January 7, 2014 Leave a Comment
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SP360: Service Provider

4 Million Video-Optimized Wireless Set-top Boxes Shipped: Who Else Can Say That?

chowj-300x400By Joe Chow, VP and GM, Connected Devices Business Unit, Cisco

A milestone is a foot, and we’d like to commemorate it with this brief blog to promote our latest set-top box triumph. The milestone: Four million! That’s the number of video-optimized wireless set-top boxes now enhancing how consumers watch television, thanks to the notably successful rollouts by our partners AT&T, CenturyLink and Telus.

The cool factor of a wireless video set-top box — AT&T’s U-verse Wireless Receiver, CenturyLink’s Prism, and Telus’ Optik TV, specifically — is that the box doesn’t need to anchor itself between the TV set and the wall jack. Put the box by the outlet; put the TV anywhere in the room. Just another way Cisco and service providers are helping consumers personalize their TV experiences.

AT&T went to market with its U-verse TV Wireless Receiver in October of 2011, emphasizing the technology as a first-ever way to arrange your TV to go with your life, furniture, and living environment. CenturyLink’s Prism TV encourages customers to “put your TV anywhere — even in your backyard.” Set it up once, watch it wherever; the freedom to watch TV on your terms. The Telus “Optik TV” service similarly emphasizes “anywhere viewing,” within the home, without the wire.

As the technology provider for all three deployments, we’re excited and grateful to our customer partners for letting us help launch a new cool factor. Four million times over!