NEWS RELEASE
Nov 2004
Technical version
Ocean
Blue offers real choice & world-class STB software products.
Bristol, England – Nov 15 – Independent software specialist, Ocean Blue
Software, has launched a range of software products for the Digital TV and IPTV
marketplace. The software products are mature and deployed in a number of
Digital TV devices already and include MHEG-5 & DSM-CC. These
middleware/API software systems are embedded into set top boxes and integrated
televisions.
The software, which includes technologies such as the Voyager MHEG-5/DSM-CC and Surfsoft (Personal Digital Recorder software PDR) is the basis of the latest digital TV devices, such as Freeview receivers and PDRs. The software products, which Ocean Blue claims are "years ahead of the competition", are available to third parties and Consumer Electronic companies for integration into exciting new TV products.
Ken Helps, Founder & CEO of Ocean Blue states:
"The software has taken over 10 man years of development effort, utilising
the latest software technologies, design methodologies, system engineering and
verification processes.”
Ocean's “Surfsoft", is a content management
system for hard disk based Set top boxes and televisions. Surfsoft catalogues,
indexes and files televisions programmes and films stored on a hard disk, it
also offers time shift functions, pause and record, replay, store and retrieve.
"The next generation of Freeview and Freesat Set
top boxes and TVs, based on Ocean’s software technology, will offer consumers a
simple-to-use, hard-disk based recorder, PDR technology, a full 8-day EPG
(Electronic Programme Guide), multiple tuners so you can watch one programme
whilst recording others and even diagnostics software to monitor the health of
the hard disk, all for under £200 that is a very exciting prospect," added
Helps.
Ocean Blue is an independent software company, unlike
other middleware suppliers who are owned by electronics companies, where
conflicts of interest could exist. Ocean Blue is offering MHEG-5 & DSM-CC
software products, which are the defined UK open standard API/Middleware
products for Digital terrestrial broadcasting (DVB-T UK standard). These
software products are embedded into IPTV devices; digital TV Freeview set top
boxes and televisions.
Ken Helps, Founder
of Ocean Blue is a recognised industry figurehead. Ken has been involved and active in a number of broadcast
standards groups, he has written articles and white papers in the course of
promoting Digital TV technology and industry open standards. He is also well
known in consumer electronic companies, Semi-conductors corporations and
broadcasters.
Technical
Information.
Ocean Blue’s Voyager
MHEG-5 & DSM-CC is 10 man-year + development project, hence a considerable
piece of software development. The MHEG-5 & DSM-CC software was developed
in the industry standard C programming language.
C software code is
portable to many different operating systems and hardware computing platforms.
MHEG-5 must be
available in a digital set top box, IPTV devices or televisions to receive
interactive applications, such as those broadcast by BBCi teletext services.
Ocean Blue’s
Surfsoft system software is compact & robust and is used to manage and
control TV content saved to a hard disk based Digital TV device. Many features
and functions are standard with Surfsoft including Time shift, search,
retrieve, save, record, timed recording and pause.
For further
information or pictures please contact:
Kenneth Helps Ken.Helps@oceanbluesoftware.co.uk
Ocean Blue Contact
details:
Head Office tel:
0870 24 25 546