Implementing Mobile TV Implementing Mobile TV ATSC Mobile DTV, MediaFLO, DVB-H/SH, DMB, WiMAX, 3G Systems, and Rich Media Applications Amitabh Kumar amsterdam • Boston • HeidelBerg • london new York • o xford • Paris • san diego san francisco • singaPore • sYdneY • t okY o focal Press is an imprint of elsevier Focal Press is an imprint of Elsevier 30 Corporate Drive, Suite 400, Burlington, MA 01803, USA The Boulevard, Langford Lane, Kidlington, Oxford, OX5 1GB, UK © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. 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René Descartes, La Geometrie (1637) Mobile TV-A Prologue The economists are generally right in their predictions, but generally a good deal out in their dates. Sidney Webb, The Observer, Sayings of the Week, February 25, 1924 When mobile TV was first launched in 2005, it was perceived as one of the most important happenings that would shape the mobile industry in the coming years. But events were to prove otherwise to the disappointment, and to an extent, the surprise of a very large industry. In fact the situation in 2008 was such that many virtually wrote off mobile TV. It was only in 2009 that a dramatic turnaround in fortunes began, with mobile TV in 2010 set to reach a critical mass for a very large ecosystem of viewers, operators, handset and chip manufacturers and software developers. The reasons in hindsight are not difficult to understand, and it is also not that the industry did not valiantly struggle to overcome these. The problem is that there were too many issues. First was the issue of mobile operators and broadcasters going different ways in leveraging their own networks to provide mobile TV. This led to the use of 3G unicast streaming by mobile operators and terrestrial transmission by the broadcasters based on replication of TV programs with little or no interactivity and a handful of receivers available that could actually receive them. Second was the use and multiple standards that split networks even within the same country, as was the case in Germany with DVB-H and DMB networks, both of which eventually closed down. In addition, the regulators were not helpful with spectrum issues, which held up launches in large parts of Europe and Asia. Third, the operators did not seem to get the model right. They attempted to offer the service as pay TV, which restricted the market and the handsets available. This is evident from the success of free to air DMB-T services in Korea and ISDB-T in Japan. Korea had over 20 million users of its free ISDB-T service, while Japan had over 60 million phones sold that had tuners for its 1-Seg ISDB-T services, which are aired free. A majority of multimedia handsets in these markets now come with the mobile TV tuners and decoders built in. In contrast, the users of pay mobile TV in any market did not reach even a fraction of this number. The only exception was the 3G-based services such as MobiTV (over 6 million customers), which do not need special handsets. However, even these networks did not make a breakthrough, as operators in most markets levied high data usage charges for a bandwidth, which was at a premium. xv xvi Mobile TV-A Prologue The 3G quality was also restricted for various reasons, such as low encoding resolution, usage environment and limitations of unicast streaming. It was not a surprise that the initial years left bruised operators and foreclosed networks even while the major product vendors touted successful trials in each country. In the United States, for the broadcast systems based on ATSC DTV, there was no mobile extension until as late as 2009. The initial launches of DVB-H by Modeo and Hi-Wire were closed down, as it was impractical to build entirely new infrastructure. MediaFLO, which operated on its own spectrum and provided services through AT&T and Verizon Wireless, also garnered less than half a million users in the first year of its launch due to the requirement of a separate FLO-enabled handset and the availability of the service in limited markets only. The situation changed only in 2009 when additional spectrum became available after the digital transition. The success story of AT&T was being written with the iPhone, a device that did not support mobile TV. Mobile TV was not a priority with the major operators: AT&T, Verizon Wireless, or T-Mobile. In Europe, the European Union (EU) took the bold step of declaring DVB-H as the standard to be followed across Europe. Despite this apparent advantage, mobile TV continued to face heavy challenges. DVB-H met the same fate in Germany as in the United States, where Operator ‘3’ returned the DVB-H license to the regulator. In the United Kingdom, no spectrum was made available for DVB-H, while in France and Spain, commercial launches were delayed. With the exception of Italy, the pioneer of mobile TV in Europe, no country could get even a million users, with their pay mobile TV offerings requiring special handsets and conditional access systems. The users could opt for either a substandard phone that offered mobile TV or one that burnt a hole in their pockets. Phones in use by large segments of the customers stayed out of the domain, which was addressed by the mobile operators. The model of set-top boxes as applied to mobile TV was not working. Asia, China, and India were delayed in their regulatory processes, which would have enabled the provision of mobile TV to large communities. Smaller countries did launch mobile TV, but these were prodded by the vendors and looked more like “me-too” efforts rather than a successful mobile TV offering. China came out of the time warp only in 2009, with the SARFT driving terrestrial mobile TV with CMMB standard. In order to address the split markets, new operators ventured forth with satellite-based mobile TV. In 2008, it appeared to be a panacea for all the ills of mobile TV. China, going into the 2008 Olympics, had signed a deal with CMBsat, a subsidiary of EchoStar for a high powered S-band satellite providing services over China. However, its regulators failed to give the necessary permissions for the satellite to be placed in orbit. On April 18, 2008, the ICO G1 satellite was launched and all set to provide mobile TV services for the U.S. market. In January 2009, the W2A satellite was launched for providing high-powered DVB-SH mobile TV services for Europe by Solaris after it won the license. However, all was to go Mobile TV-A Prologue xvii wrong with this industry as early as 2009. The CBMsat satellite was delayed, while the W2A mobile broadcasting payload failed after its launch in early 2009. By May 2009, ICO North America had filed for bankruptcy under Chapter 11, despite having an operational satellite in orbit and an operational network on the ground. The successes of Japan and Korea again appeared to be not working elsewhere. The quest for business models was unending. Any single model, such as subscription, advertising, or sponsored content did not seem to work, as there were too few handsets except in Korea and Japan. Mobile networks did embrace multimedia, but in ways that were not predicted by analysts and research reporters. Mobile devices came with such large memories (upwards of 16 GB) that a connection to online music services was unnecessary. On-device storage of videos and music became the norm. Where video was concerned, it was YouTube and Google Video that emerged as the winners, apart from social networking sites. But in an industry with more than 4 billion mobile users, the initial fallacies in embarking on mobile TV were quickly understood. ATSC has now come out with its mobile handheld standard, ATSC Mobile DTV (formerly ATSC M/H), which can enable thousand of transmitters across the United States at a relatively low cost to also broadcast simultaneously to mobile phones. Despite apparently different mobile TV standards, the underlying technologies have converged to a set of uniform standards, such as IP-Datacasting (IPDC), the Open Mobile Alliance’s Electronic Service Guide (ESG), smartcard prolfies (SCP) for content protection, and multistandard universal chipsets that can tune in to any type of transmission. After a dawn-to-dusk cycle, the sun is again rising on the horizon for mobile TV—and with a renewed intensity. The use of video content on mobile phones is entering a new phase, with customers increasingly wanting video access on their mobile phones. The number of 3G users has ballooned, as have the smartphones needed for multimedia. Equipment vendors now make multistandard transmission equipment as well as receivers, making the diverse standards not such a major issue at the end of the day. Spectrum has begun to be available after WRC 07 and the digital transition in which was completed in 2009. The launch of CMMB in China has led to a massive uptake of mobile TV. According to an In-Stat report on China1 released in 2006, the number of mobile TV users in China was predicted to grow at a compound annual growth rate of over 315% in the next five years. It is now estimated that by 2012, more than 20% of users will be using mobile TV. The scales will be tilted by the increasing use of free-to-air broadcast networks, including ATSC Mobile DTV in the United States, and the spread of mobile TV to user communities in China and India. There are likely to be four major streams for the growth of mobile TV. The first will continue to be the mobile operators, where improved quality will be offered through the upgrades to 1 Mobile TV in China, Anty Zheng – Research Director, In-Stat China (http://www.instat.com.cn/index.php/ archives/672) xviii Mobile TV-A Prologue 3GPP standards and the use of MBMS. These operators will also embrace LTE by 2012. The second stream remains that of broadcasters, which are scaling up the operations as spectrum and standards issues get resolved. The third stream is that of wireless broadband (including mobile WiMAX, a technology that has weathered many a storm and is now here to stay, with more than 500,000 users being added per quarter) and broadband for all plans on the horizon in the United States. The fourth category of providers is that of satellite-based mobile TV providers with a terrestrial component. This book is a second journey into the exciting world of mobile TV and multimedia, with new operators, technologies, and business models. Introduction to the Second Edition The trouble with doing something right the first time is that nobody appreciates how difficult it was. Walt West This book is exclusively dedicated to mobile TV, which is the killer application of the twenty-first century, riding on the success of 3G mobile networks, transition to digital TV, and wireless broadband. A lot has changed since mobile TV initially appeared in 2005. 3G networks have achieved a critical mass of over 500 million users. There have been breakthroughs in terrestrial broadcasting of mobile TV across countries, addressing potentially a billion additional users in 2010 alone. It today presents an opportunity that is unparalleled in history. This is an opportunity for service providers, content producers, application developers, handset vendors, and users alike to target high revenue generating applications. This revised edition is about the new opportunity. It provides a comprehensive overview of the entire landscape, answers all your questions, and provides all the tools you need to be a meaningful player in the new markets. About This Book Even though mobile TV is slated to grow exponentially in the very near future, concise information on the subject continues to remain scattered. It is true that many of the technologies have recently emerged from the trials, but the basic bedrock of the structure on which such services will be based is now rfi mly in place. No single week passes by today when a new commercial launch of mobile TV somewhere in the world is not announced. The standards for the services have the status of recommendations of ATSC, DVB, ETSI, ITU, and 3G Partnership projects. The implementation is swift and multifronted—in the form of technology itself as well as every other form: handsets, applications, chipsets, software, operating systems, spectrum, transmission technologies, and even content writing for mobile TV. The book provides a comprehensive introduction to the technological framework in which such services are being provided, with extensive clarity on how one type of service, for example, a mobile TV service based on 3G (MobiTV™, AT&T®) differs from DMB service in Korea or CMMB in China or ISDB-T in Japan. Will it be possible to use one handset for xix xx Introduction to the Second Edition all these services? What types of services can be expected on mobile networks? What are the techniques used for digital rights management on these networks? What spectrum will they use? What limitations do they have? What quality of viewing can they offer? What type of content will make such networks work and how will it make money? Mobile multimedia has brought about a profound change in the industry. The handsets are now designed to deliver multimedia rather than voice. They support large, 3-inch WVGA screens, stereo speakers, A2DP Bluetooth, media players, and 16 GB afl sh memories. Their software is empowered to deliver content tailored for cellphones or mobiles with rich animations. It is a different world, carrying with it smaller screens, and requiring lower data rates to carry the information, but in a much more challenging delivery environment. It deals with media formats that are unique to the mobile domain. It deals with players that are for mobiles and with browsers that are unique to the mobile world. It also deals with technologies that not only deliver content but also provide mechanisms for its payment and user interactivity. The growth of mobile TV brings challenges for everyone. The users now have a very powerful device in their hands that can do much more than connect calls or play music. Are they ready to use such services? The operators are aggressively launching services. Are the content providers ready for them? Is the content secure? What type of advertising will work on such networks? What are the technology options for operators and service providers and customers? Are the regulatory authorities ready to enable the environment for mobile TV? What spectrum will be available for such services? What are the limitations for services based on each individual technology? The book addresses all these questions. About the Second Edition The technology and markets for mobile TV have changed dramatically in the very recent past. In July 2009, the ATSC Mobile DTV transmitters went on the air, signifying a new era in the United States, where most local stations will have a mobile simulcast based on the newly recognized ATSC Mobile DTV standards. CMMB, a mobile TV standard for China, has spread to about 200 cities by end of 2009, and 3G is now enabled in China and India. MediFLO technology has had a new lease on life with additional spectrum having been released in the United States with DTV transition and its recognition as an approved technology for mobile TV in Japan, the largest mobile TV market in the world, and a bastion of ISDB technologies. This revised second edition is a completely rewritten volume that updates technologies, services and media formats and presents all information in a practical framework. Four new chapters have been added on ATSC Mobile DTV, MediaFLO technologies, WiMAX, and DVB-SH, while information on others such as CMMB has also been added in detail. The book is divided into four parts: Part I: Overview of Technologies Part II: Technologies for Mobile TV and Multimedia Broadcasting