Rovi, a digital entertainment products provider has entered into a multi-year agreement Videotron to license the interactive programme guide (IPG) patent portfolio owned by Rovi.
The agreement provides Videotron with a license to Rovi patent intellectual property for IPGs across multiple platforms including certain set top box, online and mobile platforms.
Bharti Airtel has launched an Internet TV service that will enable its broadband customers to access a range of live and video-on-demand (VoD) content via their PCs.
Service called Airtel broadband TV will offer three tariffs starting at US$1.09 per month for three channels, up to US$2.20 per month for 28 streamed channels, 19 VoD channels and 12 movie channels. The service will offer a range of content including news, entertainment, documentaries and music.
According to the company, customers will not have to pay for the extra bandwidth consumed when accessing Airtel TV, with exception of users in Punjab and Noida. The service offers consumers a low-cost way to access VoD content since it does not require them to buy a set-top-box or IP-enabled TV.
Bharti Airtel claimed it is revolutionizing the TV watching experience.
According to Girish Mehta, Chief Marketing Officer of Bharti’s telemedia services division, this initiative is part of their larger commitment to offer an enhanced broadband experience to their customers. They will soon be adding more content under news, soap and infotainment categories.
Semiconductor giant Broadcom has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Gigle Networks, a privately held company that develops system-on-a-chip solutions for home networking over power-lines.
By adding power-line deal to its technology portfolio, Broadcom will be able to provide additional functionality to its customers in broadband home segments including set-top box, broadband carrier access and wireless router.
According to Dan Marotta, Executive Vice President & General Manager of Broadcom’s Broadband Communications Group, Broadcom’s broadband home platforms span a wide range of segments including set-top box, broadband carrier access and wireless router. With the addition of Gigle Networks’ power-line technology, and their proven ability and extensive experience in supporting the multiple methods to connect devices including Ethernet, WI-Fi, MoCA and DLNA, Broadcom is able to offer service providers and device manufacturers a variety of ways to deploy a whole-home connected environment.
Broadcom expects to pay approximately $75 million to acquire all of the outstanding shares of capital stock and other rights of Gigle Networks.
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Roughly a year from now, Motorola will split into two separate companies- one company for mobile devices and home units and second company of mobility solutions and networks businesses. Both the companies will use the Motorola brand.
While the first will be led by Sanjay Jha, co-CEO of Motorola, the Motorola co-CEO Greg Brown will head the other. Portfolio of mobile devices and home entertainment technology such as the company’s set-top boxes will be taken over by Jha. Both of them will assume their roles as CEO of their respective divisions effective immediately after the separation.
Shareholders of Motorola will get shares of both companies via a tax-free stock dividend. The separation will take place in the first quarter of 2011.
