I.T. Matters: European standard better, says TV exec

GMA Network, after approving with the other broadcast networks to decide and chose the Japanese ISDB-T standard, here they come again and wanted to reconsider the choice of NTC for the better digital TV standard that will suit the Philippine broadcast industry.

Read the post after the break.

BROADCAST GIANT GMA Network, Inc. said the government should reconsider its decision to pick the Japanese standard for the country’s switch to digital television in 2015, saying a new European standard was better. 

“There [is a] newly emerging standard with significant difference in quality,” said Gilberto R. Duavit, Jr., GMA Network president.

The broadcast executive said the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) should revisit the upgraded Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB) technology, or the DVB2 used in Europe.

DVB was rejected last year in favor of the Japanese standard.

“[For] the Integrated Services Digital Broadcasting-Terrestrial (ISDB-T) standard [of Japan] and the old DVB standards, it can be said that either one is superior over the other in some respects. But with the DVB2, the difference in quality is significant,” he said.

“With the emergence of the DVB2, there is a hope that the standard chosen by the NTC will be reviewed,” he added.

In June last year, the commission, following unanimous industry support, decided to adopt the ISDB-T standard as the country’s digital television platform. Aside from Japan, the standard has been widely adopted in South America.

Mr. Duavit said the shift to digital technology from the current analog system would allow accessibility to more channels and better video and audio quality.

The delivery of high-definition content will be through a conventional aerial antenna, instead of a satellite or cable connection, he added.

DVB2, the successor to the DVB standard, is now widely used throughout Europe and most parts of Asia, Mr. Duavit pointed out.

“I would not be surprised if there are discussions for a possible review [over which digital television technology should be adopted],” he said.

Sought for comment, NTC Commissioner Gamaliel A. Cordoba told BusinessWorld in a telephone interview yesterday it was the broadcast industry that had picked the Japanese digital technology standard.

“If the industry players have issues with the standard, they should have come to us. As far as we are concerned, it was the entire broadcast industry that had agreed with it,” he said.

Mr. Cordoba said the technical working group will meet on Friday to discuss the “organizational matters” for the rollout of the system.

“We will meet the industry players on Friday for the first meeting of the technical working group. We hope to form the necessary committees that day,” he said.

The decision last year to adopt the ISDB-T standard was reached in a meeting of stakeholders from the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas, GMA Network, ABS-CBN Corp., RPN Channel 9, and Vanguard Radio Network Co., Inc., among others.

In June last year, representatives from the Japanese embassy and NTC officials signed a memorandum of cooperation. Japanese makers of the set-top boxes required for non-digital TV sets were said to have committed to build a manufacturing plant in the Philippines to help cut prices.

Mr. Duavit had supported the NTC’s decision to adopt the Japanese standard, saying in a statement last year the network had “assessed the prominent DTT (digital terrestrial television) standards available and have determined ISDB-T to be technically suitable for our television broadcast industry. The network therefore endorses the adoption of the ISDB-T DTT for the country.”

The government is eyeing a switch to digital TV by 2015.

In 2006, the industry regulator released a memorandum saying the country would be using the European standard for digital television. The NTC later deferred this, saying more consultations were needed. - Aura Marie P. Dagcutan, Business World, 06 February 2011, 09:20 PM.

Source: I.T. Matters

ABS-CBN News: Full migration to digital TV completed in 10 years–NTC

MANILA, Philippines - Full migration to digital television in the country will take place 10 years from now, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) has said. 

“Another bold stride the NTC has taken this year was to commence the transition of the broadcast industry from analog to digital. The NTC estimates full migration from analog to digital tv technology within the next 5-10 years,” the regulator said in its yearend report. 

The NTC has now been given the go-ahead by the Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT) to convene a technical working group for the purpose of drafting the Implementing Rules and Regulation (IRR) for digital TV. The TWG will be composed of members from the broadcast industry and other stakeholders such as the government, suppliers and consumers. 

In June of this year, the NTC dumped the European standard for digital television in favor of Japan’s Integrated Services Digital Broadcast (ISDB) technology as the standard for Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) broadcast service. But this can’t be fully implemented yet without the IRR. The NTC should first convene a TWG to craft the IRR and frequency planning for the implementation of the ISDB technology. 

“An overwhelming consensus and endorsement among the various industry stakeholders was submitted to the Commission which bore Memorandum Circular 02-06-2010 on ‘Standard for Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) Broadcast Service’ adopting the ISDB-T platform,” said the NTC. 

When DTT technology is enforced in the country, there is a need to switch off all analog TV handsets. The switch-off would render all nondigital TV sets obsolete unless connected to an external off-the-air tuner, or a satellite system.

The government is looking at delaying the compulsory transition of all analog television service providers to digital TV and for the termination of all analog TV broadcast transmissions from an earlier target set at the end of year 2015. 

The Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP) has an interest in the formulation of the IRR and the frequency planning as these will have immediate, medium- and long-term effects on the operation of its members. 

“Our members have already been preparing for the migration to digital TV. Capital expenditures have been budgeted and to a certain degree outlaid, notwithstanding uncertainties due to the absence of an IRR and frequency plan,” it has said. - Lenie Lectura, Business Mirror, dated 29 December 2010, 11:45 PM

Source: ABS-CBN News 

ABS-CBN News: Philippine, Japan governments to ink digital TV accord

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines and Japanese governments are working on signing a memorandum of cooperation following the decision to tap the latter’s Integrated Services Digital Broadcast technology as the country’s standard for Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) broadcast service.  

Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT) chairman Ivan Uy said Japan is willing to train Filipino engineers in this field. 

This, he said, is contained in the draft memorandum which is currently being circulated for comments. “The memo is circulating among different departments. We need to get comments from everybody whether on the KBP [Kapisanan ng mga Broadkaster ng Pilipinas] side or the Department of Foreign Affair whether it would affect any of our international agreements or commitment,” said Uy, who added, “Once everybody has given their comment, then we will sit down.” 

If approved, Uy said Filipino engineers who will be trained by Japanese experts who can then be tapped by other countries that are also going to adapt the Japanese standard for digital TV.

“Eventually, we would be like a big brother to other countries. We can export our engineers to teach other countries.” 

The Japanese government is also being requested by the Philippines to subsidize the cost of set-top boxes. These boxes are necessary so that the Filipinos can watch digital broadcast programs once the shift from analog to digital system is implemented. 

“The Japanese government will invest in a set-top box factory in the Philippines. But we are also asking them to subsidize the boxes because we don’t have the funds for that,” added Uy. 

When DTT technology is enforced in the country there is a need to switch off all analog TV handsets. The switch-off would render all non-digital TV sets obsolete unless connected to an external off-the-air tuner, or a satellite system.

The government is looking at delaying the compulsory transition of all analog television service providers to digital TV and for the termination of all analog TV broadcast transmissions from an earlier target set at the end of year 2015. 

The National Telecommunications Commission was already given the go-ahead by the CICT to form a Technical Working Group (TWG) for the purpose of drafting the Implementing Rules and Regulation for digital television. 

The TWG will be composed of members from the broadcast industry and stakeholders such as the government, suppliers and consumers. - Lenie Lectura, Business Mirror, dated 28 December 2010, 12:36 AM

Source: ABS-CBN News