Home About Us FAQ Policies Contact Site Map

High-definition set-top boxes and chipsets: The European market

Product Type: Market Research Report Publication Date: Apr 11, 2007
 
Download a sample from "The Infoshop", another service of Global Information.

SUMMARY

This is the third Screen Digest report to focus on the roll-out of high-definition across the audiovisual industries, and focuses on the set-top box business and the market for HD video decoding chips. With the number of HD-ready households in the 17 top western European markets projected to reach 82m by 2010, Screen Digest forecasts a significant market for HD set-top boxes for satellite, cable, IPTV and terrestrial pay-TV platforms.

While early HD launches, particularly in the US, used MPEG-2 video compression, almost all new HD launches are now using the more efficient MPEG-4 Advanced Video Codec (AVC) encoding. This has created a significant new market for MPEG-4 decoding chipsets and MPEG-4 set-top boxes.

The report profiles all of the major players in the industry, including set-top box makers, AVC chipset suppliers and silicon intellectual property providers. It values the European market for AVC silicon and set-top boxes with forecasts to 2010, based on Screen Digest's HDTV models. The report also maps all current deployments of HD set-top boxes by TV operator/platform, set-top box provider, set-top box models and chipsets used.

Key findings:

  • HD ready households in the top 17 European markets reaching 82m by 2010
  • Of these, 17m will be 'HD watching' -- i.e. requiring an HDTV set-top box to receive hi-def content
  • HD pay TV platforms had been launched in 11 European countries by the end of 2006, with many more expected in 2007
  • While early HDTV launches in the US have used mostly MPEG-2 video compression, the vast majority of HD services in the rest of the world are using more efficient MPEG-4 encoding, specifically the Advanced Video Codec (AVC)
  • After a slow start, AVC-decoding chipsets became readily available in the second half of 2006 from manufacturers including Broadcom, Conexant, Sigma Designs, STMicroelectronics and Texas Instruments
  • AVC HD set-top boxes have been deployed by a number of manufacturers including ADB, Amstrad, EchoStar, Humax, LG, Netgem, Pace, Philips, Sagem, Scientific Atlanta and Thomson
  • AVC chipsets are also needed in the much larger market for HD DVD players, Blu-ray Disc players and hi-def games consoles
  • The AVC-chipset market is fast-developing: while many early chipset designs used an existing MPEG-2 chip with an AVC decoder added, single-chip designs are now emerging, with dual-decoding channels.
  • Improved designs and manufacturing experience is increasing yields and reducing costs
  • Support for home networking and secure transfer of HD content to portable devices is already being supported by chipset and set-top box makers, though has not been deployed by pay TV operators
  • Screen Digest forecasts a European market for 8m AVC set-top boxes by 2010, worth nearly € 700m
  • The European market for AVC chipsets, including those used in disc players and games consoles, is projected to be worth € 344m in 2010
  • .

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Executive summary

1. HDTV roll- out and forecasts

  • HD drivers
  • HD services take-up and forecasts
  • HD ready households
  • HD watching households
  • Availability of HD broadcast and HD content
  • HD across delivery platforms
  • HD influences
  • Display technology
  • China
  • Picture quality is an issue
  • High definition home video discs
  • Home networking
  • The European market for HD set- top boxes and HD semiconductors
  • Scenarios for migration to MPEG-4 AVC

2. High definition technology

  • Background
  • Why resolution matters
  • The importance of encoding
  • MPEG- 2 HDTV
  • MPEG- 4 AVC
  • VC- 1 encoding
  • Set- top box overview
  • Falling single- channel decoder costs
  • Dual-channel designs
  • New system partitioning
  • Semiconductor manufacturing
  • Box design cycle
  • Other HD cost factors
  • Memory
  • HD challenges
  • Terrestrial HD broadcasting
  • AVC licensing
  • Media Centres and hybrid STBs
  • Copy protection
  • Microsoft DRM
  • Secure Video Processor
  • TrustZone
  • HD-ready displays
  • EICTA's 'HD ready' minimum requirements for TV sets

3. MPEG- 4 decoder silicon manufacturers

  • AMD
  • Broadcom
  • Conexant Systems
  • Fujitsu
  • LSI Logic
  • Micronas (WISchip International)
  • MND
  • NEC Electronics
  • Neotion
  • NXP Semiconductor
  • Pixelworks
  • Sigma Designs
  • STMicroelectronics
  • Texas Instruments
  • Vivace Semiconductor
  • Zoran

4. MPEG- 4 silicon intellectual property providers

  • ARM
  • ARC International
  • Imagination Technologies
  • Improv Systems
  • Matsushita (Elixent)
  • MIPS Technologies
  • Renesas Technology
  • Silicon Image (Sci- worx)
  • Tensilica

5. HDTV Set- top box providers

  • Advanced Digital Broadcast
  • Amino Communications
  • Amstrad
  • Apple
  • Cisco (includes Scientific Atlanta)
  • Coship Electronics
  • Echostar
  • Humax
  • LG Electronics
  • Matsushita (Panasonic)
  • Motorola
  • Netgem
  • Pace Micro Technology
  • Philips Consumer Electronics
  • Pioneer
  • Sagem Communication
  • Samsung
  • Sony
  • Tatung
  • Thomson
  • Tilgin
  • Toshiba
  • Wegener

Glossary

Tables and Charts

1. HDTV roll- out and forecasts

  • World top 22 markets: HD ready households
  • World top 22 markets: HD ready households share of all TV households
  • HD Ready Households
  • HD Watching Households
  • Europe: TV Households, HD ready and HD watching
  • World top 22 markets: total HDTV-watching households (free and pay)
  • World top 22 markets: HD watching households share of all TV households
  • World HD platforms launched 2003-2007
  • HD launches by country and delivery platform
  • Factors creating demand for HD- decoding AVC silicon
  • The Market Model used by Screen Digest
  • Europe (top 17 markets): Market volume for AVC MPEG- 4 STBs and devices
  • Europe (top 17 markets): Market volume for AVC decoding chipsets
  • Europe (top 17 markets): Market volume for AVC MPEG- 4 STBs and devices

2. High definition technology

  • SD & HD broadcasts: typical resolutions and bit rates
  • Average price per MPEG- 4- HD channel at year- end (dual- channel chipset)
  • Average price per MPEG- 4- HD channel at year- end (single- channel chipset)
  • The set- top box cycle, from chip design to operator roll- out
  • The Secure Video Processor eco- system
  • HD platforms deployed by set- top box/AVC decoder

3. MPEG- 4 decoder silicon manufacturers

  • MPEG- 4 chipsets: product range and production
  • Overview of chipset manufacturers
  • Shipments of AVC chipsets to Europe: leading manufacturers

5. HDTV Set- top box providers

  • Price decline of MPEG- 2 and MPEG- 4 set- top boxes

High-definition set-top boxes and chipsets: The European market

Publisher: Screen Digest Ltd.

Format Price Order
Hard Copy US $2045.00
PDF by E-mail (Single User License) US $4090.00
All orders are processed by "www.the-infoshop.com". www.the-infoshop.com is another Global Information web site. This transfer is entirely safe.
Copyright© 2008 GII - All Rights Reserved.