GCT Semiconductor launches world's first single-chip satellite tuner for mobile TV applications in Japan and Korea
June 28, 2005 - San Jose, CA - GCT Semiconductor, a provider of highly integrated semiconductor solutions for wireless communications, today announced the GDM7001 satellite tuner IC. It is the world's first VLSI IC to combine diversity RF receivers and channel decoders for Mobile Satellite Broadcasting/Satellite-Digital Multimedia Broadcasting (MSB/S-DMB) applications in Japan and Korea.
MSB and S-DMB services allow consumers to receive multiple digital video and audio channels over handsets and mobile TVs equipped with satellite tuners. MSB service was launched in Japan in 2004 by the Mobile Broadcasting Corporation (MBCO), while S-DMB service in Korea began in May 2005 through Tu-media Corp.
The GDM7001 satellite tuner contains all of the major components required to implement a complete MSB/S-DMB receive solution, including two receivers for antenna diversity, mixers, a baseband analog-to-digital (A/D) converter, digital demodulator, channel decoder, and host interfaces. When used with an A/V processor, the GDM7001 enables the most integrated solution for MSB/S-DMB on the market today.
By using a state-of-the-art direct conversion (zero IF) RF architecture, the GDM7001 eliminates the need for intermediate frequency (IF) surface acoustic wave (SAW) filtering. It requires only half the printed circuit board area and one third the power of current ASIC based solutions and represents the ideal designer choice for handheld and automotive applications.
"We are very pleased to see GCT enter the Mobile Broadcasting Service Market with the new GDM7001, and we believe this chip will significantly enhance the adoption rate of our world-leading mobile satellite video services," said Masao Suga, Executive Officer and General Manager of Engineering for MBCO.
"Our expertise in RF CMOS, direct conversion architecture, and DSP algorithms is elegantly combined in the implementation of the GDM7001, and we are pleased to provide this key enabling technology to support media savvy consumers in Japan and Korea," commented Dr. Kyeongho Lee, President and CEO of GCT Semiconductor.
GCT has already secured design-wins for the GDM7001 from many of the major manufacturers of mobile handsets and portable devices in Japan and Korea, and samples of the GDM7001 are available now.
About GCT Semiconductor, Inc.
GCT Semiconductor is a leading fabless semiconductor company that produces innovative integrated circuit solutions for the wireless communications industry. With its proven radio frequency (RF) CMOS and system-on-a-chip (SOC) expertise, GCT provides state-of-the-art single-chip CMOS RF transceivers, mobile digital TV receivers and Mobile WiMAX solutions serving 3G and 4G mobile system manufacturers by reducing BOM cost, lowering power consumption and minimizing total solution size. For more information, please visit www.gctsemi.com.