FIRECOMMS OPTOLOCK® BUILT INTO IPTV SET TOP BOX REFERENCE DESIGN BY STMICROELECTRONICS

Cork, Ireland — December 18, 2008 — Firecomms announces that its OptoLock® interconnect technology has been built into the STMicroelectronics STi7105 reference design for an IPTV set top box. An easy-to-use, low-cost housing for instant termination of bare Plastic Optical Fiber (POF), OptoLock will enable the quick and easy connection of POF in home networks directly to the STB.

"This decision by STMicroelectronics to include OptoLock in its reference design demonstrates the inroads that POF has made in the home networking arena," says Hugh Hennessy, Firecomms' vice president of sales and marketing. "With more and more device makers including POF ports directly in IPTV and other devices, consumers will soon be able to realize all the advantages of this do-it-yourself networking technology."

"Our development kit exploits several of the most popular interconnect solutions to enable a quick and easy installation of a set top box," says Jean-Michel Goiran, IPTV Set Top Box business development manager at STMicroelectronics.

OptoLock is ideal for 100 Mb Ethernet applications with stringent quality of service requirements such as IPTV gateways, set-top boxes, and hubs. The design of OptoLock enables the fiber to be cut and terminated to the exact required length on site, allowing even the most novice consumer to quickly and easily terminate the bare optical fiber.

Firecomms leads the development of devices that drive POF, a low-cost optical alternative to copper cabling. Due to its ease of use, large core tolerances, and low costs, POF is enjoying significant growth in a wide range of applications. Created for consumer, industrial, and automotive applications in which plastic fiber can be used more easily and at lower costs than copper or glass fiber, POF is now used in millions of small area networks, such as those in cars, and is rapidly gaining ground in home network and pointto- point interconnections. The POF market is estimated to be worth over $1 billion per year beginning at the end of 2009.

About Firecomms Ltd.

Firecomms, a compound semiconductor company, develops high-speed light sources in visible range wavelengths. Firecomms’ lasers and LEDs provide the groundwork that will revolutionize optical data communications for small area networks, such as in-car networks and home networks. Firecomms’ low power visible lasers unleash the potential for advances in medical devices, barcode scanners, and optical storage devices.

The Ireland-based company leverages its ten years of photonics research experience, optical expertise, and extensive IP portfolio to develop cost-effective solutions for applications in which the use of glass fiber optics is prohibitively expensive. Additional information about Firecomms is available at www.firecomms.com.

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