Mobile TV chip maker Telegent Systems is announcing today that it has shipped more than 100 million chips that enable cell phones to display analog TV.
That&'s a pretty big milestone for a technology that many thought would be outdated because of the demand for digital TV and video streaming on phones. But the market for analog TV on cell phones has taken off in emerging markets around the world.
What&'s interesting about Telegent&'s chips is that they are making a big difference in the lives of those who use them. That&'s perhaps a greater impact than many expensive technologies that are designed for use by the digerati.
The Telegent chips are pretty cheap and enable users to watch broadcast TV for free on their phones. For many people in poorer areas, the phones become the only way that they can access TV programming. In developed countries, users watch TV while on the run or during commutes.
Sunnyvale, Calif.-based Telegent was the fastest-growing private company in Silicon Valley from 2007 to 2009, with 38,491 percent revenue growth. The company filed to go public earlier this year but decided to cancel the initial public offering in May, thanks in part to stock market jitters related to the slowdown in Europe. In June, Telegent hired Ford Tamer as its chief executive, replacing co-founder Samuel Sheng. About that time, Telegent was still saying that it had sold just 80 million chips. So it sold 20 million more chips in a fairly short time. I guess we should never underestimate the power of shows such as Wheel of Fortune in getting technology adopted around the world.
Tamer believes that the market for analog mobile TV will continue to grow in 2011 as more phone makers put the capability in their phones. He also thinks that interactive services will be integrated with mobile TV viewing, opening up new revenue opportunities for operators, broadcasters and service providers. He also thinks that Telegent has a shot at becoming a multibillion-dollar revenue company.
This month, Telegent is making prototype chips available for hybrid digital and analog TV receivers, targeting users in Latin America. The company is also trying to make its chips smaller, consume less power, and display better imagery. Will Strauss, analyst at market researcher Forward Concepts, estimates that 198 million mobile TV chips will chip in 2014.
The company expects demand for mobile TV to continue to grow with events such as the broadcast of the Cricket World Cup in Asia and the launch of low-cost ISDB-T phones, for mobile digital TV, in Latin America. Telegent&'s customers range from Samsung to ZTE' more than 100 companies have designed phones with Telegent&'s chips in them.
The company was founded in 2004 and has 200 employees. Rivals, mainly focused on mobile digital TV chips, include Siano and DiBcom. Over the years, Telegent has raised more than $50 million from‚ New Enterprise Associates, Walden International, Index Ventures, and Northern Light Venture Capital.
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Companies: Dibcom, Siano, Telegent Systems
People: Ford Tamer, Samuel Sheng
Companies: Dibcom, Siano, Telegent Systems
People: Ford Tamer, Samuel Sheng
Dean is lead writer for GamesBeat at VentureBeat. He covers video games, security, chips and a variety of other subjects. Dean previously worked at the San Jose Mercury News, the Wall Street Journal, the Red Herring, the Los Angeles Times, the Orange County Register and the Dallas Times Herald. He is the author of two books, Opening the Xbox and the Xbox 360 Uncloaked. Follow him on Twitter at @deantak, and follow VentureBeat on Twitter at @venturebeat.
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