RadioScape, the world leader in Software Defined Digital Radio solutions, announced that the results of the trials in Cambridge, UK show that the design of DMB networks, for the carriage of video and multimedia services based on state-of-the-art codes, can proceed using essentially the same rules as for current DAB audio networks.
DMB is viewed by many as the next logical step in the evolution of DAB, said Dr. Les Sabel, RadioScapes VP of Technology. More importantly, it could also represent the next step in the evolution of mobile phones delivering the vision of video and data on the move that 3G promised but cannot deliver in a cost effective and efficient manner. A one-to-many broadcast technology, such as DMB, provides a broadband pipe of multimedia services that the one-to-one approach of 3G can only provide in small numbers and expensively.
There is concern about the viability of an alternative to DMB called DVB-H. This is a modification of Digital Video Broadcast Terrestrial (DVB-T) for handheld devices but has spectrum allocation issues as many countries are currently using these frequencies for analogue television. DMB, on the other hand, is based on proven DAB technology with spectrum, transmission towers and capacity already available for it in most countries. Current discussions indicate that for DVB-H to work effectively in mobile and indoor environments it will need to use transmission parameters similar to DAB. This will eliminate any real capacity advantages and still leave DVB-H with the issue of transmission power equirements due to its larger bandwidth.
Our field trials show that good DMB reception can be achieved with existing DAB transmitters that only use low amounts of power to cover a large footprint, Dr. Sabel explained. I have yet to see any comparative, quantitative evidence for DVB-H but, recent discussions indicate that for DVB-H to achieve the same footprint, network providers will typically require a five times greater density of transmitters. This will make DVB-H very expensive to establish and run — let alone the possibility of public concerns over yet more transmission towers. DMB clearly offers a much better, more cost effective solution for operators that can be implemented now as it based on proven DAB technology as can be evidenced by DMB pioneers in countries such as Korea and China where trial systems are already up and running.
Further details on the DMB trial results can be found on the RadioScape website.