A consortium comprising three of Norway’s largest broadcasters has chosen DMB for the launch of a mobile TV service this winter. Public broadcaster NRK and commercial broadcasters TV2 and MTG are planning a nine-channel line-up; on demand content and related services.
“This marks the start of real mobile TV. This is not about ‘mobile phone TV’ it is about mobile TV that can be received by other devices too. Our goal is to make mobile TV widely available, easy to use and free of charge,” said Gunnar Garfors, NRK’s director of development.
The joint venture company Norsk mobil-TV AS is currently in discussion with terminal manufacturers, technical companies and telecom operators to help prepare for the launch. Transmissions will commence in Greater Oslo, an area that covers 30% of the Norwegian population.
DMB (Digital Multimedia Broadcasting) is seen as the best technology in Norway due to cost efficient coverage of large and rural areas. The receivers are also compatible with DAB that already covers 80% of the population.
The selection is a further blow to DVB-H, mandated by the European Commission, though Norway remains outside the economic area. Already the UK regulator Ofcom has auctioned capacity to proprietary system Qualcomm.
