Mobile DTV Update

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After a quiet summer there’s some news recently on Mobile DTV (ATSC M/H)—the free digital broadcast TV service for car and portable gadgets.

The first phase of the Washington DC trials for Mobile DTV products has been completed and a report of the findings will be issued in the next two weeks, according to the Open Mobile Video Coalition (OMVC) that is sponsoring the test trials.

A study of 150 users of a Samsung Moment phone modified to include the Mobile DTV chip has been concluded and a trial of 200 users of a Dell netbook–also modified for Mobile DTV–is now half way complete. By the end of the month or early October a third trial of an LG portable DVD/Mobile DTV player will begin. The OMVC will release the mid-term results of the test trials after tracking (anonymously) what people watch and where, plus acquiring user feedback.

A separate development is the launch of a new coalition of broadcasters that want to push forward the technology that has been stalled since earlier this year, as it waits for more broadcast TV stations to begin airing in Mobile DTV. (The hope is that it will get a hard launch by December).

Thirty TV broadcasters representing 346 stations have joined forces to accelerate the roll out. They’ve named their group the Mobile500 Alliance, and their aim is to “create an attractive business model” for Mobile DTV. Presumably the group aims to create a pay-TV layer of service on top of the free broadcast TV service, but a spokesman would offer no further details.

“The Mobile500 Alliance aims to develop a Mobile DTV business model permitting consumers to view popular broadcast content, as well as non-broadcast content with enhanced features,” said Colleen B. Brown, chair of the Alliance and president and CEO of Fisher Communications.

The Alliance says it will build on the promotional work of the Open Mobile Video Coalition (OMVC) which represents 900 TV stations and is sponsoring the above mentioned Washington trial.

A number of car electronics suppliers have begun testing the waters with Mobile DTV and are shipping car electronics tuners including NAV-TV and Accele. Key brands such as LG Electronics are expected to join them by the end of the year or early 2011 as well as a number of other car electronics brands including DICE.

In addition to the Mobile500 Alliance, another group of broadcasters announced in April they were pooling spectrum to launch a special service over Mobile DTV.

Source: Mobile500 Alliance and CEoutlook

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