[opendtv] Broadcasters Warn Next-Generation Mobile Services Could Disrupt Digital TV Signals
- From: "John Willkie" <johnwillkie@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 14 Nov 2007 09:07:20 -0800
And, somehow, the NAB and 8-VSB aren’t involved.
John Willkie jwillkie@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
www.EtherGuidesystems.com / www.OurEPG.com
Skype jmwillkie / Lab ++52 664 290-7526 / Mobile +1 619 770-5760
Broadcasters Warn Next-Generation Mobile Services Could Disrupt Digital TV
Signals
From: Associated Press
By FRANK JORDANS Associated Press Writer
GENEVA--Millions of viewers could find their TVs switched off by nearby cell
phones if a U.N. meeting this week grants next-generation mobiles services
access to the same frequency as digital television, European broadcasters said
Tuesday.
"Interference from mobile phones could cause sudden and complete loss of
picture," the European Broadcasting Union said. It also warned of loss of
sound.
The warning is the latest shot in an old vs. new technology battle pitting
broadcasters against telecoms companies for control of a prime stretch of radio
spectrum.
Countries have until Friday to decide whether to open up all or part of the
bandwidth currently reserved in much of the world for terrestrial television to
companies providing services to phones, computers and handheld devices.
The European Broadcasting Union, or EBU, which represents broadcasters in 56
European and Mediterranean countries, wants more time to study the effects of
cell phone interference on the digital television receivers increasingly used
to pick up terrestrial TV and radio broadcasts in the region.
"We would not like to see any allocation in the 470 to 862 megahertz band,"
Walid Sami, a senior engineer with EBU, told The Associated Press.
The United States has been lobbying hard for mobile providers to be given
access to this part of the spectrum, arguing that it is the most cost-effective
band on which to roll out next-generation mobile services.
The U.S. government plans to sell parts of this bandwidth in its territory,
regardless of any decision at this month's U.N.-hosted World
Radiocommunications Conference in Geneva.
The auction, scheduled for early next year, is expected to fetch up to US$15
billion (€10.3 billion).
U.S. officials say that a global agreement on how to use the spectrum will give
technology manufacturers a greater incentive to develop their products,
resulting in cheaper and better devices for consumers.
European Union officials have so far opposed the move because of interference
concerns. The U.S. has much lower rates of digital terrestrial television use,
relying more on cable and satellite, and would be less prone to possible
disruption of signals.
One option would be to limit the amount of bandwidth available for mobile
services in region 1, which comprises Europe, Africa, Mongolia, the former
Soviet Union, and much of the Middle East.
"A compromise solution could be 790 to 862 MHz ... but many things can still
happen" Peter Scheele, a delegate with the European Union, told The AP.
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