STMicroelectronics Drives In-Car Mobile TV Debut During Soccer World Cup

STMicroelectronics Drives In-Car Mobile TV Debut During Soccer World Cup

ST's Nomadik Multimedia Application Processor Powers Europe's First Implementation of Digital TV in Automobiles

GENEVA, June 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM), a leading supplier of semiconductors to digital consumer and automotive industries, today announced that its complete system solution for Mobile TV will be used in Europe's first implementation of T-DMB (Terrestrial - Digital Multimedia Broadcasting) receivers in the car. The pilot project, done in cooperation with Blaupunkt GmbH, has been timed for the upcoming Soccer World Cup in Germany, starting on June 9, 2006.

As part of the trial, World Cup matches will be broadcast over DMB in 12 German cities, including Berlin, Munich, and Cologne. DMB (Digital Multimedia Broadcasting) is a digital transmission system for sending data, radio, and TV to mobile devices, based on the DAB (Digital Audio Broadcasting) standard. The T-DMB Mobile TV service uses the existing DAB infrastructure, which is operational in Germany and most other European countries.

Connected to the DAB (Digital Audio Broadcasting) radio receiver inside the car, the novel T-DMB decoder is based on ST's latest Nomadik mobile multimedia processor, the STn8810. ST's device emerged as a clear choice for the project, thanks to its exceptional video and audio quality, scalable performance, ultra low power consumption, and advanced security features with digital rights management (DRM) support. Moreover, Nomadik's software platform including video and audio codecs (e.g. MPEG4/H264, BSAC, ACC+) brings key advantages for product implementation and reduces time-to-market constraints.

Nomadik's award-winning distributed architecture combines a powerful ARM9 processor with smart accelerators for audio and video decoding and an advanced power management unit on a single chip. The Nomadik SoC also features a rich set of peripheral interfaces for seamless connection to the external components, including the car radio, digital-to-analog converters for top- quality audio and video playback, memory cards (SD/MMC), or USB.

Associated DMB software includes an RDI (Receiver Data Interface) decoder, error detection and correction software, the latest video (MPEG-4/H264) and audio (AAC) codecs, and software blocks for rendering and synchronizing audio and video data.

The in-car Mobile TV solution is part of ST's comprehensive hardware and software platform, ready to address the demand for Multimedia convergence in the car. The platform is centered on ST's Nomadik application processor and benefits from ST's leadership in GPS receiver, radio tuner, and Bluetooth ICs.

To enable fast product customization and industrialization, this platform integrates all software layers, such as Real-Time Operating System board support packages, application specific middleware, and application reference software, and it comes complete with a full set of development tools, including reference designs.

Besides T-DMB, Nomadik can also support the competing DVB-H (Digital Video Broadcasting Handhelds) standard for Mobile TV, positioning ST as a major driving force for the next revolution in Car Infotainment technologies.

About STMicroelectronics

STMicroelectronics is a global leader in developing and delivering semiconductor solutions across the spectrum of microelectronics applications. An unrivalled combination of silicon and system expertise, manufacturing strength, Intellectual Property (IP) portfolio and strategic partners positions the Company at the forefront of System-on-Chip (SoC) technology and its products play a key role in enabling today's convergence markets. The Company's shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange, on Euronext Paris and on the Milan Stock Exchange. In 2005, the Company's net revenues were $8.88 billion and net earnings were $266 million. Further information on ST can be found at http://www.st.com/

Source: STMicroelectronics

CONTACT: Michael Markowitz of STMicroelectronics, +1-212-821-8959, or
michael.markowitz@st.com

Web site: http://www.st.com/

-------
Profile: intent