Nokia testing LTE for TV broadcasting in Munich area

Nokia Networks has begun conducting trials of LTE technology for nationwide TV broadcasting. The company said it is currently working with a range of partners in the world’s first field trial of wide-area TV broadcasting using a single LTE frequency within the UHF spectrum. The trial, which began transmissions in early July in Munich, uses part of the 700 MHz band to broadcast over an area of 200 square kilometres. The aim is to show that LTE can be used to complement and, in the long run, even provide another option to regional digital TV distribution standards, such as DVB-T in Europe.

The company is using evolved Multimedia Broadcast/Multicast Service (eMBMS) software running in Nokia Flexi Multiradio 10 Base Stations for the tests. The LTE equipment is being deployed at four sites of the Bavarian broadcast company Bayerischer Rundfunk, in northern Munich, which are connected by a high performance optical transport network.

Nokia Networks said the LTE broadcast technology promises new revenue sources for operators by distributing TV over existing mobile broadband infrastructure. LTE Broadcast allows for a free-to-air or pay-TV service that can be received by anybody with a suitable device. “Spectrum doesn’t need to be dedicated to either broadcast or broadband, but can be used flexibly for both according to users’ needs,” said Nokia Networks’ chief technology officer Hossein Moiin.