USDTV Joins Forces With LG Electronics To Deliver Latest ëOver-The-Airí Digital Reception Technology; USDTV Becomes First U.S. Company To Use Fifth-Generation 8-VSB Technology For Improved Reception In Urban And Rural Environments

23-Jul-04

U.S. Digital Television, Inc. (USDTV), a leading over-the-air subscription TV service, today announced a technology partnership with LG Electronics and LG Innotek to supply fifth-generation 8-VSB chips and ATSC tuners for use in USDTV's set-top boxes. LG?s advanced digital television (DTV) reception technology, developed and tested with its U.S. subsidiary, Zenith, is designed to significantly enhance terrestrial broadcast digital reception capacity and strengthen viewing potential in difficult reception areas, such as in apartments and urban areas. USDTV will begin to include the LG components in set-top-boxes planned for shipments beginning in Q4 2004. ìLG?s chip advances will make over-the-air digital TV reception easier for millions of viewers, and this is a critical milestone for our company and our broadcast partners,î said Steve Lindsley, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of U.S. Digital Television, Inc. ìThe continued evolution of reception technology, coupled with tremendous improvements in compression and storage, will help broadcasters compete for pay-TV revenues well into the future.îìUSDTV will be the first broadcast service company in the U.S. to benefit from our advanced digital reception technology,î said Young-Ho Hur, Chief Executive Officer of LG Innotek. ìWe expect ever greater demand for this unique chip-set that will enable subscribers to enjoy the full benefits of high-definition and digital TV viewing, in addition to extending broadcast service areas.î USDTV field test data have shown significant improvement in reception performance over previous generations thanks in part to latest-generation dynamic equalizer technology. The fifth-generation, 8-VSB reception technology can be further enhanced through USDTV?s previously announced digital antenna being produced with Dotcast and Winegard Company. ìWe have tested the viability of 8-VSB DTV demodulation technology for years and are pleased by the substantial reception improvements in LG?s new fifth-generation chips,î said Nat Ostroff, Vice President, New Technology, Sinclair Broadcast Group. ìThe incorporation of this technology into the USDTV service will be a great benefit to both broadcasters and consumers, especially those in urban, hilly or indoor reception environments.îWhen combined with the LG DTV technology, broadcast service areas will be expanded and many difficult reception areas mitigated, creating greater subscriber potential in each market. ìIndependent tests on the performance of this fifth-generation technology have exhibited large improvements in difficult urban multipath conditions over previous generations,î said Victor Tawil, Senior Vice President of the Association for Maximum Service Television (MSTV). USDTV's service is priced under $20 per month and broadcasts many of the most popular cable networks ""over-the-air"" in digital and high-definition formats utilizing broadcast partners' unused digital spectrum. USDTV currently operates in Salt Lake City, Albuquerque, and Las Vegas. USDTV has created a new category in the broadcasting industry by offering the first digital terrestrial pay-TV service in the U.S. The company has also introduced a new use for excess digital spectrum and, in leasing it, created a subscription revenue stream for broadcasters. The USDTV service is broadcasted in tandem with local TV channels to subscribers' homes ""over-the-air"" through standard VHF/UHF antennas.For more information on USDTV, please visit www.usdtv.com; for more information on LG Electronics, please visit www.lgusa.com; for more information on LG Innotek, please visit www.lginnotek.com; and for more information on LG Electronicsí subsidiary Zenith, please visit www.zenith.com.

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http://www.usdtv.com
http://www.lgusa.com
http://www.lginnotek.com
http://www.zenith.com