By Lee Min-hyung
The nation's science ministry held a public hearing to select an ultra-high-definition (UHD) territorial broadcasting standard, Monday, before its planned demonstration in next February.
A group of industry insiders and experts joined the session to discuss which standards the government should adopt between two major standards adopted in North America and Europe.
Most of North American countries are seeking to standardize the ATSC 3.0, which allows 4K UHD territorial broadcasting and mobile high-definition (HD) broadcasting, whereas Europe adopts the DVB-T2 transmission methods.
The Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning is planning to choose one of the two standards in a few months.
Toward the end, the government formed a special committee in August 2015, consisting of interested parties from four sectors ― academia, broadcasting industry, electronics companies and research institutes.
"The Council for UHD Broadcasting Standard is in internal talks to decide one standard to establish a nationwide UHD broadcasting infrastructure, starting from next year," Kim Kyu-hyun, a professor at Kyunghee University, said in the hearing in central Seoul.
Under the government's plan, the nation's three territorial broadcasters ― KBS, SBS and MBC ― are planning to start demonstrating the UHD broadcastings in Seoul and surrounding areas in February next year, for the first time in the world, according to the professor.
The broadcasters are then expected to extend its coverage into the nation's major metropolitan cities ― such as Busan, Daegu, Gwangju, Daejeon and Ulsan ― from December next year.
The government plans to adopt the UHD broadcasting infrastructure across the nation by the end of 2021, with the existing HD broadcasting set to end in 2027.
The state-run Korea Radio Promotion Association (KRPA), which holds a key over the decision, released a report before the hearing in which the agency introduced pros and cons of the two standards.
"There is much more equipment compatible with the DVB-T2, as the standard came before the ATSC 3.0, so the former will be more proper in an initial stage of the upcoming UHD broadcasting era, but most of broadcasting equipment for the ATSC 3.0 standard has also been developed and their maturity level are expected to continue to improve," said the report.
Kim Nam-du, a senior researcher at the Korea Information Society Development Institute (KISDI), said: "We do not have to consider political or social effects over the standard, and focus solely on the technological difference."
"The DVD-D2 focused on standard in itself, but the ATSC 3.0 can deliver what we call ‘packaged' broadcasting, and this is fit for the nation's broadcasting environment," said the researcher.
The nation's science ministry held a public hearing to select an ultra-high-definition (UHD) territorial broadcasting standard, Monday, before its planned demonstration in next February.
A group of industry insiders and experts joined the session to discuss which standards the government should adopt between two major standards adopted in North America and Europe.
Most of North American countries are seeking to standardize the ATSC 3.0, which allows 4K UHD territorial broadcasting and mobile high-definition (HD) broadcasting, whereas Europe adopts the DVB-T2 transmission methods.
The Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning is planning to choose one of the two standards in a few months.
Toward the end, the government formed a special committee in August 2015, consisting of interested parties from four sectors ― academia, broadcasting industry, electronics companies and research institutes.
"The Council for UHD Broadcasting Standard is in internal talks to decide one standard to establish a nationwide UHD broadcasting infrastructure, starting from next year," Kim Kyu-hyun, a professor at Kyunghee University, said in the hearing in central Seoul.
Under the government's plan, the nation's three territorial broadcasters ― KBS, SBS and MBC ― are planning to start demonstrating the UHD broadcastings in Seoul and surrounding areas in February next year, for the first time in the world, according to the professor.
The broadcasters are then expected to extend its coverage into the nation's major metropolitan cities ― such as Busan, Daegu, Gwangju, Daejeon and Ulsan ― from December next year.
The government plans to adopt the UHD broadcasting infrastructure across the nation by the end of 2021, with the existing HD broadcasting set to end in 2027.
The state-run Korea Radio Promotion Association (KRPA), which holds a key over the decision, released a report before the hearing in which the agency introduced pros and cons of the two standards.
"There is much more equipment compatible with the DVB-T2, as the standard came before the ATSC 3.0, so the former will be more proper in an initial stage of the upcoming UHD broadcasting era, but most of broadcasting equipment for the ATSC 3.0 standard has also been developed and their maturity level are expected to continue to improve," said the report.
Kim Nam-du, a senior researcher at the Korea Information Society Development Institute (KISDI), said: "We do not have to consider political or social effects over the standard, and focus solely on the technological difference."
"The DVD-D2 focused on standard in itself, but the ATSC 3.0 can deliver what we call ‘packaged' broadcasting, and this is fit for the nation's broadcasting environment," said the researcher.
![[INTERVIEW] Leandro Erlich's questioning of our perception of reality carries new meaning in pandemic](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/4e0bfee487254348a54493b1502067fa.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
![[INTERVIEW] Im Si-wan found own narrative for villain role in 'Emergency Declaration'](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/3d4e96e353be489fa38b3d3fabc7321a.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
