The worldwide market for digital set-top boxes experienced continued strong growth in 2006, with smaller Asian manufacturers advancing up the market share ladder. Traditional STB stalwarts still remain the worldwide leaders, but are facing increased competition from lower tier manufacturers. The digital STB market reached an estimated 122 million units shipped in 2006.

French STB maker Thomson held on to its leader position in 2006 with double-digit share due primarily to its dominant position in the US pay-DTH market, and the company's strong entry into the European IP-STB market. Motorola nearly doubled its digital cable STB output compared to 2005, and has further extended its share lead over US-based competitor Scientific Atlanta. Chinese-based Tongda has gained ground on the top tier players by tripling their satellite STB output in 2006, with volume shipments primarily to Asian markets. No longer trailing the STB heavyweights, Philips Consumer Electronics has ascended into the top five worldwide share leaders by supplying the continued growth of pay-DTH markets in Europe and Asia.

VeHDa is utilising the HomePlug-based integrated circuits from Intellon Corporation to compliment its PlayTV-partnered 500,000 IP set-top box roll out. HomePlug technology enables the delivery of local area network signals through existing home powerline; creating a home network for distributing data and content, thus alleviating the need for re-wiring, or for new cabling to be installed. In particular, this technology is well suited for IPTV applications, as the internet connection may not be in close proximity to the television set/s on which the customer wishes to view the IPTV stream. Intellon’s HomePlug-based ICs are designed to provide the necessary bandwidth to support either standard-definition or high-definition applications, such as IPTV, with optimum quality of service delivery.

Coventive has signed an agreement to license Espial's Evo Client. The Evo Client enables content-rich applications and Internet-on-TV services for subscribers. To date Espial has shipped more than one million Evo subscriber licenses worldwide. Coventive selected Evo Client to power its multimedia set-top boxes. Leveraging Evo's small footprint and open architecture, Coventive was able to integrate the middleware into its highly-reliable STB that adopts the latest System on a Chip design. This combination enables low power consumption and board minimization; important features for operators and system integrators alike.

STMicroelectronics announces that by the end of the first quarter of 2007 it had shipped a cumulative total of more than 400 million MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 decoder chips – used worldwide in STBs, digital television sets and DVD players – since entering the market with the world’s first MPEG-2 System-on-Chip decoder in 1995. In a sector growing rapidly in size, diversity and technical complexity, ST continues to be the leading supplier, year on year, shipping more than 63 million decoder ICs in 2006, which is approximately three times more devices than ST’s nearest competitor in the STB market.

ST develops and produces very complex and highly integrated chips at all price levels, in a market which now embraces technologies such as MPEG-2 and MPEG-4, standard definition and high definition, as well as advanced video codecs (H.264, VC-1, AVS) for terrestrial, satellite, cable, IPTV, Internet TV, Blu-ray and HD-DVD applications. ST’s innovative Omega decoder families have set the industry standard for performance at optimum cost, based on a common platform approach, shortening the time-to-market, as well as using common reference software which is supported by a large software community.

Telsey has been selected by Tiscali as supplier of Hybrid IP Set Top Boxes FS600. Over the next 15 months, Telsey will supply Tiscali with two versions of the set top box in order to fulfil the connection needs for both the UK and Italy.

Both versions claim to allow users to access the Tiscali IPTV service, recently launched in UK and soon to be launched in Italy, and to access the DDT via an analogical antenna. The set top box will have 2 tuners; a DDT and a PVR option, allowing users to record content to be viewed at their preferred time.

Ocean Blue Software to release its advanced TV software suite on Toshiba's TC9040x 'Donau' series of processors. The new Linux-based software will allow for fast development of reduced component count consumer electronics products, such as set top boxes, integrated digital televisions, personal video recorders, and combination hard disk/DVD recorder systems.

Ocean Blue is nearing completion of the development, which takes advantage of Toshiba's powerful, compact, and highly integrated ICs for 'free-to-air' and Pay-TV digital television applications. Codenamed 'Donau', the TC90400XBG and TC90400FG high performance system-on-chip devices simplify the design and dramatically reduce time to market.

Ocean Blue Software has introduced an arcade games pack for its Freeview set-top box software. The company has integrated Tetris, Snake & Breakout into its system, operated via a normal TV remote control. The arcade games package is available to set-top box manufacturers to add extra value to Freeview boxes, and Ocean Blue is in discussions with a number of CE vendors and manufacturers, with a view to availability in the shops by Christmas.

Motorola introduces a set-top software solution using an open Internet Protocol platform on its VIP 1200 series set-top boxes. The KreaTV application platform uses the Linux Operating system to help support multiple entertainment and video service applications on Motorola's VIP set-top series, allowing service providers and other third parties to easily customize and deploy revenue-generating applications via development kits and custom training on the toolsets. Interactive features such as programming guides, viewer voting tools, and advanced gaming can be seamlessly integrated by the service provider using the open-platform system in conjunction with third-party middleware and software providers.

Teracue has introduced the new software version 4.0 of the iCue streaming system for recording, distribution, playback and for the management of video streams over standard IP networks. iCue stands for flexible and instant video networking for both PCs and TVs - in DVD-quality. The iCue Server, first version introduced in 2001, is now around 20 percent stronger and has graphically improved operator and user interfaces.

Sophisticated features for archiving and rights management as well as streaming playback of individual video frames for video analysis and high-detail recognition are now possible. Normal Ethernet networks with CAT 5 cabling are able to serve as “virtual video routers” and render additional video cabling and separate signal amplification and switching unnecessary. The iCue software supports the compression standards MPEG-4 AVC H.264 SD/HD and MPEG-2 SD/HD.

Amino releases the Personal Video Recorder enabled AmiNET530, at NXTcomm 2007 in Chicago. At booth #2023, Amino will showcase the AmiNET530 as a fundamental component of a service provider’s multiplay strategy, by offering cutting edge, high quality on-demand, IPTV, PVR, gaming and HD services to end-user consumers using MPEG-2/4 codecs.

The AmiNET530 is a next-generation IPTV Set-Top Box that provides the ability to decode low bit-rate MPEG-4 (AVC/H.264) video streams and is capable of supporting HD video and graphics. With PVR functionality, the AmiNET530 can act as a hub for all the services and applications used for playing, recording and streaming video – it also includes Amino’s reliable, cross-platform IntActTM client software that ensures compatibility with an extensive range of middleware and conditional access systems.

Motorola introduces a set-top software solution using an open Internet Protocol platform on its VIP 1200 series set-top boxes. The KreaTV application platform uses the Linux Operating system to help support multiple entertainment and video service applications on Motorola's VIP set-top series, allowing service providers and other third parties to easily customize and deploy revenue-generating applications via development kits and custom training on the toolsets. Interactive features such as programming guides, viewer voting tools, and advanced gaming can be seamlessly integrated by the service provider using the open-platform system in conjunction with third-party middleware and software providers.

Eagle Broadband has partnered with InfoValue to deliver full streaming video for Eagle’s IP3000HD set-top box.

The long-time relationship between Eagle and InfoValue was successful in launching the world’s largest hospitality HD deployment using Eagle’s new IP5000HD at the opening of the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas. Eagle and InfoValue have joined forces again, this time with Eagle’s new IP3000HD, to provide the industry with the full functionality of two InfoValue IPTV solutions: InfoValue SuiteTV and InfoValue BizTV.

“We are delighted with the continuing relationship we have established with InfoValue, as they are a leader in bringing video innovations to the hospitality industry,” said David Micek, president and CEO of Eagle Broadband. “We are also pleased to see such strong market acceptance for our new IP3000HD, which we developed to meet the needs and growing demand from hospitality operators for a quality IPTV set-top box with specific features at a cost-effective price point. Currently, there is strong interest from multiple providers.”

Minerva and Advanced Digital Broadcast announce the certification and immediate availability of Minerva's iTVManager IPTV services management platform and ADB's new ADB-3800W high definition IPTV set-top box. This solution will enable telcos to deliver television services to their subscribers using standard definition, HD, MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 formats.

"Without HD services, IPTV operators have been at a disadvantage relative to their cable and satellite competition. This integrated solution levels the playing field," stated Jean-Georges Fritsch, COO of Minerva Networks. "ADB has been a terrific partner in this process and our customers will be pleased with the results. Minerva is proud to have ADB as a fully certified HD/H.264 STB partner."

ADB has already won two international industry awards for its HD/Advanced Video Coding IPTV technology and is the leader in hybrid IPTV STB deployments in Europe. This initiative marks its entry into the North American IPTV market.

IMS Research estimates that the average semiconductor bill of materials cost for set-top boxes dropped 37% from 2004 to 2006, going from $59 to $37. This precipitous drop was caused primarily by rapidly falling prices for MPEG-2 core decoders chips in preparation for the transition to MPEG-4 AVC (ITU-T H.264) – both in HD and SD segments. However, IMS Research is forecasting that due to a number of factors, this trend will change, and from 2007-2011 the overall average cost of a set-top box semiconductor BOM will stay near $41.

According to analyst Stephen Froehlich, “Overall spending by set-top box makers is likely to increase as set-top box volumes grow and the product mix shifts to more advanced set-top box designs. Specifically, significant amounts of new spending will go for more hard disk drives in more DVRs and also for no-new wire or wireless network interface modules on many of the boxes being installed in multi-set-top households.”

Amino and Orb announce the integration of Orb’s MyCasting service with Amino’s AmiNET110 and AmiNET125 set-top boxes to unlock all the digital content on users’ PCs. With Amino’s cutting-edge AmiNET range of products, users can enjoy all the media they currently watch on their PCs – videos, movies, music, even Internet websites – on their TVs.

The AmiNET110 is the most popular and proven IP STB in the world with an award-winning design. The Orb application integrated with the AmiNET110 allows consumers access to personal media on the PC, as well as streamed media delivered over the open Internet. The resulting product closes the gap between the STB and the PC, using the Orb MyCast application platform as the bridge. The MyCasting service is also now available with the AmiNET125, Amino’s second generation multi-codec STB. This allows MPEG-2/4 and VC1/WM9 content to be streamed in native format from the PC to the TV, enabling even older PCs with less horsepower to benefit from the Orb MyCasting application.