BigBand Networks announced today that it has added functionality to its switched digital video (SDV) platform as it prepares for the first deployments of the technology by Korean cable operators.

Redwood, Calif.-based BigBand Networks also said that it has completed qualification of its SDV technology and SDV client software with Alticast. Alticast, which is headquartered in Seoul, South Korea, is a provider of interactive middleware, including tru2way in the United States.

SDV sends just the programming that is being watched in a service group, instead of the entire slate of a cable operator’s lineup, which allows MSOs to reclaim bandwidth for other services, such as adding more high-definition (HD) channels.

“An ability to implement SDV in Korea represents a major milestone for BigBand Networks and paves the way for the first SDV deployments outside North America,” said David Heard, BigBand’s chief operating officer. “The potential for SDV in international markets is significant, both in terms of economics and the number of viewers that will benefit from the richer choices of HDTV and long-tail content that the solution enables.”

According to research firm In-Stat, the worldwide market opportunity for switched digital video market equipment, software and services is expected to exceed $1 billion in 2012. In-Stat forecasts that Asian deployments of SDV will grow at an average rate of 85 percent for the next four years, reaching $212 million by 2012.

“Switched digital video is a cost-effective way for service providers to begin offering virtually unlimited amounts of HD and SD programming,” said Gerry Kaufhold, principal analyst for In-Stat. “First proven by operators in North America, BigBand’s SDV solution is now entering an era of international deployments.”

BigBand’s SDV solution has been deployed, or is in the process of being deployed, by six of the top 10 service provides in North America, across 30 systems that pass more than 17 million households.

In September, Bright House Networks completed the installation of its switched digital video offering in Orlando, Fla., with additional installations slated for Tampa, Fla., and Indianapolis.

BigBand’s roster of customers includes Comcast, Charter, Time Warner Cable, Cox Communications and Cablevision, as well as Verizon.

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