PANELLISTS
❝ Regardless of the digital TV standard deployed , the most important consideration when selecting a delivery mechanism is to leverage the technology that provides the highest payload amount , and the most advanced compression algorithms .❞
24
March 2016
Move along anal
Globecast extends Russia ’ s Channel One reach
Russian broadcaster Channel One has chosen Globecast to help it reach the European market ( via HotBird ) and Asia ( via AsiaSat 5 ), extending its reach to new audiences . Globecast is providing dual illumination on HotBird with an MPEG-4 channel , in addition to the existing MPEG- 2 service it provides for Channel One , whose existing content stream is being re-broadcast to audiences in these new territories — benefiting from Globecast ’ s global presence and network capacity . The live signal from Channel One is received at Globecast ’ s Moscow PoP and delivered to London . From there , the signal is uplinked to HotBird for onward European transmission . For Asian audiences , the signal is forwarded to Hong Kong for uplinking to AsiaSat 5 .
Jacques Kerrest is Intelsat ’ s new CFO
Jacques Kerrest has joined Intelsat as EVP and CFO . Reporting to Stephen Spengler , Intelsat ’ s CEO , Kerrest will be responsible for the leadership of Intelsat ’ s financial operations , including capital markets , accounting , treasury , financial planning , investor relations and corporate development . Kerrest joins Intelsat from DPC Data , where he served as president and led the company ’ s efforts in providing disclosure-related data products and specialised data services to the municipal bond marketplace in the US .
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Wireless Cellular-based Transmission
PANELLISTS
Dr Ali R Ebadi
Senior Vice-President Space Systems Development Measat Satellite Systems
Lim Kian Soon
Head , Satellite Singtel
Martin Coleman
Executive Director Satellite Interference Reduction Group
DTT is here to st
The next few years are likely to see more governments around the world put a symbolic end to analogue TV transmission , as digital terrestrial TV becomes truly accessible worldwide . Shawn Liew reports …
Much like how an adrenaline surge can propel athletes towards the finishing line and the winning podium , the recently concluded WRC-15 has arguably provided the key impetus for broadcasters to complete a full transition to digital TV broadcasting .
In Asia-Pacific , where many countries are entering the home stretch in terms of the analogue switchover , the decisions taken at WRC-15 cannot be understated . With representatives from more than 150 countries reaching the consensus that spectrum currently used by broadcast services such as digital terrestrial TV ( DTT ) remains too important to be allocated for International Mobile Telecommunications ( IMT ), the 470-698MHz spectrum band , which Asia-Pacific utilises , will be largely safeguarded against regional-wide IMT identification .
The WRC-15 ruling has solidified the notion that digital broadcast TV is the highest and best use for spectrum in the 470-698MHz band , says Rich Richmond , chief product officer of GatesAir . He tells APB : “[ WRC-15 ] gives broadcasters in the Asia-Pacific region confidence that investment in the [ digital ] conversion is
GatesAir ’ s Maxiva XTE exciter enhances the DTT transition with native IP transport capability , IP-based synchronisation , monitoring and control .
❝ Regardless of the digital TV standard deployed , the most important consideration when selecting a delivery mechanism is to leverage the technology that provides the highest payload amount , and the most advanced compression algorithms .❞
— Rich Richmond , Chief Product Officer , GatesAir
The DTT transition around the world is supported by standards such as ATSC , ISDB-T and DTMB . However , it is the DVB-T / T2 standards that are dominating the digital switchover , as more governments around the world call time on analogue TV transmission .
going to be secure for some time to come . The questions around spectrum stability should no longer be a major concern for broadcasters who want to move forward .”
With spectrum in the UHF band unlikely to be contested , at least until WRC-23 , it also presents an opportunity for broadcasters to lay the groundwork in preparation for future services . For instance , Richmond lauds the South Korean government for specifically allocating the 700MHz spectrum band for over-the-air 4K / Ultra HD ( UHD ) transmission , which will reportedly begin deployment over the next 12-24 months . “ That ’ s a very strong sign of commitment ,” he adds .
And regardless of the digital TV standard deployed , the most important consideration when selecting a delivery mechanism is to leverage the technology that provides the highest payload amount , and the most advanced compression algorithms , Richmond advises . “ Many Asia-Pacific countries that were a little cautious with their digital conversion plans now have world-class standards to choose from . Advances in compression technologies have made MPEG-4 and HEVC / H . 265 encoding viable in DTT , with significant benefits .” Because of these advancements , delivering of 4K / UHD is a reality with advanced coding and standards such as DVB-T2 or ATSC 3.0 , both of which come with “ significant ” payload advancements , Richmond cites .
While ATSC is widely deployed in the Americas and South Korea in Asia- Pacific , DVB-T / T2 remains the preeminent digital TV standard in Asia- Pacific . Worldwide , some 150 countries have trialed , adopted or deployed DVB-T / T2 , including Cambodia , Indonesia , Malaysia , Thailand and Singapore , which has announced the cessation of all analogue TV transmission by end-2017 .
With a few exceptions , every broadcaster in Asia-Pacific is deploying DVB-T / T2 , concurs Sarge Mal , EVP and general manager at TeamCast , which continues to supply broadcasters with analogue and DTT exciters for the modernisation of their TV transmitters . He adds : “ This gives broadcasters the capability to continue to use analogue while being ready to switch to digital without any delay — with additional benefits in terms of increased performance and reduced energy consumption .”
Mal , however , acknowledges that there is a case to be made for broadcasters to keep simulcast periods transient . “ What we have seen in some countries is that broadcasters try to shorten the simulcast period as much as possible , because simulcast means doubled cost of transmission and doubled spectrum occupancy .”