Nov. 13, 2005

FCC REGULATIONS TRANSFORM IN-ROOM VIEWING; REQUIRE DIGITAL TV TUNING IN LODGING TVs

Hotel Industry Embraces Digital Television as LG Electronics Introduces Entry-Level DTV Solutions

NEW YORK, Nov. 13, 2005 – When the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) last week accelerated its timetable requiring TV sets to include digital television (DTV) tuners by 2007, the lodging industry took notice. That’s because the new regulations apply not only to consumer sets, but also to TVs installed in hotel rooms. Those tuners, which receive digital TV broadcasts, are being phased-in now, starting with large-screen and mid-sized sets.

All 25-inch and larger TVs sold to hotels must be digital TVs in less than four months, and LG Electronics is introducing its entry-level DTV solutions at the International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show beginning here today. These 32- and 27-inch CRT standard-definition televisions (SDTVs) complement LG’s family of premium flat-panel plasma and LCD high-definition television (HDTV) sets developed specifically for the lodging industry.

“The FCC’s DTV tuner rules mean that the digital experience already in more than 25 million U.S. living rooms will soon become an enhanced guest experience in our ‘home away from home,’ the millions of hotel rooms across the nation,” explained Ron Snaidauf, vice president, Commercial Products, for LG Electronics USA, Inc., whose Zenith subsidiary developed the transmission system at the heart of the FCC’s DTV standard.

New FCC regulations adopted last week call for all TVs to include DTV tuners by March 1, 2007. The so-called “FCC DTV Tuner Mandate” is being implemented in several phases. Since July 1, 2005, 100 percent of 36-inch and larger sets, and 50 percent of 25- to 35-inch sets, sold in the United States are required to incorporate DTV demodulators. The rule will apply to all 25- to 35-inch TVs by March 1, 2006, and all TVs, including those under 13-inches diagonal by March 1, 2007.

With the new FCC DTV regulations in effect, LG Electronics is leading the lodging industry in offering integrated HDTVs specifically designed for hotels, Snaidauf said, citing the three new SDTV models introduced here today. Featuring a truly flat 4:3 CRT picture tube, LG model DU-27FB32C features Multiple Protocol Interface™ technology for pay-per-view control.

This LG model and two others under LG’s Zenith brand name – 32-inch model H32H38DT and 27-inch model H27H38DT – are all built around LG’s industry-leading fifth-generation DTV reception circuitry. “The future is now, and hotels need to be ready by joining forces with a total in-room video solution supplier like LG, with leadership both in HDTV and in lodging TVs.”

Just as consumers today are experiencing the benefits of digital TV, including its widescreen, high-definition images, hoteliers will be able to offer compelling HDTV content thanks to LG Electronics technology such as the first in-room HDTV system and the industry-standard Pro:Idiom™ digital rights management system to assure secure delivery of video-on-demand high-definition programming.

Snaidauf explained that the company’s strategy to help hotels and resorts bridge to the digital future centers on partnering with leading program providers, while capitalizing on LG’s leading technologies developed specifically for the lodging industry, such as Pro:Idiom and its flat-screen hotel TVs and integrated liquid-crystal display and plasma display solutions, he said.

ABOUT LG ELECTRONICS US
LG Electronics USA, Inc. (LGEUS), based in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., is the North American subsidiary of LG Electronics, Inc., a $38-billion global force in consumer electronics, information technology and communications products. LGEUS comprises four core business areas: consumer electronics, mobile phones, home appliances and information technology products, all marketed under its “LG: Life’s Good” theme. LG Commercial Products serves the lodging, business, industrial, education, healthcare and GSA markets. For more information, please visit www.LGcommercial.com