The EBU together with DigiTAG, BNE and ACT has issued joint recommendations aimed at ensuring that necessary technical safeguards are adopted to protect the television services, delivered by the digital terrestrial TV (DTT) platform, from interference. New technical safeguards have become necessary following the decision by several national administrations to allocate the 790-862 MHz frequency band (800 MHz band), presently used for broadcasting, to fixed and mobile communications networks.
Safeguard recommendations
These recommendations call for the most protective level defined in EC decision 2010/267/EC (baseline requirement in case A) to be applied in all cases as well as the adoption of further mitigation measures. In addition, recommendations are given to national administrations on the measures that should be put in place when granting frequencies in the 800 MHz band.
According to Lieven Vermaele, EBU Director of Technology and Development, “When viewers have problems with receiving TV, they often contact their public service broadcaster to find out if there is something wrong with the service. If mobile communications were to interfere into digital broadcasting, the screen would simply go black, and the broadcaster would have no way of helping the viewer. It is therefore essential that great care is taken in the planning and implementation of mobile communications in the former broadcasting band, so that the risk of such confusion is totally avoided.”