Mobile Broadcast Technology Backers Seen Eyeing Partnerships
Among 10 groups that sent ATSC initial mobile broadcast technology proposals last month (CD June 25 p7), some probably are looking at combining parts of their proposals to boost chances their technologies will be picked for the standard, said Mark Aitken, Sinclair director of advanced technologies and head of the committee overseeing the mobile/handheld standards work at ATSC. A committee request for proposals initially drew offerings by Nokia, Mobile DTV Alliance and Qualcomm, each pushing modulation schemes not compatible with ATSC’s. Those filers “may be working with technology players directly tied to the ATSC modulation standard and engaged in discussions about joint offerings,” Aitken said.
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Companies have been coy about their plans. Detailed proposals are due to ATSC by July 6, in line with a rigorous time frame intended to get the work done before the 2009 broadcast analog cutoff. Years ago, Samsung and Rohde & Schwarz partnered on their A-VSB system, one of the leading proposals. Handset maker LG and broadcast gear company Harris teamed for their Mobile Pedestrian Handheld system, unveiled at NAB. But Nokia, Qualcomm, Thomson and Micronas now going it alone, could be candidates for combining. Some candidates submitted only smaller pieces of technology that would need to be incorporated into a broader system.
Nokia and the Mobile Digital TV Alliance (MDTVA), each pushing separately for DVB-H, a competing mobile broadcast standard, won’t say if they're talking with other groups as the July 6 deadline for detailed proposals nears. “The details of those proposals will be made public later,” said a spokesman for both Nokia and MDTVA. “If you look at what we're doing globally, we're still very much backing DVB-H. [Our participation with ATSC is just to investigate what’s going on inside the standards body.”
Neither is German semiconductor company Micronas talking about its efforts on the road to July 6. “We are happy to contribute our experience in the 8-VSB domain through this new proposal for mobile applications and we have an ongoing commitment to adding value to the ATSC technology,” a Micronas spokeswoman said. The company is working with former Zenith engineers, including Richard Citta, who developed the 8-VSB technology that underlies DTV in the U.S.