Cage Chao, Taipei; Jessie Shen

 

MStar Semiconductor has announced that its set-top box (STB) solutions have been selected by cable operator Taiwan Broadband Communication (TBC).

MStar's STB chips adopted by TBC have received technical certification from Nagravision, a provider of conditional access systems (CAS), MStar indicated.

TBC recently unveiled plans to invest NT$2 billion (US$68 million) in digital cable TV services over the next five years. The cable operators said it will spend NT$1.5 billion on STB procurement, with new devices set to be installed starting November.

MStar said its STB product line is relatively young compared to other segments. Sales of its STB ICs are expected to account for almost 5% of company revenues in 2011, and will continue to expand in 2012 as a key growth driver.

MStar also supplies chips for LCD monitors, TVs and mobile phones.

In other news, MStar said that its sales guidance for the third quarter of 2011 should remain on track. The company estimated third-quarter revenues at US$303-318 million, representing a growth of 5% to 10% compared to the second quarter.