By Cho Jin-seo
Staff Reporter
LG Electronics said Monday that it has developed a simpler mobile TV system that uses existing cellular networks and does not require additional investment in radio frequency and relay stations.
The company said that in cooperation with Ericsson it has co-developed the Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service (MBMS) and successfully demonstrated it in Sweden, last Friday. The company said the system can be put into use as early as 2009 as a more affordable replacement for existing technology.
``We have secured the mobile TV technology's leadership by showcasing the MBMS handset,'' said Kwak Woo-young, vice president and head of mobile communications research and development at LG. ``This success will hasten the commercialization of MBMS.''
MBMS's major benefit is that it can use the same network infrastructure as third-generation voice call services such as WCDMA. Building a new network for mobile TV usually needs an enormous budget in setting up relay stations and leasing radio frequencies from each nation's government. Another advantage of MBMS is it is capable of multi-tasking, such as allowing people to watch TV while making phone calls, the firm said.
LG said that it used its Shine Phone in last week's demonstration. The company didn't reveal the details of the experiment, but said that it showed clear images and a stable transmission speed.
Many foreign mobile service operators such as Vodafone and Hutchison have expressed interest in the technology, and some of them will start to implement it next year, the firm said.
Many mobile operators are betting high on mobile TV services. The European Commission estimates that the market for mobile TV could be worth 20 billion euros, or $29 billion, by 2011 and reach 500 million customers worldwide.
Currently, three systems are vying on the global market. Digital Video Broadcasting-Handheld, or DVB-H, favored in Europe; MediaFLO, supported in the Untied States; while Korea backs its Digital Multimedia Broadcasting (DMB) system.
LG is the world's fourth largest mobile phone maker after Nokia, Samsung Electronics and Motorola.