SYDNEY, Australia-Broadcast Australia subsidiary The Bridge Networks will team with Telstra on a year-long trial of Australia’s first multi-channel mobile TV service using digital video broadcast for handheld (DVB-H) technology.
Harris Broadcast Systems, a Cincinnati-based communications company, will provide transmission equipment for the transmissions, which will be available to 80 percent of Sydney’s residents. The service is expected to begin this summer with an offering of 15 channels and will likely support 30 channels by the trial’s end.
“The intention is to have up to 1,000 DVB-H-capable handsets for the trial, using a sample of Telstra’s customer base, and to subsequently measure coverage, particularly within buildings, as well as survey consumer response and acceptance,” said Darren Kirsop-Frearson, managing director of The Bridge Networks. “It’s a very exciting broadcasting development and evidence of a true convergence of the broadcast and telecommunications industries.”
DVB technology, which is used primarily for TV services in Europe, can be modified to support satellite, cable and terrestrial digital TV networks. MmO2 and Vodafone are also testing the technology, and Crown Castle is teaming with Nokia Corp. to trial the service in the United States. The Finnish manufacturer has promised to sell DVB-H mobile phones by 2006.
