To this end, one of our 2010 initiatives involved addressing the fact that digital video broadcast signals over satellite must be effectively retransmitted over LAN environments. Part of our commitment to this effort was the release of our new Torpedo DVB-to-IP gateways. Torpedo takes European DVB satellite and terrestrial signals and re-encapsulates them for distribution over LAN. Some of the related challenges the Company has taken on over the past year are the streaming management and content protection considerations associated with bringing satellite broadcast signals to a LAN for distribution.
The video signals transmitted via satellite are finely tuned for the capacities, quality specifications, and other unique requirements of that transmission medium. When those signals are brought onto a LAN for streaming delivery within an enterprise, two factors must be taken into account.
First, the decode environment must be able to handle those digital video signals. HaiVision has invested heavily in bringing the capacity of our soft players and set-top boxes into accord with this requirement. Second, the capacity of satellite networks typically does not match the characteristics of the LAN or of the players. For example, digital satellite can support HD signals up to 18 Mbps. The bandwidth of these signals is too large for general LAN delivery or computer based decoding. In 2010, there was significant investment in transcoding technology that can take streams of a bandwidth suited for satellite and adjust them so they are suitable for consumption throughout an enterprise, whether with respect to network considerations or to the endpoint, be it a set-top box, soft player or mobile device.
In response to the demands of these markets, Haivision will continue its innovation and ongoing development in 2011 to address new challenges. Throughout the coming year, we will be focusing on extending the unique benefits of our IP video proposition performance, security, accountability, control to all viewers, regardless of device.