Pico Aims to Ease the Digital Transition

At the SCTE Cable-Tec Expo in New Orleans, Pico Digital will focus on solutions designed to reduce the cost of transitioning to digital. Pico's CONDOR cable TV headend system will be on display, in addition to the company's PD1600 compact headend in a box. Pico will also be highlighting its latest HD, SD, and IP encoders; HD QAM set-top boxes; and mini cable modem termination system (miniCMTS).

Pico Digital's upgradeable CONDOR platform is designed to allow operators to convert to all-digital today to meet their subscribers' entertainment and connectivity needs - such as HDTV video channels, secure premium entertainment, and high-speed broadband Internet - while enabling the addition of new services over time with the company's middleware. For content protection, the CONDOR platform utilizes the Verimatrix Video Content Authority System (VCAS) for digital video broadcast (DVB).

VCAS for DVB also provides security in Pico Digital's PD1600 5-RU headend. The solution is designed to extend the reach of satellite and cable operators into the local networks of hotels and other hospitality venues, providing them with control over content in QAM, IP or analog NTSC format to the TV while allowing free over-the-air channels to be added locally.