Rim Semiconductor Company (fka RSMI)

[34Simmons]

If I remember correctly our Embarq chip will reside in the set-top and in the CO..I could be misunderstanding my memory but perhaps not. We could certainly benefit from Asia where I believe we will deploy first.

Digital box shipments to hit 74.8 M by '08

Jeff Baumgartner, CED

Thanks to strong growth in the Asia Pacific region, shipments of digital set-top boxes will reach 74.8 million units by 2008, up from an estimated 36.4 million in 2003, forecasts IMS Research in a new report.

Though analog TV continues to rule the day, nearly 25 percent of all TV homes will opt for digital by 2008, the firm said.

"[The] successful rollout of free-to-air digital terrestrial services around the globe will drive growth of terrestrial set-top box shipments by about 45 percent CAGR, to reach over 17 percent of total worldwide shipments by 2008," said IMS Market Analyst Anna Hunt. "The take-up of DTT services will create a stronger demand for basic zapper boxes and low-cost mid-range set-tops, as well as integrated digital televisions."

Still, direct-to-home set-tops shipments, at 42 percent, will retain the lion's share of the market by 2008. By then, digital cable boxes will have a 39 percent share, IMS predicted.