RGB Networks has jumped into the highly competitive edge QAM sector with a product, the company claims, that can support as many as 128 QAM channels and a multiplex of up to 1,280 digital programs.

The 1-RU device, dubbed the Universal Scalable Modulator (USM), is designed to support multiple cable services, including video-on-demand, broadcast digital video and switched digital video . It is also being outfitted to handle the downstream component of the emerging modular cable modem termination system (M-CMTS).

The USM marks the fourth product from the San Mateo, Calif.-based startup. Others supported by its software-configurable and upgradable hardware platform include the Simulcast Edge Processor (SEP), Modular Media Converter (MMC) (for ASI to GigE conversions), and the Broadcast Network Processor (BNP), which enables grooming, stat muxing, ad insertion, and switched broadcast services.

Although the USM can be configured for 128 QAM channels in 6 MHz cable systems (it supports up to 96 QAM channels in networks that space spectrum with 8 MHz channels), the number of channels supported can take advantage of the platform's modular design to scale capacity up and down, depending on the needs of the cable operator, explained Ramin Farassat, RGB's VP of product marketing.

"We don't want customers to pay for a chassis with 128 QAMs if they are only using 24," he said, noting that operators can add capacity on a per port basis by securing additional licenses from RGB.

RGB, which counts Comcast among its financial backers, uses Motorola as its channel partner in North America. It has recently opened international offices in the United Kingdom and in Singapore.

To date, the company has shipped more than 1,200 units.