Harmonic MPEG-4 Part 10 encoders deliver broadcast TV for HanseNet IPTV

Telecom Italia subsidiary HanseNet (HanseNet Telekommunikation GmbH), is adding television to its existing telephone and DSL services with a launch in Hamburg within the next few months, followed by a nationwide roll-out in Germany. The service will include 100 standard-definition broadcast TV channels plus VOD. If the deployment continues on schedule, the company could beat Deutsche Telekom to market with IPTV services. Deutsche Telekom says it will roll out IPTV to ten cities covered by its new VDSL network as soon as the high-speed infrastructure is working, and a spokesman says that will be “mid-year”.

Harmonic Inc. is providing the MPEG-4 Part 10 encoding on all 100 SD channels with its DiviCom Electra 5000 encoder, which is a multi-platform compression engine capable of delivering MPEG-2 or MPEG-4 Part 10 (or indeed, SMPTE VC-1) streams, each of them complete with a picture-in-picture accompaniment. The company is also providing its ProView receivers and decoders for scalable content acquisition, and NMX Digital Service Manager for advanced monitoring and control.

“As communications services converge, our customers are looking for a differentiated offering from a single provider,” says Michele Novelli, marketing director of HanseNet. “We recognise that to increase subscriber satisfaction and loyalty, we must continue to innovate and provide a best-in-class service by integrating broadcast and on-demand TV with our existing Alice voice and data packages. Harmonic’s record of technical innovation and IPTV expertise were key to reducing implementation risk and operational complexity. The compression capabilities, video quality and flexibility of the DiviCom encoding platform give us a tremendous advantage today and greater latitude to introduce new video services in the future.”

Harmonic believes the intensifying competitive environment, combined with changing customer preferences, means moving beyond a 'me-too' broadcast TV service is critical for long-term success. "Telcos are uniquely positioned to leverage an IP-based infrastructure to provision an anytime, anywhere 'just for me TV'  experience," the company says.

Frank Kessaratos, vice president of EMEA and Asia-Pacific sales for Harmonic Inc. adds: "Alice's new IPTV service is an innovative integration of communication services that addresses the broader needs and expectations of the subscriber. DiviCom encoders, which generate high quality digital video at ultra-low bit rates in broadcast and on-demand applications, are an ideal solution for IPTV service providers, like Alice, who must deliver several services simultaneously into the home, often when bandwidth is at a premium."