There was a lot of H.264 encoding shown at NAB 2004. Many of these devices are prototypes for products that will be available in 2005. Tandberg has already announced the EN5930 H.264 encoder, while Harmonic’s DiviCom MV 100 encoder will be able to handle H.264 encoding later this year. Other demonstrating real-time encoding were Modulus Video, Envivio, Tut Systems, Motorola, and SkyStream. These first products will handle standard definition encoding, while high definition encoding products will appear in 2005.
There are multiple market opportunities for H.264 in the broadcast and streaming arena. Satellite TV providers in the US will use H.264 to provide more HD channels. Additionally, telcos who are providing TV over DSL want to use H.264 for video compression to extend the reach and the number of streams they can offer. Cable operators are interested in H.264 compression for HD broadcast and VOD streams. TV broadcasters in Japan will use H.264 for digital TV broadcasts to mobile devices.
Other applications are targets for H.264 as well. The DVD Forum has given provisional approval of H.264 as one of the codecs for the HD DVD specification. H.264 could also be used in personal video recorders for more efficient storage.
Since much of the interest in H.264 for HD, the advent of HD encoders in 2005 is important. However, these first products are complex single rack unit encoders running the necessary algorithms on FPGAs, which could cost as much as $100,000. LSI Logic, the leader in broadcast MPEG encoders will not have H.264 encoder ICs available until 2006. Broadcast H.264 encoder IC availability will enable lower cost solutions.
It does no good to have encoding if there are no products to decode. At the beginning of April, Broadcom announced its acquisition of Sand Video for $77.5 million. Sand Video has expertise in designing ICs for H.264 decompression. In January 2004, Sand Video demonstrated its HD H.264 decoder IC at CES. Their fully-compliant H.264 decoder will be sampling this summer with volume production beginning in 2005. Sand Video had also previously announced an SD H.264 encode/HD H.264 decode IC, which will also be sampling in the summer of 2004. The next generation solutions will be able to decode Windows Media 9 video as well.
The acquisition gives Broadcom the advanced video compression technology they will need to remain competitive in the set top box market. Other companies who have made announcements in H.264 silicon are Equator, Mobilygen, Neomagic, Philips Semiconductors, ST, and Texas Instruments. The first H.264 decode capable set top boxes are coming on the market today and will be plentiful in 2005.
Nokia’s recently announced and revamped N-Gage QD cell phone-video game deck has the look of a winner.
The original N-Gage failed to live up to its hype. Its hefty price ($299), bulky form factor, and flawed features (having to remove the battery to change the game card being one) all spelled doom.
Indeed, the original N-Gage stalled out with “shipments” at about 600,000 units worldwide, well below company expectations. Actual sell-through of the original N-Gage was presumably even lower, though reliable figures have not been reported.
Enter the N-Gage QD (quaque die, Latin for everyday or daily), which has these improvements: - Lower price ($199 unsubsidized retail, $99 with a contract) - Hot swappable MMC slot for easier switching of games - Re-oriented phone for “classic talking” (no more “side talking”) - Smaller form factor - More responsive game keys - Improved battery life
The QD (dual-band GSM/GPRS) will be available this May in Europe, Africa and Asia-Pacific, and in June in the Americas. It will support existing N-Gage game titles, and forthcoming exclusive ones, such as Ashen, Pathway to Glory and Pocket Kingdom: Own The World. This expanding gaming content is key to creating a winning device.
Will these changes be enough to convince gamers? For some, yes they will. For others, the pricing could still present a problem. Some might find the display too small for gaming. And still others might miss the MP3 player that was bundled in the original N-Gage.
Our take: Sales will be stronger for the QD, but not meteoric. Clearly, this is a much-improved product that should win over at least some of the earlier skeptics. And it demonstrates Nokia’s ability to listen to its customers, and make appropriate changes.
Further, it shows that Nokia will not easily give up efforts to take its share of the expected multi-billion-dollar mobile gaming market.
In short, N-Gage is not dead, it’s improving.
For additional research and information on this, and other mobile device markets, go to:
Mix one part silicon with one part software, and what do you get? A high-potency brew, that’s what. In this instance, a potent “Blue” brew, or Bluetooth brew that is -- one that could make a number of silicon players a bit nervous.
Broadcom’s acquisition of WIDCOMM, arguably the most influential Bluetooth software provider today, really is a coup. In addition to the company upholding current agreements with its silicon competitors, and having a desire to expand the software business, Broadcom is definitely aiming to obtain an increase in silicon design wins as a result.
Although equipment companies today building Bluetooth-enabled products may have their choice of silicon provider and software provider (or provide their own software stacks), they greatly benefit when there is a tight relationship between the silicon and software vendors. Moreover, in cases where the OEM does not have any expertise in the Bluetooth or wireless connectivity arena, they benefit from a one-stop shop.
If any Broadcom Bluetooth silicon competitors decide to look elsewhere for a software partner, no doubt WIDCOMM’s software competitors will be stepping up to the plate, creating some additional opportunities.
Definitely, a VERY interesting acquisition!
Check out all of our in-depth Bluetooth research at:
Voice over WLAN Market Segmented, but Growing Slowly
The Voice over WLAN (VoWLAN) market has experienced much hype over the course of 2004, primarily due to the growing presence of Wi-Fi data networking in businesses and in homes. Much of the interest has been in the expectation of combination cellular and Wi-Fi handsets, with a vision of the end-user being able to switch seamlessly between cellular and Wireless LAN (WLAN) networks, while simultaneously maintaining a call. Motorola, in conjunction with Avaya and Proxim, plans to release a combination cellular/Wi-Fi handset in late 2004.
The VoWLAN market is really divided into three segments at this stage, however. The four areas include the following: (1) VoWLAN handsets for the enterprise, (2) VoWLAN handsets for the home, (3) soft phones, (4) and combination cellular/VoWLAN handsets.
802.11b enterprise VoWLAN handsets have been shipping out the door since 2000. SpectraLink and Symbol have been the leaders in this market for the past few years, selling handsets mainly to the verticals of healthcare, education, retail/warehousing/distribution, and manufacturing. Cisco introduced its VoWLAN handset in mid-2003. With total handset shipments totaling less than 60 thousand in 2003, this market is still a niche market, however. Factors hindering large volume shipments include the relatively high cost of handsets (generally an ASP of $600), and the lack of standardized QoS and fast roaming.
An emerging area of growth is the handset space for the home, where low-cost Wi-Fi handsets are used in conjunction with residential VoIP services. Pulver Innovations introduced its WiSIP Mobile IP Phone at the Fall Voice over Networks (VON) 2003 show. The WiSIP phone is sold in conjunction with the VoIP service, Free World Dialup. At the Spring VON 2004 show, VoIP Service Provider BroadVoice announced its plans to OEM the WiSIP phone from Pulver Innovations, offering the WiSIP phone for $99.95 in conjunction with a BroadVoice service subscription. The WiSIP phone enables VoIP subscribers to utilize VoIP anywhere they have access to a Wi-Fi AP, i.e. at home and at Wi-Fi hot-spots (hotels, cafes, airports, etc.).
Soft phones, client-side software that turns desktop PCs or PDAs into IP-based phones, are available from vendors such as TeleSym, Avaya and Toshiba. Soft phones are low-cost compared to handsets, and are often used by remote workers for calling cheaply on the road, via their notebook PC or PDA.
Combination Wi-Fi and cellular handsets are expected to penetrate the market noticeably in 2007 and 2008, as Wi-Fi silicon continues to fall in cost and size, and also becomes more power efficient. This combination handset is expected to penetrate both the business and home markets over time. Motorola’s handset is targeted to the corporate user. Companies such as LongBoard are developing applications that provide for the bridging of VoWLAN and public cellular networks, extending the enterprise features set to the mobile environment.
It is expected that the ratification of the 802.11e standard for QoS, along with a standardized way of providing for fast hand-offs (the Fast Roaming Study Group within the IEEE 802.11 Working Group was formed in early 2004), will open up the handset market considerably to an increased number of vendors. Another factor helping to drive VoWLAN into the business will be the evolution of the Wi-Fi infrastructure. Wi-Fi Switching system vendors such as Airespace, Aruba, Legra, Symbol and Trapeze have begun to roll out distributed Wi-Fi architectures that promise to provide for improvements in configuration, management, security, and roaming. Consequently, they are all hoping to drive VoWLAN implementations with the added features of their systems. Leading enterprise infrastructure vendor, Cisco, meanwhile, continues to refine its intelligent infrastructure products to support VoWLAN. The company envisions WLAN infrastructure as supporting an increased amount of voice traffic, especially in the form of combination Wi-Fi/cellular handsets, and is consequently beefing up its AP features.
For more information about the growing Voice over WLAN market, please see In-Stat/MDR’s upcoming report, “Voice over Wireless LAN: Come On and Feel the Noise,“ Report No. IN0401343CT. You’ll be able to access this report at:
Building Healthcare Technology to Provide Patient-Centric Care
When a number of industries were going through really tough times, the healthcare industry was one of the few industries staying strong during the harsh economic times. While we are slowly recovering now, the healthcare industry continues to show its strength in implementing and investing in technology.
Some of the primary trends in healthcare include rising healthcare costs, rising insurance premiums, consolidation, increased specialization in care, meeting HIPAA compliancy, and growing remote and home healthcare services. Many of these trends are leading to more mobile, robust, and remote access services for hospital and clinic systems.
Some of these industry trends are leading into the following technology trends and drivers:
Increased Need to Cross Communicate – Nurses, Doctor’s, Administration, Laboratories, Insurance, and Patients
HIPAA Requirements and Regulation Drive Secure Transport and Electronic Medical Records (EMRs)
Improving the Ability to Share Patient Data and Imaging is Driving the PACs, Imaging, Storage, and High-Speed Bandwidth Markets
Mobility Needs of Doctor’s and Nurses and Proliferation of Hand-Helds in Hospitals Drives Wireless Local Area Networking and Wireless Services
Better and More Efficient Communications Between Insurance Providers and Medical Facilities Drives Broadband and High-Speed Services
Internet is a Major Driver of Patient Information and Customer Services, especially web-based patient services
Web-based patient services will allow patients to pre-register for services, administer claims queries, schedule appointments, obtain MD referrals, view test results, and much more. The Internet and web-based services are also allowing for the reduction of paper-intensive processes, and healthcare is one of the highest users of paper processes next to financial services.
Wireless services are becoming a more respected and reliable way of communicating in the hospital, primarily driven by the younger generation of doctors and nurses who started using their personal wireless devices to communicate. Wireless devices and services are enabling doctors and nurses to communicate more effectively, administer prescriptions while reducing errors, obtain access to patient information, and also receive alerts when there is a patient in need.
Many telecom carriers are looking at the healthcare vertical as a top industry in technology investment. In-Stat/MDR is seeing growth in technology spending, where healthcare has primarily been a lower spender on telecom and IT compared to some of the other verticals. BellSouth and Cisco for example, were primary vendors for St. Vincent hospital in Birmingham Alabama, which installed a wireless LAN with 150+ access points. This is enabling St. Vincent's workers to access real time and historical clinical data via wireless devices anywhere, any time, as well as wirelessly administering bedside registration. Cisco is also continuing to improve its “Medical Grade Network” product that promises the delivery of a responsive, protected, resilient, and interactive network for hospitals and clinics.
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