The issue of whether and how mobile and digital television services can co-exist in the same band remains unresolved, according to the EBU.
It follows the conclusion of the latest round of discussions in one of the ITU’s key groups preparing for the World Radiocommunication Conference 2023 (WRC-23).
The Geneva-based organisation, which represents Europe’s public broadcasters, says that without a clear answer to the question, WRC-23 will have no technical basis for discussion on the sub-700 MHz band currently used for digital television services (DTT).
The ITU’s special group tasked with preparing for the WRC-23 discussion on the sub-700 UHF band (TG6/1) has just finished its fourth meeting, with one more to come in September 2022. That final meeting will be charged with preparing the paperwork that will be used in the conference itself.
There has long been concern that while new 5G services represent an important goal for the telecoms industry, the use of frequencies currently occupied by DTT channels will lead to a reduction in services or interference between the two.
The EBU is particularly concerned about potential interference where one country uses the band for DTT and another for mobile networks. It says studies and a number of real-life examples from the 700 MHz and 800 MHz bands demonstrate that interference between these two services operating on the same channel can span over very large distances, in some cases up to 500 km. This means that affected DTT channels would need to be cleared before the mobile service could launch.
The EBU says it’s committed to working towards a solution that doesn’t compromise the technical quality of the study results.