BELFAST FIRM APTX has taken a major step forward in getting its audio technology into mainstream products, following a new deal with Apple.
The firm has developed technology that makes Bluetooth usable for high-fidelity audio, an area that was previously considered a poor performer for the technology. The firm’s technology streams high-quality stereo sound over Bluetooth wireless connections from devices such as laptops, mobile phones and portable music players.
The compression and decompression algorithm, known as a codec, was used in Apple’s Mac Mini, which was unveiled last month.
“It’s a good thing in many ways,” said APTX’s president of worldwide sales, Jon McClintock. “It’s a brand that everyone believes in and it’s a source product.”
The deal with Apple is the first “source” deal that APTX has done. Until now, the company has dealt mainly with peripherals, such as headphones and speakers. APTX has licensed its technology to companies such as Sennheiser, Jaybird and Creative, which allows them to use the codec in their products.
However, while an important deal, the company said the Apple agreement was only the start of APTX’s push to get the technology into more and more products.
“Apple is important, but in the play we’re putting on Broadway, it is merely a walk-on part,” McClintock said. “We needed a big win in the source side. We’ve had plenty of design wins in peripherals. We’re hoping this will snowball. It could open the door to new possibilities.”
Previously, Bluetooth was considered to suffer from performance issues when used to stream audio wirelessly.
“It’s a positive statement for Apple to accept Bluetooth,” McClintock added. “It may not have done everything for everyone in its previous incarnation.”
The codec took about four years to research and the company has been working for the past few years to spread the word about it.
“It hasn’t been an overnight success,” he said. “It’s been a lot of hard work.”
The hard work paid off at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January.
APTX won the award for the Bluetooth Special Interest Group’s Best of CES 2010.
The award highlights innovative Bluetooth-enabled products that the organisation considers will make their mark on the consumer electronics industry in the coming year.
