ASIA-PACIFIC BROADCASTING

By Peter Siebert

How often does it happen that you can lean back and just think this is too good to be true? For sure, it does not happen often to me, but when I look at the DVB-T2 specification this is what I feel.

Let me just list a few highlights that have taken place since September 2009, when the specification was first published by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI):

• The majority of UK households can now receive a DVB-T2-based service.
• More than a million DVB-T2 receivers have been sold in the UK alone.
• STB retail prices have reduced from more than £300 (US$489) a year ago to now as low as £30, and the reduction continues.
• Sweden and Finland have started DVB-T2 services.
• Many other countries in Europe and also outside Europe, such as South Africa and India, will follow.

What is the reason for this success? First, with the reliability and robustness of its technical performance, DVB-T2 is without a doubt one of the best digital terrestrial TV (DTT) standards available now. Compared to first-generation DTT standards, such as ISDB-T or DVB-T, it offers significantly improved spectral efficiency. Second, the standard allows for more operational choices. Most notably, I would like to mention the very good support for mobile reception on one side and the high data rate modes for fixed rooftop antennas on the other.

You can even combine these two modes in one frequency channel by using multiple physical layer pipes (MPLPs), where each pipe will have its own modulation and FEC parameter settings.

Another reason for the success of DVB-T2 is the way The DVB Project develops specifications. I would like to point out just two major principals: commercial requirements and decisions by consensus.

At the very beginning of the stan­dardisation process, the relevant people from our member companies come together to discuss and agree on high-level commercial requirements. These requirements become the guidelines for the technical work. With this approach, we can be assured that DVB technology will always be relevant to the needs of the market.

Another key success factor of DVB is that we work by consensus. Arguably, it is not always easy to achieve agreement but once there is unanimity, experience has shown that implementation and market introduction will be so much easier and smoother. The success of DVB-T2 clearly shows the relevance of these two principles.

So what does the success of DVB-T2 mean for countries which have not yet decided on a digital terrestrial standard? First of all, it does not mean that DVB-T is obsolete and that it is not a viable option to take. DVB-T should still be the system of choice when spectrum efficiency is not the most relevant criteria. For instance, this could be the case when only a limited number of SD services are planned and sufficient spectrum is available both now and for the foreseeable future.

DVB-T is a very mature standard; it has been implemented in numerous countries and therefore is well understood as well as supported by a wide range of equipment.

If, however, spectrum efficiency is critical, because new services such as HDTV or 3DTV are envisioned, or the operational flexibility of DVB-T2 is necessary, for example, to offer fixed rooftop reception in combination with portable indoor reception, then DVB-T2 should be the system of choice.

In the past, the price of consumer equipment may have been prohibitive for countries with a not very high per capita income. However, the overwhelming success of DVB-T2 has resulted in a significant price reduction for consumer receiver equipment. High demand, competition and mass production are driving the innovation cycles at increased speed for the benefit of the end-user.

In addition, there is a wide choice of companies providing the necessary professional equipment to build and test DVB-T2 networks. Therefore, any country, which wants to start with DVB-T2 can now be confident that the necessary expertise, equipment and cost-efficient receivers are in place.

Looking towards the future, I am certain that the success of DVB-T2 will continue. In countries where the standard is already in use, penetration will increase. With the cost of demodulators continuing to decrease, very soon the price difference between DVB-T and DVB-T2 receiver equipment will be so minimal that only DVB-T2-capable equipment will be on the market in these countries. And, sooner or later, a sufficiently higher percentage of the receiver population will be DVB-T2­-capable, thus allowing the switching off of DVB-T and enabling everyone to benefit 100% from the superior spectral efficiency of DVB-T2.

Countries which have already gone digital with DVB-T but have not yet made any decision about the next generation of DTT may well stay with the current technology for a long time. However, I am convinced that one day because of new requirements, these countries will also consider the transition to DVB-T2.  

There will also be countries that will “leapfrog” directly from analogue terrestrial TV to DVB-T2. From the outset, these countries will benefit from the superior performance offered by the technology. With DVB-T2, they will deploy the latest and best DTT there is today.  

So, finally, one way or another, we will see DVB-T2 becoming the predominant standard for DTT. I am very pleased to see this development because, in the end, television should be there for the benefit of the people. Today, about 50% of all DVB receivers are either DVB-T or DVB-T2­, and for good reason, as terrestrial TV is the most popular platform for watching television.

Terrestrial TV is still the easiest platform to be deployed for the end-user because it does not require setting up a dish or having a cable connection. In addition, it is the only delivery system which allows portable, or even mobile, reception. With DVB-T2, we have provided the future-proof terrestrial solution for years to come.