LG Electronics, Harris Corporation Launch New MPH(TM) Mobile DTV System, Extending Digital Television to Consumers on the Go
April 16 2007 - 9:00AM
PR Newswire (US)
Demonstrations Show Technology Excels Under Real-World Broadcast
Conditions LAS VEGAS, April 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Innovative digital
television (DTV) technology allowing over-the-air broadcasters to
reach viewers on the move was unveiled and demonstrated publicly
for the first time today at the National Association of
Broadcasters (NAB) convention. Developed by LG Electronics Inc. and
Harris Corporation (NYSE:HRS), the MPH(TM) In-Band Mobile DTV
system is capable of providing robust DTV signals to mobile,
pedestrian and handheld devices. For broadcasters, this new
technology promises to create new and potentially lucrative revenue
streams. For consumers, MPH enables users to view their favorite
programs from local broadcasters, watch movies and sports, and
access local news and weather information -- even when traveling in
fast-moving vehicles or using handheld video devices away from
home. "Delivering robust DTV signals to a wide range of devices for
mobile- portable-handheld applications is the final frontier in
terrestrial digital TV broadcasting," said Dr. H.G. Lee, president
and chief technology officer of LG Electronics. "In-band mobile DTV
will give broadcasters new business opportunities and consumers
exciting new products and services. That's what MPH is all about."
Tim Thorsteinson, president of Harris Broadcast Communications
said, "The robust and flexible MPH system maximizes broadcasters'
use of their DTV channel, enabling them to deploy compelling
handheld and mobile services, while continuing to deliver HDTV,
SDTV and datacasting services. Broadcasters who have seen MPH in
action share our enthusiasm about this new technology platform."
BROADCASTERS ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT MOBILE DTV "Mobile DTV is a major
opportunity for U.S. broadcasters to use their digital TV spectrum
to deliver value-added services to consumers interested in
receiving video content in mobile settings," according to Brandon
Burgess, president and CEO of Ion Media Networks, a founding member
of the new "Open Mobile Video Coalition," an industry alliance to
accelerate the development of mobile digital broadcast television.
"Broadcasters are seeing the magnitude of this opportunity and are
working collaboratively toward this goal. MPH is precisely the type
of technology development broadcasters need from manufacturers to
enable this opportunity. We are excited about what we have seen
from Harris and LG, and we look forward to continue working with
them and our fellow broadcast industry partners on building a
mobile DTV video marketplace in the United States." David Donovan,
president of MSTV, the Association of Maximum Service Television,
whose members include TV broadcast groups and networks, underscored
the importance of mobile DTV. "As broadcasters prepare for the
successful conclusion of the DTV transition, many also are turning
their attention to exploring new business models for video- and
data-broadcasting outside the home," he said. "Broadcast television
is by definition a wireless medium. Now my members are looking
forward to the next big thing in broadcasting: handheld and mobile
DTV, reaching more eyeballs and expanding our markets. New
technologies such as MPH will give television broadcasters
additional tools to provide new and innovative video services to
the communities that we are licensed to serve," Donovan said.
HARRIS, LG CONDUCT FIRST LIVE MPH PUBLIC DEMONSTRATIONS MPH In-Band
Mobile DTV is debuting this week at the NAB convention with live,
over-the-air demonstrations in a minibus traveling through Las
Vegas and the nearby vicinity, including the signal-challenged
canyon of high-rise hotels along the famed Las Vegas Strip. Two
mobile MPH streams are being transmitted simultaneously with the
normal DTV programming of Sinclair Broadcast Group's local
affiliate of the CW, channel 29. KVCW-DT. One of the MPH streams is
the real-time MPH encoded version of the normal channel 29 program,
to demonstrate that a local broadcaster's normal programming can
indeed be received "on the go." "Historically, Sinclair has been a
proponent of mobile and portable digital television. So, we are
very excited to see LG and Harris demonstrate the MPH system at NAB
2007," said Del Parks, Sinclair's vice president of engineering and
operations. "Sinclair is glad to assist with this technology launch
by providing our Las Vegas station's DTV channel 29 for this
demonstration. We encourage all of our fellow broadcasters to take
the mobile tour and see for themselves what is possible." These
mobile demonstrations offer industry executives, government guests
and the news media an opportunity to experience first-hand the
reliability of the Harris-LG system under real-world conditions.
The new technology also is on display at both the Harris booth and
the Advanced Television Systems Committee exhibit at the NAB trade
show. FIELD TESTS YIELD PROMISING RESULTS The LG-Harris minibus
mobile DTV demonstrations follow successful field tests conducted
early last month in Columbus, Ohio. Receiving the MPH signal from
WBNS-DT/Channel 21, Dispatch Broadcast Group's CBS affiliate in
Columbus, the LG-Harris system tested well across a wide range of
challenging locations. In addition to enjoying excellent reception
in the downtown business district, the technology performed
flawlessly at the 55-mile-per-hour speed limit on the Columbus
beltway, the interstate highway that rings the metropolitan area.
"Seeing is believing," said Dispatch Broadcast Group President and
CEO Michael J. Fiorile. "Our company's CBS station in Columbus was
proud to run the world's first broadcaster field test of the MPH
system. I rode in the test van as we drove around town -- on the
interstate, under overpasses, through downtown streets and along
suburban boulevards. Receiving DTV signals from our transmitter at
55 mph was impressive. Equally impressive was the fact that we were
broadcasting HDTV on the main channel and mobile services on the
MPH channel at the same time. No question about it, mobile DTV is a
key to our future." In the field tests, a simple 7-inch un-tuned
whip antenna achieved successful reception at highway speeds,
including through underpasses; error- free hand-held pedestrian
reception at the 38-mile horizon for handheld devices; 97-99
percent error-free reception in blocked urban canyons; successful
reception for mobile and pedestrian applications at residential
locations within a 10-mile radius of the transmitter; and
successful reception in suburban, rural and industrial locations --
all without multiple receiving antennas. TWO-YEAR DEVELOPMENT
EFFORT BEHIND MPH The MPH system capitalizes on the powerful
combination of Harris Corporation's expertise in broadcast systems
-- including transmitters, exciters, encoders and software -- and
the system development, integrated circuit design and vast consumer
electronics experience of LG Electronics and its U.S. R&D
subsidiary, Zenith. The in-band mobile DTV technology, under
development for nearly two years at the LG Electronics DTV
Laboratory in Seoul and at LG's Zenith lab in Chicago, builds on
two key ATSC standards, also developed by Zenith: the robust
Enhanced VSB (E-VSB) system and 8-VSB, the proven modulation system
at the heart of the well-established ATSC DTV broadcast standard
currently used by more than 1,500 U.S. DTV broadcasters and in
every DTV receiver sold in the United States. To help commercialize
its technology concepts for the broadcast industry, LG Electronics
turned to long-time DTV industry leader Harris Corporation's
Broadcast Communications Division. Harris Corporation's extensive
systems integration expertise and research capabilities contributed
significantly to the broadcast system development. According to
Harris and LG, the overarching goal of the joint development effort
was to devise a robust, ATSC-compatible mobile solution for local
broadcasters to maximize the use of their 6-MHz, 19.39
megabit-per-second digital pathway in delivering a wide range of
compelling and profitable consumer services. This meant maintaining
the centerpiece application, digital high-definition television
(HDTV) to the tens of millions of fixed receivers in consumer
homes, while reaching viewers on the go with a low-bit-rate digital
TV signal and data services. ABOUT HARRIS CORPORATION Harris
Corporation is an international communications and information
technology company serving government and commercial markets in
more than 150 countries. Headquartered in Melbourne, Florida, the
company has annual revenue of about $4 billion and more than 14,000
employees - including more than 6,000 engineers and scientists.
Harris is dedicated to developing best-in-class assured
communications(TM) products, systems, and services for global
markets, including government communications, RF communications,
broadcast communications, and wireless transmission network
solutions. Additional information about Harris Corporation is
available at http://www.harris.com/. ABOUT LG ELECTRONICS LG
Electronics USA, Inc. is the North American subsidiary of LG
Electronics, Inc., a $48.5-billion global force in consumer
electronics, home appliances and mobile communications. In the
United States, LG Electronics sells a wide range of digital display
and digital media products, digital appliances and mobile phones
under LG's "Life's Good" marketing theme. LG's U.S. R&D
subsidiary Zenith Electronics in Lincolnshire, Ill., is a long-time
leader in consumer electronics technologies and a pioneer in
digital HDTV, having developed the "VSB" digital transmission
system at the heart of the ATSC DTV Standard adopted by the Federal
Communications Commission. Zenith merged with LG Electronics in
1999. For additional information, please visit
http://www.zenith.com/ and http://www.lgusa.com/. DATASOURCE: LG
Electronics; Harris Corporation CONTACT: LG Electronics: John
Taylor, +1-847-941-8181, Harris Broadcast Communications: Laura
Whitaker, +1-408-782-1201, Web site: http://www.harris.com/
http://www.lgusa.com/
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