Mobile TV, not 3G data services
may be the next wave in Thai mobile phone techology
By Jon Fernquest |
Watching TV anytime, anywhere, 24-7, may soon be a dream come true for many people in Thailand.
The technology that will allow this to happen is known as mobile TV.
As usual, Japan and South Korea are leading the world with techologies to make this dream into a reality.
Malaysia has already conducted mobile TV trials but has not assigned radio frequency spectrum and bandwidth yet.
Mobile TV technology has already been tested in Thailand in an MCOT trial at Siam Paragon.
The big issue that still needs to be resolved before mobile TV can become a reality in Thailand is the necessary, but politically contentious, reallocation of TV bandwidth.
This will likely slow the move towards mobile TV in Thailand.
The National Broadcasting Commission has yet to be formed under the new 2007 constitution. Under the ten years of the 1997 constitution this important commission was never formed. Activists claimed that attempts were being made to stack the commission with members working to further the business interests of powerful existing players in the industry.
Will this ten-year stalemate happen again?
(See photo on right of actual live South Korean mobile TV. Read more Bangkok Post articles on the Media and Telecommunications in Thailand)
Here is the article in full:
Big potential seen for mobile TV here
But regulatory hurdle needs to be overcomeTONY WALTHAM
Wednesday September 10, 2008
Mobile TV more promising than 3G data services
Offering consumers the opportunity to watch television on a mobile handset may make more business sense than providing 3G data services here, according to content security provider Irdeto's regional sales director Jerry Park.
He bases this observation on the popularity of TV here, the sophistication of mobile handset users when it comes to the use of data services, coupled with the appeal of being able to watch TV while on the move.
Park also cited the example of Malaysia which now offers 3G services, but few consumers there were finding a value proposition in that, while in South Africa mobile TV is being used to promote the sale of 3G handsets.
Digital television for mobiles doesn't use the 3G network, since it is broadcast and is independent of the mobile carriers, and Park said that, for Thailand, mobile television should follow the DVB-H standard, which is transmitted on frequencies currently assigned to analogue television.
Trials have been conducted by the MCOT at Siam Paragon, Park noted, adding "the technology is ready" and it was more "a matter of getting the parties together" while spectrum also needs to be authorised.
Content security
Irdeto works with broadcast content providers to enable secure delivery to different platforms, including the emerging mobile platform on handsets or MP3 players. It also provides a personal video recorder solution to True Visions that enables subscribers to record up to 140 hours of TV programmes, access interactive TV services as well as pause live programmes being watched.
Mobile TV only available in South Korea and Japan now
Mobile TV is only available in a few markets, with Korea and Japan being among the most advanced, Park said. As with all services involving radio spectrum, the national regulator overseeing frequency management needs to assign radio spectrum.
Park believes that this is unlikely to occur here until after the National Broadcasting Commission is formed, but says that once the regulatory hurdle is overcome, services could begin within a year.
Singapore and Malaysia have yet to assign spectrum for digital mobile television, while Malaysia has conducted trials, he said.
Frequency allocation problems
What probably needs to also happen is a move from analogue television broadcasts to digital transmissions, in the process de-allocating spectrum from the more bandwidth-hungry analogue services and earmarking some of this for the DVB-H mobile digital transmissions, he said. Irdeto was conducting trials in some 25 countries, but the issue of frequency management and allocation was "stymieing the industry", he said. Mobile television is now in its infancy and in most markets today there is a sole provider which is able to offer viewers the widest selection of content. He suggested that True Corporation would be the most logical service provider here, and that True would be well-prepared to market the services since it had a cellular provider with True Move.
In other markets, the average revenue per user of such services was between $10 and $12 (344 to 412 baht), while Indonesia was said to be looking at an ARPU of $7 (241 baht), while market surveys have shown that 70 per cent of mobile subscribers would swap operators to get mobile television, Park said.
Korea leads with over 10 million mobile TV subscribers and there is a wide choice of TV-enabled mobile phones there, along with standalone devices from iRiver, LG, Samsung, BenQ and Motorola, he said. There is also a USB dongle costing less than $30 (about 1,000 baht) to permit viewing on a notebook PC and the pictures were viewable on screens up to 14 inches (36cm) in size. The DVB-H standard now accounts for 70 per cent of the global market, although China has been working on mobile TV for some 18 months and has developed its own standard called S-TIMI, which Park said was an enhancement to satellite DMB technology.
(Source: Bangkok Post, TONY WALTHAM, 10-09-08, page D3, temp-link)
Vocabulary:
Broadcasting and mobile phone terminology
mobile TV - TV on your mobile phone, "service delivered to subscribers via mobile telecommunications networks, such as the mobile phone carriers. In 2005, South Korea became the first country in the world to have mobile TV when it started satellite DMB (S-DMB) and terrestrial DMB (T-DMB) service on May 1 and December 1, respectively. Today, South Korea and Japan are at the forefront of this developing sector" (See Wikipedia)
spectrum, radio spectrum, frequency, radio frequency spectrum - the range of electromagnetic radio frequencies used in the transmission of sound, data and video, the potential capacity of a wireless network is in part a function of the amount of spectrum licensed to the carrier (See Telus glossary and Wikipedia)
allocated very little frequency - given only a small range of radio frequencies
lack of spectrum - has small range of radio frequencies to transmit calls with
spectrum needs to be authorised - need to have permission from government before you can legally use spectrum to broadcast
broadcast - send out on radio waves so that it can be seen on television or listened to on radio
broadcasters - companies that have shows on radio and television
encode information - express information in a different way (for example, "digitally" in a way that computers understand)
digital, digitally-encoded information - information in the form that computers can use (increasingly digitally-encoded information is used)
a transmission - sending or communicating information to a different person and place
digital transmissions - sending information in a digital encoding
analogue - the way that information was encoded for transmission before digital technologies became popular
analogue television broadcasts - traditional TV received by an antenna, technology older than digital technology
content - information of interest to people - sound, text, pictures, video, etc. As opposed to computer software, internet, or hardware used to communicate it to people
content providers - companies that produce TV or radio programmes or articles for sale to other companies that broadcast it or make it available to people on the internet
bandwidth, communications bandwidth - the amount of data that can be carried over a communications connection during a period of time
bandwidth-hungry - a use of a communications connection that uses a large percentage of the total bandwidth available on that connection (video, for example)
allocate - give, share among many people
allocate bandwidth - share communications bandwidth among many people
reallocate - change the amount that each person has of some resource
reallocation of TV bandwidth - changing the amounts of bandwidth that different broadcasters and broadcasting technologies have
deallocate - take away (from a given use or company)
de-allocating spectrum - taking spectrum away (from a given use or company)
an issue - an important subject or question that people are arguing about or discussing
the issue of frequency management and allocation - the question of who will get limited spectrum (the people will debate and even argue about)
trials, conducted trials - tests of a new technology in limited situations (to see if it can work in larger profit-making situations)
Mass Communication Organization of Thailand (MCOT) - a government news agency, recently privatised, also operates television channel 9 focusing on educational content, also administers television concessions granted to private companies like TrueVisions (See website)
National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) - the government agency that was to reallocate radio and TV frequencies in the public interest under the 1997 constitution, that never began operation due to vested interests (See Wikipedia on Media of Thailand and 2004 Bangkok Post article)
a hurdle - a problem or obstacle that prevents one from achieving a goal
a regulatory hurdle - when necessary changes in government rules prevent one from achieving a goal
overcome a regulatory hurdle - make necessary changes in government rules (so that you can achieve your goal)
a mobile handset - a mobile phone (held in your hand)
3G data services - using 3G mobile phone to access data rather than just talk, over the internet, for example (GPRS under 2G GRS mobile phone techology)
enable secure delivery - making sure that only the people who pay for content consume that content (essential if a for-profit media operation wants to remain in business)
a content security provider - a company that provides media companies technology to protect their content
Irdeto - a content security provider:
"Founded in 1969, Irdeto employs over 900 people in 25 offices across the globe, including the dual corporate headquarters in Amsterdam and Beijing. The company is a subsidiary of multinational media group Naspers (JSE: NPN), which includes a wide range of pay TV, Internet, instant-messaging, technology and publishing businesses."
"The company’s products include conditional access, digital rights management, business support systems and set-top box software solutions. Through group company Cloakware, it provides software and datacenter security solutions, while group company Entriq delivers content management and distribution solutions and services. More than 500 customers worldwide trust Irdeto to secure and enable the delivery of their valuable content across digital broadcast, IP, mobile, enterprise and government networks." (Source: Irdeto website)
3G (third generation), 3G telephony - the next generation of mobile phone technology, featuring high-speed packet data mobile wireless Internet access and multimedia communication, analog cellular was the first generation and digital the second generation (See Telus glossary)
a 3G network - a system of antennas for transmitting 3G telephone signals over a region or country
a mobile carrier - a company that provides mobile phone services to people
a platform - a computer hardware and software system that computer programs can sun on
a mobile platform - a computer system in your mobile phone that allows different programs to run allowing you to different things with your phone, like play games, watch TV, surf the internet, etc.
emerging mobile platform on handsets or MP3 players
average revenue per user (ARPU) - a measure of how revenue increases as more people use a mobile phone service
DVB-H standard - one of three mobile TV formatsm, a technical specification for bringing broadcast services to mobile handsets (See Wikipedia)
General vocabulary
24-7 - twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, available all the time, non-stop
a dream come true - getting something you wanted very much
resolved - when a problem is solved
politically contentious - causing a lot of political disagreement and argument
makes business sense - you can make money (a profit) providing this product or service
cited the example of Y - mention something as support for your argument
a proposition - an idea that people can debate and decide on
finding a value proposition - finding an idea that can add value to the business
earmarking X for Y - resources X are reserved or set aside for purpose or use Y
a market survey - asking the customers in a market questions to discover how they think about and perceive products and services
X stymies Y - X makes it very difficult for action Y to continue
an activist - a person who brings about political or social change through public campaigns
stack the commission - fill the commission loyal to you, who will do what you want
interests - people who gain or lose depending on how events turn out
business interests - people who own or work for businesses (who will benefit if events turn out in their favour)
further the business interests - help businesses gain from situations
a stalemate - a situation where there is no longer any progress
