM/ODM development time.
• Fully integrated SoC enables highly optimized solutions

The BCM7440 SoC also supports a wide variety of mandatory audio and video compression standards required for Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD optical disc formats, including H.264/AVC, VC-1, MPEG-2, Dolby® Digital Plus, Dolby® TrueHD and DTS-HD. The SoC also provides full backwards compatibility for current DVD video titles as well as DVD-R, DVD-VR and audio CDs.

LG Super Blu BH-200 Disc Player

The LG Super Blu player, model BH200, is a second generation dual-format, high definition disc player, available from LG Electronics. Sporting both formats’ logos, LG’s new BH200 player is capable of Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD playback with advanced BD-Java and HDi interactivity, enabling consumers to choose from the widest variety of high definition content regardless of disc format.

The BH200 further strengthens LG’s position as an innovator in the media player market having launched the first dual-format high definition player seven months ago with the introduction of the award-winning BH100. The BH100 provided a technological breakthrough that has been widely recognized as a groundbreaking product in the industry with accolades including CNN’s Best of CES, CNET’s CES 2007 Best in Show and Home Video categories and Popular Mechanics’ CES Editor’s Choice Award. The BH200 is available to U.S. consumers and custom installers at a suggested retail price of $999.

More: LG Electronics Launches Second-Generation Dual-Format High-Definition Disc Player