LG and Samsung push US mobile TV standard

Single standard designed to drive adoption

LG Electronics and Samsung are to propose a jointly developed technology as the North American standard for mobile digital TV to the Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC).

The two companies laid out plans at a recent signing ceremony in Seoul to cooperate in order to assure the rapid adoption of a single common in-band mobile digital TV standard.

"Our collaboration will help accelerate the ATSC standardisation of mobile TV technology, which will benefit consumers and broadcasters," said JongWoo Park, president of Samsung's Digital Media Business.

The joint system will reflect the findings of a report to be submitted to the ATSC by the Open Mobile Video Coalition (OMVC), a group of US broadcasters promoting the development and early deployment of mobile digital TV.

The proposed standard uses the existing terrestrial digital TV broadcast bandwidth, and has no impact on existing digital TV and requires minimum broadcasting equipment investment.

"LG and Samsung are already world-class in digital TV and mobile communications. We also have an opportunity to lead the North American mobile digital TV market," said Woo Paik, president and chief technology officer at LG.

The ATSC is expected to adopt the mobile/handheld digital TV standard for the North American market in early 2009, following trials of the technology by the OMVC.

A study commissioned by the National Association of Broadcasters suggested that the adoption of a single mobile digital TV standard would drive the sale of 130 million mobile digital TV phones by the end of 2012.