Content Delivery

Introduction

Serving content users across different business areas

Facilitating content consumption whatever the platform

Standardization of broadcast and telecommunications has traditionally followed different paths, due to differing commercial requirements. Recent developments in areas such as the internet, mobile communications and broadcasting have led to a convergence of these traditional communities, in which content delivery has become common ground. Aligning the existing and diverse technical specifications is a prime requirement, as is the need to harmonize solutions for the benefit of the business communities and end-users.

Currently, commercial solutions developed by different market players do not interoperate across platforms. Consequently, content providers face the costly challenge of providing different content formats to the various distribution pipes, whilst customers' buy-in remains well below expectations.

ETSI has undertaken the task of guiding and co-ordinating standardization work for content delivery within the scope of this convergence of broadcast, internet and telecommunications standards. The goal of this approach is a successful overall development of multimedia systems, including television and communication, managed and unmanaged networks, that serve to present and future market needs.

Interoperability and Cross-Platform Solutions for Content Distribution

ETSI's activities include a comprehensive set of standards and interoperability tools to enable content delivery across various distribution platforms.

These activities cover all major elements of the media delivery ecosystem: the networked home, the content/service provider network (CSPN), the content delivery network and the media content distribution flow.

The work is based on requirements as defined by industry and users, to develop functions and interfaces that allow interoperability and interworking between equipment vendors, CSPNs and end user devices.

Groups

The ETSI content delivery cluster encompasses the activities of several ETSI Technical Committees:

  • MCD (Media Content Distribution)
  • TISPAN (Telecommunications and Internet converged Services and Protocols for Advanced Networking)
  • ERM (EMC and Radio spectrum Matters)
  • SES (Satellite Earth Stations and Systems)
  • ATTM (Access, Terminals, Transmission and Multiplexing)
  • JTC Broadcast, a joint Technical Committee between ETSI, the European Broadcasting Union and CENELEC. Some of its input comes from other industry organizations, such as the DVB Project and WorldDMB Forum.

Other contributors include 3GPP, the Third Generation Partnership Project.

Activities

MCD addresses the issues associated with the fragmentation and non-interoperability of solutions for content distribution across platforms in a converged environment - supporting IPTV, web TV, mobile TV and broadcast TV. In particular, MCD works on subtitling, programme guide information, CA/DRM interoperability and 3D gaming graphics delivery.

MCD and TISPAN jointly address content delivery networks (CDN): internal CDN architecture and protocols on one hand; CDN interconnection on the other hand.

IPTV is managed by TISPAN and JTC Broadcast. TISPAN focuses on the IPTV service delivery for fixed next generation networks (NGN) and defines two solutions (IMS-based and Integrated) for the integration of IPTV in the NGN architecture. JTC Broadcast defines DVB IPTV deliverables specifying technologies on the interface between a managed IP network and retail receivers.

Mobile TV is defined by 3GPP, JTC Broadcast and SESMSS (Mobile Satellite Systems). MBMS (Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service) solutions are defined by 3GPP for terrestrial networks and by SES-MSS for satellite networks. Solutions such as DVB-H, DVB-SH, DMB and ‘Forward Link Only' are specified by JTC Broadcast.

Broadcast TV is addressed by JTC Broadcast which sets the standards for satellite, cable, and terrestrial systems. ATTM-AT3 also covers aspects of cable TV systems.

In addition, JTC Broadcast deals with hybrid broadcast broadband television solutions, content coding, content protection and digital radio (together with SES-SDR).

ERM-TG17 defines standards for broadcast and ancillary communication equipment.