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11th October - The high-profile
Oxford mobile TV trial, mounted by Arqiva with O2 and
Nokia, has created enormous interest world-wide. It is
the first UK user trial of multi-channel TV broadcast
directly to mobiles rather than one-to-one streaming via
the mobile networks. 16 TV services were delivered digitally
in a reliable and rugged way to almost 400 triallists
equipped with specially modified Nokia 7710 mobile phones.
Early results confirm mass-market appeal for a true multi-channel
offering, underlining the need for a broadcast delivery
network. See under News for the interim results of the
trial. |
The roll-out of such a network is hampered, however, by the
lack of suitable radio spectrum. In fact there are various
issues that the industry must address, preferably with once
voice. Arqiva has therefore invited key players to form a
‘task force’ to consider what needs to be done and
the best way to approach the introduction of a national mobile
TV service. An obvious objective is to have such a service
operating before the 2012 London Olympics.
Dr Hyacinth Nwana is managing director or Arqiva's Mobile
Media Solutions division: “The Oxford Mobile TV trial
has proved there is a market for mobile broadcasting and now
we’re looking to make it happen with the collaboration
of the whole industry. The trial is proving that mobile multi-channel
broadcasting, including TV and Radio, is mass market in addition
to meeting consumer demand for content and choice of programmes.
We have also demonstrably proven scalability, even if we have
to deliver to millions of handsets simultaneously.”
“However, there are services due for commercial launch
in several countries in 2006, meaning that the UK is already
in danger of lagging behind the rest of the world. In order
to have a national service in place, in time for the London
Olympics, we will require a clear path forward from the regulator
this year.”
At the Oxford Media Convention in January, Dr Nwana was
able to demonstrate mobile TV to UK Secretary of State for
Culture, Media and Sport, the Rt Hon Tessa Jowell MP.
The Oxford mobile TV trial uses DVB-H technology and is just
one application of content delivery to mobile and portable
devices. Arqiva is also involved in the BT Movio (formerly
‘Livetime’) pilot, which uses the existing digital
radio (DAB) network to provide a multimedia ‘pipe’
to the mobile consumer. And Arqiva is also working with Microsoft
on a more integrated approach to sharing content between a
home Media Centre, vehicle-based equipment and mobile terminals
– using a mixture DVB, DAB and Wi-Fi delivery platforms.
DVB-H is optimised for UHF TV spectrum and is capable of
supporting 20-30 TV services in a single-frequency network,
if a suitable frequency can be allocated. For DAB, at least
in the UK, only 20% of a multiplex is allowed to be used for
data, limiting capacity to only a few video-based services.
This option is however available now as the infrastructure
is already in place.
The truth is that consumers don’t much care about how
content is delivered, so long as it is available when and
where required. Imagine downloading (wirelessly) selected
programmes from your home personal video recorder (PVR) or
media centre into your mobile device for viewing in spare
time during the day. Combined with live TV and over-air downloadable
updates, you need never miss anything when out and about.
And new interactive applications will provide services that
most consumers have yet to imagine!
In today’s mobile-enabled society, consumer demands and
expectations are increasing all the time. Arqiva’s job
is to keep one step ahead for its customers and make sure
the technology, networks and partnerships are there to support
future service offerings.
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