Display multiplexing is very different from multiplexing used in data transmission, although it has the same basic principles. In display multiplexing, the data lines of the displays* are connected in parallel to a common databus on the microcontroller. Then, the displays are turned on and addressed individually. This allows use of fewer I/O pins than it would normally take to drive the same number of displays directly. *Here, each "display" could, for instance, be one calculator digit, not the complete array of digits.