Helping to bring digital entertainment and critical data services to agricultural communities in parts of China, Zhengzhou's VCOM Technology Co. Ltd. has selected Cirrus Logic Inc. to provide digital audio/video processors with analog and mixed-signal integrated circuits for a new line of broadband set-top boxes.

The Chinese government is engaged in numerous initiatives aimed at raising household income for agricultural communities. One of these initiatives is bringing critical information services, combined with broadband entertainment, to remote areas. Analog television will remain dominant in China for many years–digital television is not expected to become widespread in China before 2015. As a result, equipping rural homes with set-top boxes is currently the most simple and cost-effective way to provide these homes with the benefits of broadband technology.

The VCOM Technology set-top box, DVnD-4955, which will be distributed by China Telecom Group, is scheduled to bring both video-on-demand and information services such as weather, market prices, government policies and educational opportunities to outlying areas in China's Henan and Shanxi provinces. The goal is to create a partnership between the government, the communications industry and agricultural workers. The roll-out of the new network is expected to be completed by June 2005.

The set-top box will feature Cirrus Logic's CS98000 DVD processor as well as two Cirrus Logic mixed-signal and analog ICs, the CS4340 stereo digital-to-analog converter and the CS4955 TV encoder. The CS98000 provides real-time computing power through its two embedded, high-performance 32-bit RISC processors.