SatCom Media Announces SATiTV

Posted on November 15, 1997

SatCom Media Corporation announced a high-speed, satellite connection for home TV sets that eliminates the throughput restrictions imposed by telephone lines and dramatically expands the market for television access to the Internet. Called SATiTV, SatCom's new home TV system combines home television programming with a real-time link to multimedia applications on the Internet.

"For the first time two-way wireless interactive TV is available to users here and abroad," said Paul Rudnick, Vice President. "With SATiTV, users get the full benefits of interactive television and broadcast services on their home TV." At the same time, Rudnick added, advertisers and broadcasters can communicate directly with the consumer. "This permits them to develop the invaluable real-time information they need for effective advertisements and presentations," he said.

SATiTV is an interactive set-top box and dish antenna that can be easily connected to any TV set. The system uses a proprietary CDMA (code division multiple access) transmission technology to minimize cost, speed system implementation and maximize transponder efficiency, while at the same time providing the security required for transaction-oriented applications. SATiTV can support data transmission speeds as high as 6 Mbits/second, thousands of times faster than conventional phone circuits.

SatCom is now in negotiations with a number of suppliers of set-top systems, and SATiTV is expected to be available to retail customers the middle of next year. Pricing has not been set. SatCom Media Corporation is a privately held company in the heart of California's Silicon Valley. The company is committed to continued development of low-cost two-way satellite communications solutions.