Korea leaning toward ATSC TV standard...................
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08-21-97 : Committee Supports American Standard in Promotion of Digital TV Broadcasting
By Yu Kun-ha Staff reporter
In the switch in terrestrial TV broadcasting from analog to digital, Korea is highly likely to follow the American standard, as indicated at a public hearing held recently to assess the appropriate technology. The Korean government announced earlier this year that digital TV broadcasting will start in 2001 after a one-year trial service. Currently, two standards are available for digital over-the-air TV broadcasting _ the American standard, known as ATSC (Advanced Television System Committee), and the European standard, called DVB-T (digital video broadcasting-terrestrial). Between the two, Korea is expected to adopt the American standard.
A comparison of the two standards were made at a public hearing held Tuesday by a private committee on promotion of digital TV broadcasting. Most participants in the hearing suggested that the American standard would be better for Korea. The hearing was organized by the committee, which consists of experts from academia, broadcasting industry and electronics firms, to accommodate public views in making recommendations to the Ministry of Information and Communication (MIC). Based on the recommendations, MIC plans to make a decision by early next month.
According to experts, the two standards differ in frequency bandwidth, audio signal compression and transmission. For video signal compression and multiplexing, the two standards use the same MPEG-2 specifications set by the Motion Picture Experts Group (MPEG). In frequency bandwidth, ATSC is designed to use 6 megahertz (MHz), while DVB-T uses 7-8 MHz. Korean TV stations currently air analog signals using 6MHz bandwidth.
For audio compression, the former has adopted Dolby AC-3 specifications, while the latter follows MPEG-2 audio standard. Dolby AC-3 is a next-generation audio standard designed by Dolby Lab for DVDs (digital video disks). As such, in terms of audio quality, it is superior to MPEG-2, which is now used for digital TV broadcasting via satellites. In transmitting signals, the American standard uses a method called vestigial side band (VSB), which was developed by Zenith Corp., an American electronics company now owned by LG Business Group. The European transmission mode is called orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM).
According to experts, VSB is a proven technology in the sense that it is a modification of an existing analog modulation method. Compared with OFDM, it is easier to use, offers a higher data rate and is more robust in channel interference. OFDM, they said, is superior to VSB in terms of signal reception quality and the capability to send signals to mobile viewers.
Park Jong-sok, a committee member, asserted, after comparing the two standards, that the American standard is better for Korea than the European standard in economic, technological and service terms. Park said that in selecting a standard, two economic considerations are important _ one concerns the question of which standard offers Korean producers of TV sets and broadcasting equipment a bigger export market, while the other concerns the issue of which road will allow Korea to meet its schedule for digital TV broadcasting.
``By 2006, the American market is expected to need a total of 130 million digital TVs, while the European demand will total 23 million sets,'' Park said. Both in the United States and Europe, digital over-the-air TV broadcasting will begin in 1998. But in Europe, the market for digital TVs is expected to grow slower than in the United States. In the U.S., digital TV broadcasting is already popular thanks to the satellite-based digital TV broadcasting services introduced by Hughes Corp. in 1994. Park also noted that the Korean digital TV development program, pushed by TV producers and the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), is oriented toward the American standard.
``In technological terms, ATSC is superior in many points except the capability to send signals to mobile viewers,'' Park said. Prof. Jeong Je-chang of Hanyang University, for his part, pointed out that while the VSB transmission method of the American standard is a proven technology, the OFDM mode of the European standard needs to be tested in the Korean environment because it uses 7-8 MHz bandwidth. In service terms, Park said, the higher data rate and video formats of the American standard make it easier to move from digital TV to high-definition TV (HDTV)
The American standard, he added, also allows broadcasting companies to air in two formats, either in standard-definition TV (SDTV) or in HDTV, depending on the nature of the program. For instance, they can air a program like an opera performance or a sports event in the HDTV format as it requires a higher resolution, while offering ordinary programs in the SDTV format. The participants in the hearing emphasized the need for the Korean government to speed up the introduction of digital TV broadcasting and encourage domestic firms to step up efforts for technological development.
Prof. Jeong noted that Korean TV producers, which are obliged to pay $4 per set in royalty for using MPEG standards, will have to pay more, whether Korea adopts the American standard or the European one. Shin Soon-shik, an MIC director in charge of the broadcasting division, said even when Korea adopts the American standard, domestic research institutes and TV producers will continue their R&D efforts for the European format because Europe is a market that they cannot abandon.
Shin said by early next month, the ministry will outline the Korean standards for digital TV broadcasting, following them up with more detailed specifications by the end of next year. |
