1997-08-29 , ESC-9729

TriMedia architecture provides programmable processing power to support ATSC Digital TV's 18 display formats plus interactive services and discretionary content

Philips Semiconductors has announced that it is developing a programmable solution to support the US Digital TV ATSC (Advanced Television Systems Committee) standard using the company's powerful TriMedia media processor, which can deliver better than cinema quality pictures and sound. This award-winning media processor has the computational power and FLEXibility to process the broad range of display formats specified in the standard, from low resolution to HDTV (High Definition TeleVision) with progressive scan as well as interlaced images.

In addition, this easily programmable processor can provide a wide range of additional services based on the discretionary content that the American standard is designed to support. The DTV (Digital TV) standard allows the broadcaster to use part of the broadcast spectrum to transmit other data (including additional video images) along with the primary video. For example, a broadcaster could transmit multiple camera views of a sports event and allow the viewer to select camera angles, provide high speed web page deliveries, and transmit multimedia applets (small software programs) to supplement shows and advertisements.

A TriMedia processor can also support a reverse communications link for interactive services, possibly through the Internet. The reverse communications link could use an analog phone line, ISDN* service, cable modem or ADSL (Asynchronous Digital Subscriber Loop*). It can also video decode to support video-on-demand services over a cable TV connection, built-in video telephony and computer-based applications such as games.

"A major advantage of the TriMedia solution is that it is future-proof," explained Arthur van der Poel, Chairman and CEO of Philips Semiconductors. "As new services evolve in the DTV environment, the appropriate software is simply downloaded into the TriMedia-enabled Digital TV."

"We expect DTV sets using TriMedia processors on the market in late 1998. Initially, DTV sets will also support the existing NTSC* broadcasts as well as the new DTV signals. When receiving an NTSC signal, the set can use the TriMedia processor to improve the image display quality with filtering algorithms and other image enhancement techniques. As DTV broadcast standards are set for the rest of the world, our pioneering experience with the US DTV standard will put us in a very strong position for this developing world-wide market."

To support the Philips Semiconductors DTV initiative, the company is forming a new project group based in Sunnyvale, USA. This will combine the company's experience as leaders in analog TV technology with new perspectives and computing insights from its TriMedia team to maintain Philips Semiconductors' leadership in TV systems.

Arthur van der Poel concluded, "Although the DTV standard makes provision to broadcast data for additional consumer services, the standards for these services are not defined. Philips Semiconductors, in co-operation with Philips Sound and Vision, plans to work with industry leaders to begin to establish open standards for all the new services made possible by the DTV environment."

Philips Semiconductors, a division of Philips Electronics NV, headquartered in Eindhoven, The Netherlands, is the ninth largest semiconductor supplier in the world. Philips Semiconductors' innovations in digital audio, video, and mobile technology position the company as a leader in the consumer, multimedia and wireless communications markets. Sales offices are located in all major markets around the world and are supported by systems labs.

TriMedia is a trademark of Philips Electronics NV. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

*ISDN Integrated Services Digital Network
ADSL technology to allow high bandwidth data transmission over Public Switch Telephone Networks, i.e. standard phone lines.
NTSC National Television Systems Committee: the colour TV system used in North America.