GI Tackles SD, HDTV Encoding
San Diego -- General Instrument Corp.'s Satellite DataNetworks division will take on the digital technology needs of broadcasters.
Last week, GI said it was at work on an MPEG-2, ATSC(Advanced Television Systems Committee) encoder that lets broadcasters compress andmultiplex both standard-definition television and high-definition television signals.
Sony Corp., which took an equity stake in GI two monthsago, is also expected to assist in GI's development of high-definition products, acorporate spokesman said.
GI will brand the encoder with its well-known'DigiCipher II name,' and it will position it as a way for broadcasters tocost-effectively and flexibly move from NTSC (National Television Systems Committee)analog to digital SDTV and HDTV formats.
ICTV Adds Games To Service Mix
Los Gatos, Calif. -- ICTV Inc. last week added populargames like 'Myst,' 'Riven' and other titles from software powerhouseBroderbund Software Inc. to its suite of high-speed networked games and multimediacontent.
Other Broderbund titles now active on ICTV's service:'Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?,' 'Arthur's Birthday' and'Warlords III: Reign of Heroes.'
Eric Winkler, senior manager of marketing for Broderbund,said in a statement that the ICTV arrangement 'is a great opportunity for Broderbundto enter the world of interactive cable television.'
Wes Hoffman, president of ICTV, said makingBroderbund's top titles available over cable networks 'further demonstratesICTV's mission to provide cable subscribers with a wide variety of the latestinteractive content available on the market today.'
Broderbund's adventure game, 'Myst,' is thebest-selling CD-ROM game of all time.
Motorola Teams Up with Inter-Tel for IP Phone
Phoenix -- Motorola Inc. last week signed a'memorandum of understanding' with Inter-Tel Inc. to forge interoperabilitybetween their respective IP-telephony (Internet protocol) products.
The agreement also calls for the two companies todistribute each other's IP phone products.
Inter-Tel and Motorola will develop an interface forMotorola's VIPR family of gateways and Inter-Tel's VocalNet and VocalNet CallAccounting Systems, based on H.323 standards.
'Completion of these standards-based products willallow Inter-Tel to leverage Motorola's strengths in the IP-telephony marketplace, toexpand the range and capabilities of our family of products and to support a widerspectrum of IP-telephony applications,' said Tom Parise, president and chiefoperating officer of Inter-Tel, in a prepared statement.
