CHALLENGE

In 2007, CERTI received the mission to develop a new Philips set-top box for the Brazilian market (a converter that allows analog television sets to receive a digital TV signal), and to provide technical support for the development of two television sets with an integrated digital signal receiver. The development phase presented enormous challenges, due to the adoption of high definition (1080i) and the high compression protocol used for video encoding (H.264). Few platforms had the performance and stability capable of supporting the performance requirements established.

DEVELOPMENT

Various platforms and chipsets from the world’s leading manufacturers were evaluated. CERTI’s digital TV team handled the technical coordination of distributed teams, working on different continents – in Brazil (Florianópolis, São Paulo, São Bernardo do Campo and Manaus), the USA (Atlanta), France (Suresnes), Singapore and China. The specification, development and launching of the new set-top box occurred within the projected schedule of only six months.

RESULT

The CERTI Foundation and Philips, based on joint work within the scope of the European Union’s INSTINCT project (television and broadband for people on the move), built a strategy for cooperation and trust, which resulted in the creation and launching of a very successful family of digital TV products. The excellent results obtained are indicated by the fact that the product became a reference in the Brazilian marketplace, and was awarded the “INFO Choice 2008” prize and the 2008 Home Theater trophy in the category of Most Innovative Product.