In collaboration with Starz Entertainment, SENCORE demonstrated how the company's next-generation receiver decoders and satellite modulators can maximize transponder bandwidth efficiency when delivering a high volume of content. The demonstration took place at a meeting of the Rocky Mountain Chapter of the Society of Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) held at the Starz Entertainment facility in Englewood, Colo., on Nov. 3.

Relying on SENCORE's SMD 989 DVB-S2 modulator and MRD3187B receiver decoder, a joint team of engineers from both companies illustrated how SENCORE's newest modulation and demodulation technology can be used for transmitting over 100 Mbps of video, audio, and data utilizing 16APSK over a live C-band satellite link and a 4.5-meter receive dish. They also successfully transmitted 32APSK modulation using a 9-meter receive dish.

"The modulation techniques used to deliver that amount of content during the demonstration was quite impressive because it shows that although these modulation techniques are in their infancy, they are feasible and will be adopted for real-world use cases," said SENCORE Product Manager Jack Vickers. "Most important for the content provider, SENCORE's advanced technology increases the bits per hertz that they are capable of transmitting, which translates into lower operational expenditures without sacrificing video quality."

SENCORE and Starz have enjoyed a longstanding, collaborative relationship, one that has also served as a product incubator for the industry as a whole. In fact, Starz has nearly 75 SENCORE products in use at its Colorado facility, including test and measurement devices and high-quality video delivery and signal transmission solutions.

"Starz and SENCORE's successful business relationship is from our mutual commitment to delivering excellent service to our customers," said Andy Pergeau, director of Broadcast and Transmission Engineering, Starz Entertainment. "The demonstration showcased SENCORE's ability to design products that implement cutting-edge technologies and work in real-world use cases. The capabilities seen in these products will enable us to expand our service offering and maintain our operational expenses."

The nonprofit Society of Satellite Professionals International supports satellite professionals throughout their career. The Rocky Mountain Chapter of the SSPI is one of five chapters in the United States. Its goal is to promote high-quality, satellite-related post-secondary and adult education through scholarships, curriculum development, conferences, and publications including the world's first online journal on space communications.

SENCORE's MRD3187B supports multiple applications by combining dual-channel processing capability with MPEG-2, MPEG-4, 4:2:0, SD, and HD video decoding. The versatile receiver decoder adapts to virtually any contribution, distribution, or backhaul environment, and sets the standard for performance, scalable functionality, and cost of ownership. SENCORE's SMD 989 DVB-S2 modulator offers unprecedented efficiency and flexibility for modulating two independent DVB-S2 RF transmissions. The platform provides multistream satellite video delivery, minimizing overall transponder usage, and accepts transport streams via DVB-ASI or IP inputs.

www.SENCORE.com