Microtune ships its 55 millionth single-chip TV tuners

Shipping fifty million tuners is quite a milestone for any company, and we are proud that our diversified portfolio of customer-proven, stable and top-performing products has brought us to a market-leading position. In fact, we believe that we have shipped more single-chip silicon TV tuners than any of our competitors,” said Mr. James A. Fontaine, Microtune CEO and President.



We continue to advance the industry with RF innovations that permit our customers and partners to not only maintain strong market positions, but also to develop sophisticated products that leverage consumer demand for digital TV, digital cable and portable TV. Our versatile 3-in-1 tuners and ultra low-power mobile TV tuners are current examples of Microtune RF technology that are helping to enable next-generation, feature-rich consumer electronics,” Mr. Fontaine added.



At the upcoming 3GSM World Congress, promoted as the world's premier mobile event, attendees will have the chance to test the superior quality of Microtune’s mobile TV tuners, with unique ClearTune™ technology, in delivering clear, stable TV pictures in a high-interference environment. Microtune will be offering a ‘ClearTune Performance Challenge’ in its exhibit (Hall 2, stand A110) at the trade show being held February 12-15, 2007 in Barcelona, Spain.



Another new member of its product family, the MicroTuner MT2131, represents Microtune’s most advanced analog/digital tuner­the only silicon tuner that supports all three US standards (NTSC/ATSC and Digital Cable Ready) in one tiny chip, while delivering benchmark-setting performance and versatility. The editors of Electronic Products Magazine recently named the MicroTuner MT2131 a winner in its 31st annual ‘2006 Product of the Year’ awards. The MT2131 was selected for its significant advance in technology, innovative design and substantial gain in price/performance.



Microtune will mark its fifty-millionth tuner milestone by honoring Scientific-Atlanta, a Cisco® company and Microtune’s largest customer, with a commemorative award. Scientific Atlanta deploys up to four Microtune tuners in its set-top box architectural designs and has pioneered sophisticated cable set-tops that feature high-definition digital video, personal video recording functions and home networking services.



Other leading equipment suppliers, module makers and system-in-package providers are also incorporating Microtune’s RF products as integral components of their products, including such companies as ARRIS, AMD/ATI Technologies, Delphi/Fuba, LG Electronics, Matsushita Avionics, Motorola, Pace Micro Technologies, Panasonic, Pinnacle Systems, Samsung and Toshiba. They are deploying Microtune technology to enhance the video, data and audio quality in devices as varied as high-definition DVD players, digital TV converter boxes, HDTV/PVR set-top boxes, voice over IP (VoIP) cable modems, automotive and avionics entertainment systems, USB tuner sticks, and mobile TV phones. In the process, Microtune’s customers are driving the market momentum to “anytime, anywhere” digital TV entertainment across platforms of every size, shape and price range.



Microtune invented the single-chip silicon TV tuner, and today, 68 patents protect its RF integrated-circuit technology and other inventions. Microtune’s products include tuners, amplifiers and upconverters for consumer entertainment, broadband communications and automotive entertainment.



IBM has been collaborating with Microtune for many years, and we congratulate the company on its milestone achievement, said Tom Reeves, Vice President of Semiconductor and Technology Services, IBM Global Engineering Solutions. We are extremely pleased that IBM's engineering and process design expertise has supported Microtune through its history and has provided the process technology and manufacturing support that has helped bring their innovative products to market.