According to an industry source today, China's State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT) has released a unified downloadable conditional access system (DCAS) standard for set-top boxes (STBs) that could be implemented around China. In an interview, Sheng Zhifan of SARFT's Department of Science and Technology said that the standard had been promoted in larger provinces since March of this year. Industry sources believe that the release of the standard will affect the interests of CA card companies and cable television operators, and that a unified STB standard, while ultimately the direction being taken by the industry, will take time to implement. If the standard is indeed implemented for all STBs, mass production and implementation for all-in-one displays (i.e. flat-panel displays with integrated STB functionality) will also be imminent. Chinese consumer electronics manufacturers Changhong (600839.SH) and Skyworth Digital Holdings (0751.HK) say that mass production of all-in-one displays will be held back depending upon the speed of uptake for SARFT's DCAS standard.

Source:marbridgeconsulting