UK STBs to find homes in Utah

From: EE Times UK, UK - Aug 6, 2004

By Colin Holland , eetuk Aug 06, 2004 (6:00 AM)

CAMBRIDGE, England — Amino Communications is to supply the UTOPIA (Utah Telecommunication Open Infrastructure Agency) with AmiNET 110 set-top boxes for its Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) network.

The deal involves a three year contract with an initial order of 20,000 set-top boxes, which will provide IPTV, ultra high-speed internet, always-on video monitoring and broadcast quality video telephony to 14 cities in Utah.

The AmiNET 110 will enable service providers to make full use of the large capacity of UTOPIA's fibre network. As well as a choice of TV programming, including movies on-demand and interactive TV, the STB will enable online gaming, interactive distance learning and teleworking.

Further developments of the services planned by UTOPIA include broadcast-quality video telephony via the Amino STB box and web-cam, to enable deaf people to hold fluent conversations in sign language, an application that was previously impossible due to choppy video connections.

An always-on video monitoring service is designed to provide added confidence and security for elderly or disabled persons who want to live independently, as a remote carer can be in constant contact via a set-top box and cameras installed in the subscriber's home. Simple medical appointments or specialist consultations could be conducted from the home or doctor's office to provide better access to healthcare for rural communities.

UTOPIA is one of the largest projects in the USA to build an all-fibre network directly to homes and businesses. It is mutually owned by its 14 member cities, which comprises a population of more than 140,000 households and businesses. Phase one of the project will offer services to more than 50,000 premises in six cities in Salt Lake County and Utah County.

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