TeleGent 3SOFT
TeleGent Cuts Development by 10 Months with Embedded Solution provided by 3SOFT
Business Situation
TeleGent wanted a cost-effective and reliable embedded operating system for a software infrastructure calledEvolution 1 that would power a new set-top box system.
The organisation needed an operating system for small-footprint devices that shipped with a streamlined set oftools and technologies for rapid development and that supported watertight digital rights management software.After considering many embedded solutions, including Linux, the company chose Microsoft� Windows� CE version5.0 and worked with Microsoft Windows Embedded Partner 3SOFT, which built a board support package (BSP).As a result, TeleGent has created a software infrastructure that will save hundreds of thousands of euros overtime, and developers gained a toolset that allowed them to reduce development time for Evolution 1 by 10months.
Solution
TeleGent chose Microsoft� Windows� CE version 5.0 and worked with Microsoft partner 3SOFT, which built theinfrastructure’s board support package.
Benefits
- Saves development costs
- Reduces development time by 10 months
- Empowers developers to achieve goals rapidly
- Delivers content security
- Gains expert support from an excellent partner eco-system
An assessment of Windows CE 5.0 immediately highlighted its benefit toTeleGent. By using the OS, the company could match its original criteria for asuccessful OS. Further, the Microsoft OS would deliver superior support aroundMicrosoft Windows Embedded Partner and DRM technology. For TeleGent,these two factors ensured that the business value of the Microsoft technologyexceeded that of alternative solutions such as Linux.
By using Windows CE, TeleGent has gained a technology for the softwareenvironment of its STBs that will deliver savings worth hundreds of thousandsof euros over time. TeleGent has created a BSP that will ensure Evolution 1 canevolve cost-effectively with advancements in chip and application technology.In effect, it means that TeleGent has future-proofed its technology, avoidingthe cost of starting BSP development from scratch in the future, and writingoff this initial investment.
For 3SOFT, developing the BSP within such a tight timeframe was challenging.However, using Platform Builder and having access to Source Code throughShared Source meant developers gained valuable insight and could meet theirtargets successfully.
�Windows CE provides a very mature, completeenvironment that supports developers better than otherproducts on the market. For my staff, I can say that accessto Source Code was of particular benefit. It meant theycould really understand what was happening inside theoperating system and avoid any unnecessary delays.�
Martin Schleicher, Head of Division, 3SOFT