Ddo5 Lieven Vermaele 20081017 Vermaele From Digital Dividend To Digital Deficit

EBU TECHNICAL

From digital dividend to digital deficit

Lieven Vermaele

Director EBU TECHNICAL

European Broadcasting Union

EBU TECHNICAL - your reference in media technology and innovation

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EBU TECHNICAL

From digital dividend to digital deficit

Lieven Vermaele

Director EBU TECHNICAL

European Broadcasting Union


What is a dividend?What is the digital dividend?

� A ‘dividend’ is the cash reward or bonus you hope for, and get sometimes, when you invest in a company. It is the payback for an investment.

� The Digital Dividend is something similar. It is the payback for the investment in the digitization of broadcasting.


But who does the investment? And who ‘owns’ the dividend?

� The investment in digital broadcasting will be made

� partly by the broadcaster,

� and partly (read: mostly) by the public who have to change their receivers.

� The resource we use is spectrum, a scarce resource owned by the society, the public

You can argue that both of these groups should

have a share of the ‘payback’ or dividend for

going digital


Mmm, interesting ...But what do we get for it? and how much?

� ‘Free’ SPECTRUM

Spectrum in 200MHz-1GHz band: at DSO

DTT

Digital dividend

Aeronautical and maritime

Licence exempt

MOD

Public mobile

Digital radio

PBR, Other

Emergency servicesScience

Ofcom, Digital Dividend Review 2007


Spectrum?Is there not enough spectrum ...

Well, we al like the same ‘spot’ ...


Spectrum is a scarce resource ...

Spectrum is a scarce resource ...

The metaphor of land ownership

� Owning spectrum ~ land ownership

� Using spectrum ~ using land for a certain activity.

� A regulatory framework is needed for assigning land and activities to owners ...

� Do we need public space, parks, playground ..?

� Can your neighbour do what he want? Your neighbour can interfere (noise, smoke, ...) and have an impact on your service and the quality

� ... the same happens in spectrum

Efficient use of a scarce resource in public interest is not the same as for commercial interest


What do we really get for this spectrum?

Return:

1. Financial value of spectrum (auctioning)

2. More and new (FTA) broadcasting services

3. Bridge the digital divide: Rural broadband

4. Upgrading mobile networks and services


Return 1. Financial value of spectrum (auctioning) Spectrum auctions do not necessarily achieve sensible results:

� telecoms operators paid more than €100 billion in auctions for 3-G mobile phones

What is fair competition in the allocation of spectrum ...

� Competition between different market players with different objectives, focussing on different services and working with different financial resources

� Where goods are scarce it is necessary for society to make choices as to how they are allocated and used

What does fair competition have to take into account ...

� Commercial auctions suffer from the winner’s curse : the successful bidder may be the most irrationally exuberant rather than the best qualified. This can have an impact on the time to market, the service or the price afterwards.

� Consideration is needed to balance the public value of delivered by PSB with the commercial value .

� Competition rules should into account equal opportunities and obligations of the different players

� PSB deliver high quality content with equal quality in reception and picture, to all segments of the population, irrespective of their ability to pay for services and the place they live


Return 2. More and new (FTA) broadcasting services Giving up spectrum that is or can be used today by organisations for Digital Terrestrial Television

� Digital terrestrial TV is important because (unlike cable and satellite TV) it can deliver services to:

� fixed roof-top antennas

� set-top antennas

� receivers in cars, buses, trains, etc.

� hand-held devices (mobile phones, PDAs, etc.)

� Across Europe, DTT is the fastest growing delivery mechanism – even in countries with high penetration of cable and satellite TV� Freeview TV, TNT, KPN TV, ...

� DTT is essential to the success of digital switchover by 2012� Digital divide

Broadcaster also need capacity for new broadcasting service...

� Capacity for delivering also HDTV

� Capacity for Mobile broadcast based TV

� Broadcast Data services

It is not guaranteed that BC can deliver all these services

It is not guaranteed that BC can deliver all these services


Return 3. Bridge the digital divide: Rural broadband

The digital divide� no equal access to digital services

� primarily for economic reasons� Broadband internet access (but also for

digital TV, HDTV and Mobile TV)

But? � alternative systems and competition in

the market exists� rural broadband via satellite

� rural broadband via Wimax � Broadband wireless via 3G, UMTS

� There is unused spectrum for this that can deliver higher data rates

� Low class broadband connection?

� What with the future networks NGN, NGH, fibre � up to the next digital divide


HOW LONG WILL WIRELESS BROADBAND LAST?

10 20 30 40

10

100

1000

10000

Years

Deliverable bit-rate(Mbit/s)

HDTV todaystream (12-14 Mbit/s)

Multiview HDTV or Super HiVisionstream (140-200 Mbit/s)

Bit-rate demand in developed worldfor broadband

WiMax ADSLCognitive RadioWifi

FTTH

HFC

useful life of wirelessbroadband

• Sounds wonderfully logical.

• Unfortunately it is not. Because of a detail: ‘Content’ which continues to grow in complexity and bit rate needs.

• Sounds wonderfully logical.

• Unfortunately it is not. Because of a detail: ‘Content’ which continues to grow in complexity and bit rate needs.


Return 3. Bridge the digital divide: Rural broadband

We support universal high-speed access

to the internet to everybody, everywhere.

Broadband (wireless) media is an important part of our media package.

But is it the right way ??

It is important to examine which is the most efficient and sustainable way to achieve this result.

� Can wireless broadband services deployed in the UHF bands really bridge the digital divide?

� Does it make sense for operators to invest in an infrastructure in rural areas?

� What kind of broadband services will consumers get for which cost with wireless services?

� Are these services sustainable?


Return 4. Upgrading mobile networks and services

� Extending existing platforms� Better coverage in the city, in buildings or in the rural areas

� Higher service delivery to a larger group of users

� Reduce the network operators cost

� universal service/covergae

� Introduction of next gen mobile broadband services:� 4G, LTE, ..

But?

•Combining mobile and broadcast cause interference issues? not relevant you think, see video

•The new next gen mobile BB will introduce cost for the end customer? We give public spectrum up, for introduction new paid services. Can we find a way to create a public value in this evolution?


Interference between mobile and broadcast‘guaranteed service’ versus ‘best effort service’


Return 4. Upgrading mobile networks and services

� Extending existing platforms� Better coverage in the city, in buildings or in the rural areas

� Higher service delivery to a larger group of users

� Reduce the network operators cost

� universal service/covergae

� Introduction of next gen mobile broadband services:� 4G, LTE, ..

But?

•Combining mobile and broadcast cause interference issues? not relevant you think, see video

•The new next gen mobile BB will introduce cost for the end customer? We give public spectrum up, for introduction new paid services. Can we find a way to create a public value in this evolution?


‘Innovation with value’ is more than developing innovative

technology ...

Innovation in technology is not enough ...

� Innovation in technology is the first step, it creates new creative (and market) opportunities but doesn’t guarantee any success

Innovation in content, services and experiences is crucial

� Innovation by creative media people using innovative technology is the important and necessary second step, and the key stone of future success

Successful market take up of new platforms and services will be driven by the cooperation

� media organisations

� platform operators


Where to innovate ...?

70 % of innovation on new customer experience and product innovation


It’s about innovation, not imitation

Digital TV versus i-Player, Catch-up TV


It’s about innovation, not imitation

‘Mobile TV’ versus ‘mobile media’


Is there a digital dividend or a deficit? � Many users of the spectrum (e.g telecoms companies) are

motivated solely by financial arguments� Public service broadcasting is not about money

� PSBs deliver high quality content to all segments of the population, irrespective of their ability to pay for services

� All players (commercial & public) require access and the capacity to spectrum to allow them to deliver interference-free digital services in relation with their mission

� Spectrum policy is not simply a question of allocating spectrum – it must also address issues of interferencewhich are NOT trivial

� Mobile broadband applications will be crucial for the future. � What we see is a fundamental shift in the usage of spectrum,

a scarce resource, with high public value.

� Media organisation need broadband mobile appl as part of their future media package

� If we discuss the dig dividend, can we create the framework for the future broadband mobile networks including an element for public value, not only financial value

A clear digital dividend policy is needed to argue

A clear digital dividend policy is needed to argue

EBU TECHNICAL

Thank you

Lieven Vermaele

Documents

Ddo5 Lieven Vermaele 20081017 Vermaele From Digital Dividend To Digital Deficit