CEVA, Inc., the leading licensor of wireless connectivity and smart sensing technologies and integrated IP solutions, announced that its latest RivieraWaves Bluetooth® 5.3 IP family now supports Auracast™ broadcast audio, the new audio sharing standard, based on the Bluetooth LE Audio broadcasting specification, unveiled by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) today. Auracast broadcast audio is set to transform the shared audio experience, enabling an unlimited number of Auracast receiver-compliant devices such as TWS earbuds, headphones, hearing aids and wireless speakers to simultaneously receive audio broadcast from one or several Auracast transmitter devices.
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The recently published Bluetooth SIG 2022 market update forecasts that the number of Bluetooth audio streaming device shipments will grow at a 7% CAGR to reach 1.8 billion annual shipments by 2026, with earbud shipments growing 3X in that time. The new Auracast broadcast audio, that is part of the Bluetooth LE Audio specification, is set to open significant new opportunities for innovation, including the enablement of personal and location-based audio sharing. Potential use case examples include flight-specific audio broadcasts at an airport, multi-language options at the movie theater or museum and a host of assistance features in public spaces for the hearing impaired that can be broadcast directly to hearing aids.
Tal Shalev, Vice President and General Manager of the Wireless IoT BU at CEVA, commented: “We welcome the introduction of Auracast broadcast audio that will transform the way we share audio, privately and in public areas. CEVA has contributed to the evolution of the Bluetooth standard and is proud to have licensed its Bluetooth LE and Dual Mode technologies, including Auracast solutions, to major semiconductor companies and OEMs for various applications including wireless headsets, TWS earbuds, hearing aids, smartwatches, speakers and microphones.”
CEVA is the leading provider of Bluetooth platform IP solutions for integration into SoCs, powering billions of Bluetooth-enabled devices to date. CEVA offers both Bluetooth LE and Dual Mode IP platforms, including baseband controller, radio and full software protocol stack, compliant with Bluetooth 5.3, LE Audio and Auracast. To further simplify the development of wireless audio devices, CEVA’s Bluebud Bluetooth audio turnkey platform offers a complete wireless audio experience, targeting TWS earbuds, smartwatches, wireless microphones and speakers.