Qterics (formerly Broadcast Data Corporation and later UpdateLogic Incorporated ) is a company which has developed a system for

datacasting Datacasting (data broadcasting) is the broadcasting of data over a wide area via radio waves. It most often refers to supplemental information sent by television stations along with digital terrestrial television (DTT), but may also be applied ...

firmware In computing, firmware is a specific class of computer software that provides the low-level control for a device's specific hardware. Firmware, such as the BIOS of a personal computer, may contain basic functions of a device, and may provide h ...

upgrades to

digital television Digital television (DTV) is the transmission of television signals using digital encoding, in contrast to the earlier analog television technology which used analog signals. At the time of its development it was considered an innovative advanc ...

devices. It appears that UpdateTV is the only product the company, founded in 2003, has yet developed.

Products

UpdateTV

UpdateTV is a multipath worldwide distribution system which allows

s to automatically receive firmware upgrades and software patches sent out via terrestrial broadcast, digital cable networks, ''and'' the Internet. The network and technology has been under development by UpdateLogic since 2004, was completed in 2006, first shipped in TV sets in 2008 by Sony Electronics, and is now shipped in TVs from Sanyo and others. In the terrestrial case, the UpdateTV solution which works within the ATSC A/97 (Software Data Download Service, or SDDS)

protocol Protocol may refer to: Sociology and politics * Protocol (politics), a formal agreement between nation states * Protocol (diplomacy), the etiquette of diplomacy and affairs of state * Etiquette, a code of personal behavior Science and technology ...

, will be datacast by National Datacast on

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...

TV stations across the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Major cable operators are required by contract to transmit the data such that the software upgrades are also passed to their customers. UpdateLogic works with content delivery network providers, or Internet service providers, to download the software update(s) to connected devices. TV manufacturers work with UpdateLogic to schedule the network distribution of the software patch(es) and optimize the roll-out to ensure the TVs receive it. The upgrades are transmitted repeatedly every day over a period of many months, in part so that the update is not missed due to a power outage, being unplugged (such as to prevent lightning damage while a resident is away, or perhaps being in storage), or due to data corruption or data loss caused by interference or weak signal strength in rural areas or mountainous terrain - which only occurs in the terrestrial broadcast distribution. UpdateTV does ask the user to give consent to install the software on their TV. There is no charge to the consumer for installing an update. Software updates for television sets have fixed issues with video resolution, format compatibility, channel changing speed, V-chip ratings, user interface, timer controls, and more. UpdateTV is enabled on silicon chip set solutions from Broadcom,

AMD Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (AMD) is an American multinational semiconductor company based in Santa Clara, California, that develops computer processors and related technologies for business and consumer markets. While it initially manufactur ...

Zoran Zoran ( sr-Cyrl, Зоран) is a common South Slavic name, the masculine form of Zora, which means ''dawn, daybreak''. The name is especially common in Serbia, North Macedonia, Croatia and a little in Slovenia. Notable people with this given na ...

and others. The UpdateTV network can deliver updates to many types of devices - not just television sets. Devices such as Blu-ray players, mobile/handheld TVs, set-top boxes and gaming consoles are capable of using the service - since they are connected to the Internet, a cable network, and/or a digital TV antenna.

Sale to Silicon Image

On May 6, 2014, Silicon Image purchased UpdateLogic for an undisclosed price. On December 4, 2014,

Qualcomm Qualcomm () is an American multinational corporation headquartered in San Diego, California, and incorporated in Delaware. It creates semiconductors, software, and services related to wireless technology. It owns patents critical to the 5G, 4 ...

purchased a 7% stake in the company for $USD 7 million. Effective on that date, UpdateLogic was renamed Qterics.

Notes

External links

* {{North American DTV Digital television Technology companies established in 2003 American companies established in 2003 Companies based in Plymouth, Minnesota 2014 mergers and acquisitions