Progress with digital terrestrial television studies in Venezuela

In Venezuela, in the first quarter of 2007, a new ministry, with very specific authorities, was established for the telecommunication sector: the Ministry of People’s Power for Telecommunications and Information Technology, with responsibility for regulating, formulating, directing, guiding, planning, coordinating, supervising, and evaluating state policies, strategies, and guidelines to promote and develop the telecommunication sector.

In that connection, and specifically in connection with DTT, said ministry has decided to give greater impetus to projects to develop it and digital radio in Venezuela, establishing the general and specific lines of the work plan that will lead to a decision on the digital television standard to be adopted for implementation in Venezuela.

In addition, a working group was formed. It has responsibility for reviewing and evaluating the different standards and for planning the public perception and technical field tests to complement the study to be conducted for use in preparing a detail technical and socioeconomic report and report on the different test results, for subsequent presentation to the Minister for his evaluation.

It was decided that the testing stage would comprise two phases:

Phase 1: “Perception tests,” conducted at five (5) sites (commercial and institutional) in the Caracas metropolitan area, where three stands were set up, one supporting a 42” plasma television screen receiving digital signal, one supporting a 42” screen receiving analog signal, and one supporting a 21” analog television screen receiving digital signal, so that the public could compare and note the differences between digital and analog technology and the advantages of DTT, and where interactive applications were demonstrated. See Figure 1.

At the same time, on-site surveys were conducted to determine the expectations of the public visiting the different stands, in order to measure the level of interest and awareness of DTT technology. See Figure 2.

This phase lasted for three weeks, from June 26, 2007, the opening date of Copa América, to July 15, 2007.

Translation:  Demonstration phase scheme - Digital TV in Caracas.

Live SDTV content.   Rack module. 4x SDTV encoder.  1 multiplexer.  Transmitter.  Antenna.  Conventional monitor.  Plasma monitor.  MPEG-2 SDTV STB.

Translation:  Characteristics of the demonstration phase of Digital TV in Caracas. 

Start:  6/26/07.  End:  7/15/07.  Content transmission.  Channel 8.  Channel 2.  Channel 4.  Channel 39.  Four (4) analog channels on 1 6MHz-bandwidth channel.  Digital Mux.  674 MHz.  Channel 48 – UHF.

Figure 1: Stands: one with a 42” plasma television receiving digital signal, another with another 42” television receiving analog signal, and a 21” analog television receiving digital signal.

Figure 2: On-site survey application

Phase 2: The second phase comprises field measurements made based on a test protocol that establishes the method and types of measurements, in open and closed environments, using measuring equipment to generate technical results on the behavior of the fixed, mobile, and portable aspects of the European DVB and Japanese ISDB standards.

This phase will begin on July 16, 2007. Taking part will be technical staff of the National Telecommunication Commission (CONATEL), and representatives of academia, the broadcasting sector (operators), and the DVB and ISDB standards, who together will assist with the field measurements to be made over a two month period.

Lastly, to be noted is the support for the DTT project provided by the Ministry of People’s Power for Telecommunications and Information Technology, in view of the high importance of this topic at the regional level, and, in particular, for Venezuela, which is to adopt in the near future a national provision for the establishment and development of one of the cutting-edge technologies, designed to guarantee and make generally available to the public new, higher quality, television and a wider array of options with which the public will have the opportunity to interact.

CONATEL-Venezuela