SAN DIEGO -- Entropic Communications, Inc. (Nasdaq:ENTR), a leading provider of silicon solutions to enable connected home entertainment, announced that DIRECTV(r), the industry leader in HD programming, has incorporated Entropic's Channel Stacking Switch (CSS) technology in DIRECTV's SWM-ODU dish unit, a mainstream follow-on to this year's earlier announcement of DIRECTV's use of CSS technology in their MDU MFH-2 system.

The SWM-ODU delivers the full suite of DIRECTV's HD programming directly to all of the consumer's set-top boxes (STB) in the home via a single wire. In the past, a typical installation of one HD DVR, one DVR and two standard STBs required six cables to be run into the house from the satellite dish, but now, utilizing a SWM-ODU, the number of cables from the satellite dish is reduced to just one.

Single Wire Architecture Driving HD Content Delivery

The increase in HD content and the wide adoption of DVRs is driving the need to easily and cost-effectively support multiple tuners in the home. Entropic's Channel Stacking Switch (CSS) technology is used in DIRECTV's SWM-ODU to enable delivery of the KA/KU satellite signals from the dish to set-top box receivers in the home over a single cable.

In a traditional DIRECTV DBS installation, a unique cable is required for each tuner from the satellite dish to the STB. For example, a customer with 4 DVRs in the home would need 8 cable runs from the dish to support all the tuners. CSS technology enables DIRECTV's SWM-ODU to provide access to all available program content to up to 8 tuners with a single cable run from the dish.

"Our SWM-ODU, incorporating Entropic's CSS, is an important technology roll-out that enables us to further enhance operations and achieve excellence in customer satisfaction by improving installations and equipment reliability," said Romulo Pontual, CTO of DIRECTV.

Entropic Communications Inc. (Nasdaq: ENTR)