Tru2way Is True Blue at the Cable Show '08

By Laura Hamilton

Consumers have never tended to love their set-tops, so it's no surprise that the popular press jumps all over any news that hints at an impending end for the need for a box on top of the TV. Case in point is the recent announcement that was published widely that Sony Electronics was getting buddy-buddy with tru2way, and it would develop TVs that can receive interactive digital and high-def video services without a set-top box.

Sony and six major cable ops (Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Cox, Charter, Cablevision and Bright House) signed this agreement, and rather than fully rehash what you've probably already read elsewhere, here's a link to the full announcement: www.ncta.com/ReleaseType/MediaRelease/Sony-and-Cable-Operators-Negotiate-National-Two-Way-Plug-and-Play-Solution.aspx.

Of course, this doesn't really mean the immediate end of the set-top for every consumer. Boxes are going to be around for a long, long time and even a quick jaunt around the NCTA Cable Show exhibit hall in New Orleans proved that out. The tru2way logo was virtually everywhere, and demos of set-tops that implement tru2way were as easy to secure as a drink on Bourbon Street.

Cisco showed off its next-generation tru2way set-tops, featuring DVRs with a 320 GB hard drive option, and Motorola gave demonstrations of new tru2way applications on the company's latest tru2way-compatible set-tops.

A "fully tru2way certified" solution came from Advanced Digital Broadcast by way of its latest HD cable set-top for the U.S. market, the ADB-4820C. It was specifically designed to operate with new flat panel TV sets and mounts to the back of a TV. The company reports that the ADB-4820C is the first STB solution to receive full tru2way certification and is now available for commercial deployment. The unit is fully integrated with OCAP software from Vidiom and Osmosys.

At the Pace booth, one of the company's highlights was its Tahoe TDC778X HD DVR (CableCARD and embedded CA). The company reported that this dual-tuner HD-DVR set-top box is the world's first HD DVR OCAP/tru2way-capable platform ready for deployment on existing networks without the need for costly infrastructure upgrades. As an EngineWare platform, Tahoe also has been fully integrated with the latest generation of native EPG and VOD applications. Tahoe's internal DOCSIS 2.0 modem can also provide high-speed data connections and was the industry's first set-top certified by CableLabs for DOCSIS/DSG.

Thomson highlighted its DCI9220 set-top box, an HD-capable receiver that includes an implementation of the tru2way platform. The DCI9220 supports multistream CableCARDs, and has been specifically tailored for the U.S. market with tru2way apps developed in association with Vidiom and Zodiac Interactive.

Alticast showcased several new products based on tru2way technology. This specifically included the unveiling of new tru2way set-top boxes targeting the U.S. market in addition to the tru2way set-top boxes currently deployed by Samsung at Time Warner Cable.

Samsung used the show to hail the availability of its OpenCable HD DVR for tru2way digital cable deployments. The SMT-3090 has two HD tuners capable of decoding MPEG-2, H.264, VC-1 and AC-3 content and a 160 gigabyte hard drive that can store up to 20 hours of HD content. It has a CableCARD interface and DSG modem for DOCSIS support.

Tru2way-based products featured in the Panasonic exhibit included the PCH2180 tru2way HD-DVR set-top, VIERA high-def TVs and the tru2way-enabled portable DVR model TZ-LC100. The PCH2180 is a multi-tuner tru2way set-top receiver that integrates HD video recording, a multi-stream CableCARD host interface for separable security, and a high-speed DOCSIS modem to support DOCSIS Set-top Gateway Signaling (DSG), all within a compact configuration. The PCH2180 includes support for a variety of digital video codecs including MPEG-2, MPEG-4 (H.264) and VC1. It also has the capability to incorporate a MoCA Home Networking option. The 42-inch class VIERA Plasma HDTV, which integrates a tru2way cable receiver capability within the set's chassis, eliminates the need for an outboard cable set-top box. The portable DVR (P-DVR) model TZ-LC100 lets cable customers record programming at home and take it with them wherever they go.

Laura Hamilton is editor-in-chief at Broadband Gear Report. Reach her at laura.hamilton@comcast.net..