A 5G broadcast pilot site is being set up in Oberland, Bavaria, Germany as part of the Bavarian research project "5G Today" (today 5G). Under the leadership of the Institute of Broadcast Technologies (IRT), project partners Kathrein and Rhodes and Schwartz are studying the further evolution of multimedia broadcast multicast service (FeMBMS) mode 5G networks in large-scale television broadcasting. This project is supported by affiliated partners Telefonica (Germany) and the German Bavarian Broadcasting Corporation, which is operating this experimental 5G FeMBMS broadcast network at its launch site.
This new 5G network standard is the key to the future when vehicles are highly automated and devices are interconnected in the Internet of Things. 5G also offers great potential for efficient distribution of media content. The launch of the 5G may open up a worldwide market, with countless smartphones and tablets serving as potential television receivers that combine live TV services, media libraries, social networks and many other media services. International standardization work with European Broadcasting companies and industry partners to achieve efficient broadcast in large 4G and 5G networks was completed in June 2017.
"Together with EBU, BBC, RAI and SWR and many industry partners, we identified 5G broadcast requirements and successfully incorporated them into international standards," said Jochen Mezger, general manager of IRT Commercial Area Network Technologies. "The requirements include 100% broadcast mode And increase channel spacing.We are pleased that the 5G Today project allows us to implement and evaluate standardized results at the test site. "
To create a large coverage area, combined with the size of the transmitter unit. The first pilot broadcasts using television signals are scheduled to be completed by the end of 2018. They will be co-broadcast on the 56th channel launched by the Wendelstein Launch Station of the Bavarian Broadcasting Company. Until then, transmit and receive transmitters will be developed and installed, as will theoretical and preliminary investigations.
"As the 5G evolved, the standard approached the traditional parameters of the broadcast system, which would enable the widespread and economical distribution of television programs," explains Birgit Spanner-Ulmer, Production and Technical Director of Bavaria, "We welcome the 5G Today project Offer this opportunity to test our future network with our existing broadcast facilities. "
"As a member of a global network operator and a coalition of next generation mobile networks (NGMNs), we want to support the distribution of media content on modern and converged 5G networks," added Jaime Lluch, Director of Broadcasting Networks at Telefonica (Germany) "This is why we will provide 5G Today with another 700MHz spectrum (the European Commission's preferred 5G band), if needed."
"This 5G standard provides a unique opportunity to intelligently connect the benefits of broadcast delivery with the breadth of opportunities in mobile communications," said Manfred Reitmeier, senior director of transmitter system development at Rohde & Schwarz. "We are actively involved in this groundbreaking research project, Contribute our leading ground transmitter technology and mobile communications test and measurement technology to provide the foundation to efficiently deliver media content to mobile and portable devices. "
Ralf Exler, head of innovation management at Kathrein, sees the project as playing an important role in the convergence of broadcast and mobile communications, noting that news, especially for young people, broadcast on all user devices. "This new standard brings convergence networks closer together, and users do not have to worry about how they view the content they're using." In the 5G Today project, we will field-optimize antenna and network parameters and test-drive them for our car users Innovative Technology."
The 5G Today research project received a 28-month grant from the Bavarian Research Foundation.