True2way: It’s True. It Has To Be!



Author:Steve Wilson | Principal Analyst, Consumer Video Technologies

2008-04-08
Lawmakers have been pressing the cable industry to open up its system to third-party receivers since the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which drove a key architectural change to the cable system whereby the content protection module, a CableCARD, was made independent of the STB (Set Top Box) receiver. The CableCARD is essentially a security device that enables protected content to be unscrambled. It means consumers can access protected content without an external STB. The STB function can be integrated into the television, a PVR, or any other CE device. It also means consumers may one day be able to purchase an STB at retail, in the same way they might purchase a cable modem. CableCARDs have been available since late 2004 and CableCARD-ready TVs have been widely available since 2005. According to the NCTA (National Cable and Telecommunications Association), over 575 consumer electronics products have been certified for use with CableCARDs. But, is the CableCARD story that simple? In this ABI Insight, we’ll review a brief history of CableCARD and then consider its potential impact on the CE market as the Cable Industry starts a new chapter that includes OpenCable, now branded true2way.

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