Issue No. 70
March 2018
Highlights From DVB World 2018
DVB World 2018, which took place in Warsaw, generated interesting debate and discussion on the future of media delivery and the role that DVB should play. Among the most keenly anticipated topics in the conference program were two of DVB's latest work items – DVB-I and DVB-TA . The existing suite of DVB standards for terrestrial, cable and satellite were also featured and insights into the future development of those platforms were on the agenda.

In his closing remarks at the event, DVB chairman Peter MacAvock stated that DVB faces a number of challenges as it seeks to continue to meet the demands of the ever-evolving broadcast industry. He went on to say that DVB may need to embrace new approaches like those commonplace in software development. One of the key challenges is the constant struggle to ensure interoperability in a multi-device world.

For snapshots of the event, see the  DVB World 2018 Twitter Moment . Videos of DVB World 2018 will soon be available on our YouTube channel.

In 2019, DVB World will take place in Dublin on 11-13 March.

All Comments Welcome On New DVB BlueBook A176
The recently published DVB BlueBook A176 presents the reference architecture for an end-to-end system to deliver linear content over IP networks in a scalable and standards-compliant manner. The system was developed within DVB’s TM-IPI group. The document – A176: Adaptive media streaming over IP multicast , whilst not an approved DVB specification, has been made publicly available to enable comments from the wider industry.

DVB BlueBook A176: Adaptive media streaming over IP multicast can be downloaded from the DVB website.

Those wishing to comment are invited to contact the leader of the group's ABR Multicast Taskforce, Richard Bradbury (BBC).
Technical Specification Approved For A Single Illumination System
The DVB Steering Board has approved a new technical specification for a Single Illumination System. The system allows for the combination of DVB-T/T2 contribution and DVB-S/S2/S2X distribution in a single satellite beam. The specification has been published as DVB BlueBook A175 and will now be sent to ETSI for publication as a Technical Specification.

Network operators and network equipment manufacturers came together in DVB to identify a technical solution for a Single Illumination System. The Technical Module, based on Commercial Requirements defined by the Commercial Module, created the Technical Specification Metadata generation and deterministic DVB-T-megaframe/DVB-T2-MI stream generation from MPEG-2 Transport Stream(s) for a DVB Single Illumination System .

In line with the Commercial Requirements, DVB-SIS signals can be received by all DVB-S/S2/S2X receivers while simultaneously feeding DVB-T/T2 networks.

Download the BlueBook on the DVB website .
Report On Satellite Workshop At ABU DBS
Satellite broadcast is a popular mechanism to provide TV programs to a wide audience. Basically all satellite transmissions utilize DVB S/S2/S2X technical specifications. Considering the important role of satellite in the broadcast sector, DVB together with several DVB Members, organized the workshop DVB-S2/S2X: Advanced Features and Applications at the recent ABU DBS conference in Kuala Lumpur.
 
Ken Loke (Eutelsat Asia) provided an update on IP delivery and interactivity based on HbbTV for satellite. This was followed by Chuan Soin Tong (Newtec) providing information on the features of the latest DVB-S2X specification. His presentation was accompanied by a demonstration of 4 UHD signals being transmitted with an overall data rate of 100 Mbit/s using the S2X channel bonding feature. In this demo the signal was spread over 3 transponders. In the receiver, a Broadcom chipset combined the 3 signals to the original 100 Mbit/s signal. Simon Tsang (TestTree) and Gino Salochi (Rover Instruments) gave a presentation on satellite signal measurements and demonstrated the latest measurement devices for S2/S2X transmissions. Lastly, Leon Mun (Sony) gave an overview of the superb video quality achieved with 4K resolution and High Dynamic Range (HDR). Information was also provided on the wide range of interactive services based on HbbTV and Android TV technology implemented in the latest generation of TV sets.
 
The workshop was well attended with more than 120 participants following the presentations with great interest. The interactive demo section drew many questions for the speakers.
Report From BES
The theme of this year’s BES Conference and Exhibition, held 26-28 February in New Delhi, India was Non-linear Broadcasting - Technology & Business Models . The 3 day conference was well attended and covered topics including Next Generation Broadcasting, 5G, IP Production, Digital Radio and Targeted Advertising with speakers from worldwide organizations.

There was a lot of discussion about the objectives of DTT in India, where Doordarshan (the public service broadcaster) has already installed DVB-T2 transmitters at 23 regional centers, with plans to expand coverage to a further 44 sites offering handheld, mobile and fixed reception leading to analogue switch off in 2022. However, it is proving difficult to justify further expansion of the terrestrial network when there is already very high viewership on satellite and cable distribution platforms as well as mobile streaming services.

DVB’s Roadmap for Terrestrial Transmission and IP delivery  presentation in the Evolving Trends in Television Transmission Technology session gave an update on DVB’s evolutionary work on ‘Beyond the Transport Stream’, Personalization and Targeted Advertising as well as Broadcast Delivery via IP networks.

The success of DVB-T2 in Poland highlights the commercial success and wide adoption of this standard, with the new DVB-SIS (Single Illumination Standard) and SAT>IP for seamless in-home distribution of broadcast signals promising further operational efficiencies for DTT.

The announcement of DVB-I stimulated discussion about the future of broadcasting in India. Some speakers cautioned that 5G, as a replacement for terrestrial broadcast is still some way off. It was pointed out that the participation of the broadcast sector (EBU/DVB) in 3GPP is necessary to ensure that new 5G standards integrate broadcasting efficiently.

The DVB presentation also included a comparison between ATSC 3.0 and DVB-T2. This challenged some of the more extravagant claims of what ATSC 3.0 could achieve when compared on a like-for-like broadcast basis with DVB-T2, and was generally appreciated by the audience.
Free TV and Broadcast Australia Trial DVB-T2
Free TV and Broadcast Australia (BA) have announced that they have agreed to conduct trials of next generation broadcast technology in Sydney. The SBS ( Special Broadcasting Service )  and the ABC ( Australian Broadcasting Corporation ) will also be active participants in the trials.

The trial will assess the performance of DVB-T2 technologies in the Australian environment. DVB-T2 is being considered as a technology to replace the current DVB-T standard for television delivery in the medium term. When combined with new compression technologies, DVB-T2 will have the potential to allow 4K TV reception—four times the picture quality of the current high definition standard.

Laboratory trials are currently underway at BA’s premises in Chatswood. Wider trials will commence from three transmission sites across Sydney from April to June. Further information on the trial will be made available on the Broadcast Australia website .

Member Offer - TV Connect 2018 | 9 & 10 May | Olympia London
Over 100 speakers have now been confirmed for TV Connect, the only congress and exhibition focusing on video distribution.

Recent additions include senior representatives from Google , Viacom International Media Networks , Telefonica Digital , Insight TV , Viasat World and Zone TV .
Taking place on 9 & 10 May at Olympia London, TV Connect is the only event of its kind. Bringing global video distribution and content delivery professionals together in one place, the hard-hitting agenda gets to the heart of key issues, helping the industry to navigate the changing face of video distribution, content delivery and media technology.
“TV Connect 2018 will be the voice of the video distribution industry and initiate conversation in key areas, particularly Quality of Service and Quality of Experience” said Jackson Szabo, show manager at TV Connect.

The Congress has also been CPD (Continuing Professional Development) accredited by the IET for 2018, allowing delegates to boost their continuing professional development while attending. Also new for this year, all Congress delegates receive complimentary access to the IET hosted pre-event masterclass on 8 May.

We are delighted to announce that all DVB Members can save an additional 20% off the cost of an all-access delegate pass. Simply quote the VIP Code TAM2394DVB when booking.

DVB will be exhibiting on Stand B14.
Netflix Confirms The Audience Is Watching On TVs
At a briefing earlier this month at its headquarters in Los Gatos, California, Netflix revealed data on the viewing habits of its subscribers to a group of invited journalists. With numerous surveys reporting that today’s audiences are changing their viewing behavior by watching TV content on their mobile phones or tablets, the Netflix data might come as a bit of a surprise, or maybe not. The data confirmed that Netflix’s customers are predominantly watching the service on a connected TV with over 70 percent of its streams ending up on connected TVs instead of phones, tablets or PCs.

Peter Siebert, DVB's Head of Technology, recently gave a presentation at the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union’s Digital Broadcasting Symposium where he presented similar data from NRK/Kantar where the overall rate of people using TVs to watch streaming services was not only the predominant mode, but is on the increase.

Recode, the online tech and business news source were at the Netflix briefing and you can read the story here.
DVB Welcomes Its Newest Member
DVB is pleased to welcome YouView to the DVB membership.

YouView is a joint venture owned by its shareholders BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, BT, TalkTalk and Arqiva. It provides software for set-top boxes and connected TVs together with cloud services to provide a platform in the UK that combines live TV delivered by DTT and IPTV with on-demand content. You can learn more about YouView by visiting their website.
 
The DVB membership consists of some of the world's most distinguished broadcasters, manufacturers, network operators, software developers, regulatory bodies and others from over 35 countries that are committed to designing open and interoperable technical specifications for the global delivery of digital media and broadcast services.

See article below on how to join DVB.
Speakers' Corner
NAB
Date: 07-12 April
Venue: Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas

07 April
Global UHD Conference - UHD Worldwide Service Deployment Update - Thierry Fautier  (Harmonic)

09 April
Broadcast Engineering and Information Technology Conference - What is the Best UHD for Terrestrial Broadcast? - Peter Siebert (DVB)

Broadcast Engineering and Information Technology Conference - High Frame Rate and High Dynamic Range: Towards an Enhanced Video Experience - Mickael Raulet (ATEME)

11April
Streaming Summit: HEVC vs. AV1 and The Future Of The Codec Battle - Thierry Fautier (Harmonic). Today, several video codecs are competing to be the next-generation standard in the OTT environment, with HEVC and AV1 being the front runners. The panel will discuss the pros and cons of HEVC and AV1, and also put in perspective content-aware encoding techniques with AVC that might be a strong challenger in the short term for OTT distribution.


7th FOKUS Media Web Symposium
Date: 15-16 May
Venue:  Fraunhofer-Institute FOKUS, Berlin

Dr.-Ing. Peter Neumann (Cologne Broadcasting Center GmbH) will give the presentation Dynamic Ad Substitution - Current State and Future Outlook that will address DVB’s activity in the field of Targeted Advertising (TA).

SES Industry Day
Date: 23-24 May
Venue: Luxembourg Congress, Luxembourg

24 May
Industry outlook: Technology and standards for the 21st century - Peter Lanigan (TP Vision), vice-chair DVB-CM-I, will give a presentation on DVB-I.

SUBTECH1 - Symposium on Subtitling Technology
Date: 24-25 May
Venue: IRT, Munich
DVB experts will give presentations on the recent amendments to DVB Subtitling Systems which added explicit support of subtitling for UHDTV services.

Speakers' Corner is a regular column of DVB eNews that serves to let readers know where they can see DVB related presentations at the various conferences, seminars and events around the world. If you are a DVB Member speaking on a DVB topic at an upcoming event why not get in touch and let us know and we will publicize it here.
Module Activities
3, 9, 30 April – CM-TA - Webex Telco.   Agenda - TBA.
16-17 April – CM-TA – Mediaset HQ, Milan. Agenda - TBA.

5, 18 April, 3, 17 May – CM-I – Webex Telco.  Agenda - TBA.

6 April - CM-AVC HDR – Ericsson HQ , Stockholm. Agenda - TBA.

16 May – CM-AVC – London Heathrow Marriott. Agenda - TBA.

16-17 May – TM-IPI – Fraunhofer-Institute FOKUS , Berlin. Agenda - TBA.

Note: This listing is correct at the time of publication. Meeting participants should consult the Meetings Calendar on the DVB website for up-to-date information.
HbbTV 2.0.2 Released  
The HbbTV Association has released HbbTV 2.0.2. This update of the second version of the core HbbTV specification enables HbbTV applications to benefit from new Ultra High Definition video and audio technologies such as High Dynamic Range, High Frame Rate and Next-Generation Audio –  delivered as streaming services using, e.g., MPEG-DASH.

The HbbTV 2.0.2 specification has been under development since October 2017, and it builds on significant work done in DVB during 2017. Many HbbTV devices already support these technologies today, but there has been no standardized way to use these features. The new specification defines a common, standard mechanism for accessing them from HbbTV applications.

The HbbTV 2.0.2 specification can be found on the HbbTV website.
Become A DVB Member  
With the changes taking place in viewing patterns, and the technical challenges this trend presents, there has never been a more important time to join DVB. Membership of DVB is open to all organizations involved in digital broadcasting and offers participation in the development of the DVB specifications.

Key advantages and benefits of becoming a DVB Member can be found on the DVB website .
 
For more information about joining DVB, contact  Eva Markvoort .