Nagra wins Spanish DTT biz
Chris Forrester
03-09-2009

Kudelski’s Nagravision conditional access has been selected by Spain’s TDT Premium pay-DTT platform.

NAGRA Media ACCESS conditional access system was selected to secure the TDT Premium pay-TV digital terrestrial television horizontal platform operated by Spain's leading audiovisual network operator, Abertis Telecom. NAGRA Media ACCESS is being integrated into TDT Premium homologated set-top boxes and conditional access modules (CAMs) to support the new platform.

The certified DTT set-top boxes and CAM modules will be compliant with the technical specifications for DTT CA enabled receivers agreed within Spanish Digital TV Forum by the main industry stakeholders to create an open platform for all broadcasters. The set-top boxes and CAMs will be sold to consumers via retail channels as well as through TV installers.

As per the timeline recently reported by Rapid TV News, the first set-top boxes and CAMs integrated with NAGRA Media ACCESS will be available on retail shelves during the beginning of September. In order to assure the availability of these devices in the market by that date, Nagravision has closely collaborated with numerous idTV, set-top box and CAM manufacturers such as OKI, Panasonic, Philips, Samsung, Sony, Vestel, ADB, Echostar, Motorola, Pace, Sagem, Siemens-Gigaset, Zinwell, SmarDTV, and specifically the leading Spanish manufacturers Engel, Fagor, FTE Maximal, Ikusi and Televes.

With the recently approved new regulation in Spain, all current DTT broadcasters with more than one DTT channel are entitled to offer one channel in pay mode. The first pay-DTT channel to go on-air for the TDT Premium platform is Mediapro's Gol TV, a 24-hour soccer channel which broadcasts include the Spanish football league, Spanish cup and Champions League games. This channel has been available since September 1. Other pay-DTT channels are expected to be launched in the coming weeks and months.
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