WEYBRIDGE, Surrey, U.K.—Pebble has announced that the major Korean broadcaster CJ OliveNetworks has successfully launched one of the most technically advanced multichannel setups in APAC region using technologies from Pebble. 

The installation combined Pebble’s automation, integrated channel and Pebble remote solutions, to bring 11 fully redundant channels to air. As a result of their collaboration, the project was honored with the Excellence Award for Channel System at the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting+ Awards 2023.

Pebble’s channel partner Besco, a leading equipment and services provider in Korea, was instrumental in specifying, testing and installing the system. Besco also supported Pebble in translating its user manuals into Korean and providing first line support on the company’s behalf.

CJ OliveNetworks, an entertainment and media subsidiary of South Korea’s CJ Group, provides a full house of broadcast and digital services including managed broadcast transmission of 64 local and international channels. To meet current growth and future expansion it required new flexible infrastructure that could support a combination of SDI, NDI, ST-2110 and transport streams, hosted on COTS hardware. 

“We are excited to become an integral part of CJ OliveNetworks expansion and proud of the work that we have done as a team,” said Samir Isbaih, Pebble’s vice president of sales, Middle East and APAC. “The pandemic and travel restrictions prevented on-site visits but with the assistance of our valued partner Besco and through remote access, the system was ensured a smooth process from commission through proof of concept to test, install and going live.”

“We wanted to build a future proof flexible solution that could perform uncompressed IP, compressed IP and SDI in the same system and in the same server with a modern user interface,” added Choi Tae-Hyoung, general manager at CJ OliveNetworks. “Pebble systems were the clear winner in enabling us to move forward for our clients. We are immensely satisfied with the whole process from inception to execution.”

The solution now live at CJ OliveNetworks features Pebble automation controlling playout of 33 integrated channels in an 11+11+11 redundant configuration, the companies reported. 

Each on-air channel can be fed from any one of three integrated channels to provide extremely high availability. All channels are of similar design with 2110 and SDI inputs and outputs plus NDI monitoring.  Logical processors include loudness control, audio shuffling, DolbyD encoding, SCTE104 and closed subtitling. CJ OliveNetworks is the first customer to use the RT Software plugin for advanced graphics. CJ OliveNetworks also utilizes Pebble's internal graphics capabilities. Furthermore, CJ OliveNetworks are controlling external third-party Tornado CG. The integration of Pebble Open API with CJ OliveNetworks' in-house Traffic and Media Management system enables seamless communication between the two platforms. With this integration, CJ OliveNetworks can now easily interact with Pebble's live playlist and media metadata, the companies explained. 

Besco CEO, Young Bae Kim, explained that “Pebble has market leading solutions with the features that provide the flexibility CJ OliveNetworks needs. Pebble systems have extensive redundancy schemes, backed by excellent customer service ensuring ultimately on-air reliability. We’re looking forward to growing this partnership in the APAC region.”

SEOUL, Korea—Paramount+ has launched in its first Asian market, with the debut of its streaming service in South Korea on the number-one K-content platform, TVING. 

With the launch existing TVING subscribers can stream Paramount+ content at no extra charge.   

The launch is part of a strategic global partnership between Paramount Global and CJ ENM that includes content licensing and distribution across Paramount+ and TVING, as well as seven Korean original series. 

Mark Specht, executive vice president & managing director, Central & Northern Europe and Asia, Paramount, explained that the “launch of Paramount+ in Korea with TVING marks a pivotal moment in our expansion, as we introduce our premium streaming service to Asia. South Korea is a vibrant market for streaming as well as content production, music, and culture. We are very excited to partner with CJ ENM to expand our streaming business and produce great Korean content for audiences in Korea, Asia, and around the globe."

As part of the company's investment in content, Paramount said it is also looking at opportunities and projects for Korean adaptations of known Paramount scripted I.P.s, global franchises, and reality programs. 

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.—The Republic of Korea’s Army Special Warfare Command deployed TVU One 4K HDR mobile transmitters for the live broadcast Nov. 12 of the 2021 National Counter-Terrorism Comprehensive Exercise hosted by South Korean Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum.

Some 450 people from eight organizations participated in the exercise, which simulated emergency action in four terrorist attack scenarios, including the hijacking of passenger ships at sea, occupation of land passenger terminals and explosive and bio-chemical threats, TVU said.

KoreaTV, a national television network, and regional broadcaster OBS Gyeongin TV broadcast the exercise live. 

The national broadcaster combined real-time coverage from passenger ships, police cars, drones, speedboats and TV reporters. Four TVU One mobile transmitters and two dual-channel TVU Transceivers were used to transmit and receive live video signals for the coverage, it said.

All signals were transported to the KoreaTV studio center where the director orchestrated the live production, directing broadcast, audio and graphics producers as shots were switched. Background music and graphics were added before the production was delivered via KoreaTV’s public channels.

The TVU One transmitters provided mobile transmission through network signal fluctuations with frame synchronization, rapid multi-position synchronous switching and multi-view conversion to stabilize live signals across challenging airborne and seaborne camera positions, the company said. 

“The TVU One 5G transmitters brought great convenience to the live video broadcast of this anti-terrorism drill. The cameraperson could shoot alone and move quickly to capture more details of the drill and send it back to the command center,” said OBS Gyeongin TV technical manager GunHo Song.

“The output frame synchronization of multiple TVU One transmitters solved the problem of using multiple sets of devices for production,” he said. “Compared with traditional video capture and transmission solutions, TVU live broadcast is simpler, reduces costs, and it provided great live video for this drill.”

More information is available on the TVU Networks website.

WASHINGTON—The future of high resolution is now for Korea, as the country’s broadcasters recently launched a terrestrial UHD television service, the first nation to do so. To congratulate the country on its accomplishment, NAB CEO Gordon Smith, EVP/CTO Sam Matheny, SVP Technology Lynn Claudy and VP of Technology, Education and Outreach Skip Pizzi made the trip to Seoul for the two-day Global UHD Conference that commemorated the launch.

In addition to the UHD terrestrial service, Korea has begun regular broadcasts of the ATSC 3.0 standard. As the U.S. is currently working on ATSC 3.0 itself, Pizzi said that it was beneficial to see the next generation standard in action. Currently multiple Korean broadcasters are delivering ATSC 3.0 services and off-the-shelf consumer displays are able to receive the signal off the air. The NAB quartet took some time on their trip to visit with broadcasters who are in the process of converting to and testing UHD over ATSC 3.0.

Korea previously announced that it plans to broadcast the 2018 Winter Olympic in Pyeongchang in 4K over ATSC 3.0. “We saw a lot of detail on implementation (both on the conference’s exhibit floor and at broadcast facilities we toured), and got a visceral sense of the enormous range of possibilities that ATSC 3.0 offers by observing the wide variety of modes that Korean broadcasters are currently testing in the lab and field,” Pizzi told TV Technology.

Additional information gleaned from the trip was the plan for Korean broadcasters to soon begin creating national and regional single frequency networks (SFNs); the eventual shutdown of HD over ATSC 1.0 services; and the possibility of migrating from T-DMB for mobile TV to ATSC 3.0 services.

Korea will not be resting on its laurels, however. According to Pizzi, once Korea is fully up and running as a terrestrial UHD nation it will begin moving forward on providing 5G TV services. 

For more on this subject, visit our ATSC 3.0 silo.

SHENZHEN, CHINA—Koreans will have a new place to learn to fly their drones, as DJI has announced that it is ready to open a DJI Arena in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province. Just about 50 km south of Seoul, this 1,395-square-meter arena will open in mid-August.

The indoor venue will feature safety nets, and adjustable LED-lit circuit, and an LCD TV for first person views. There will also be a maintenance room with charging docks and a workstation for repairs.

The DJI Arena will be available for individual and group bookings, event rentals, and a venue for DJI’s New Pilot Experience program and workshops. It can also be used for advanced flying experiences and drone racing.

This follows DJI’s previous construction of a store in Hongdae, Seoul.

LAS VEGAS—In an exclusive interview at the NAB Show, Jae-You Choi, vice minister of Science, Information & Communications Technology and Future Planning for Korea, discussed the country’s plan to transition to UHD television broadcasting and also for providing 4K coverage of the 2018 Winter Olympic Games to be held in Pyeongchang. He disclosed that experimental broadcastsare already underway, and that regular UHD transmissions would begin early next year in Seoul and these will be expanded to other regions of the nation at a fairly rapid pace.

Vice Minister Jae-You Choi

“We are preparing to launch the world’s first terrestrial UHD service in February 2017,” said Choi, speaking through an interpreter. “We will start service in the Seoul metropolitan area and the surrounding areas and then expand that service into [cities near] the Olympic venues, and in 2021 we will launch a nationwide service. The plan is to provide coverage to 77 percent of the country by the end of 2017.”

ATSC 3.0 USED IN DEMOS, BUT NO OFFICIAL DECISION YET

Choi noted that UHD has been available in Korea since 2014 via cable, IPTV and satellite distribution services, and that, while no government decision has been made to adopt a particular transmission standard, ATSC 3.0 is currently being used for these demonstrations. (Korea launched its current DTV service in 2001 with the ATSC 1.0 transmission standard.)

Choi pointed to the demos that took place at the Korean Pavilion at the NAB Show that will show how UHD will look over ATSC 3.0. “In June this year, after reviewing all the overall circumstances in the domestic situation, we are going to decide the terrestrial broadcast standards for UHD television,” he said.

Asked about plans for getting the Korean public used to the idea of 4K TV service, Choi said that there is already a campaign in place to do this with announcements about the launch of ultra high-definition service being made by television broadcasters.

“In Korea there has been established a group or association of electronics makers and broadcasters called ‘DTV Korea,’ to launch a full-scale publicity campaign,” he said.

The Vice Minister added that he expected the government will set up a program to help existing HDTV owners transition from the ATSC 1.0 transmissions now used to the new broadcast standard via set-top boxes or similar devices.

“When we were transitioning to digital TV in 2012, the government provided set-top boxes for viewers who did not have digital receivers,” said Choi. “As for the UHD transition, while we haven’t set up any detailed plans yet, I believe there is the possibility of a similar situation. There may be a special law enacted to support the transition in this way.”

When asked about a cut-off date for conventional high-definition broadcasting, the Vice Minister said this will likely happen in 10 years or so, but a complete timeline is not in place yet.

“In December of 2015 the government set up the launch plan for UHD, but we haven’t gotten into the details of a termination for regular HD service,” said Choi. “We are going to set up measures to prevent any kind of discrimination against regular HD viewers. We are planning to end regular broadcasts in about 10 years, but no firm date has been established.”

MAJOR COMMITMENT TO KOREA’S UHD FUTURE

Choi observed that the move to UHD is being heavily supported both by the government and private broadcasters.

“As for the Korean government, our policy direction is that UHD is a very important part of our next-generation broadcast industry,” he said. “We believe that the most important part is to have quality content in UHD and we set up public-private partnership funding to support the creation of content and also to implement policies for UHD technology. We do not yet have any plans or mandates in place that would force broadcasters to create UHD content or air it, but we do have a kind of consultation body with various stakeholders to set policy for UHD, so we are talking about this. And from the Korean terrestrial broadcasters’ side, they have already made commitments to the Korean government that they will invest about (U.S.) $5.9 billion to create UHD content and improve facilities to make UHD programing available.”

READYING FOR THE OLYMPICS

When asked about the number of Korean homes that will be watching the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Games in UHD, the Vice Minister stated that this should be significant, citing a report from a study group that predicted some 180 million UHDTV sets in homes globally by the end of 2018, with more than 10 percent of these in Korea.

“In Korea it is predicted that there will be 1.91 million UHDTV sets in homes; this is significantly higher than the global average,” he said.

Choi noted that in connection with the Winter Games 4K telecasts, the Korean government will suggest to the host broadcaster, OBS (Olympic Broadcasting System), to create UHD programs with popular events to be shown in real-time. A special “UHD Broadcasting Equipment Experience Studio” will also be open to allow broadcasters visiting from other countries to learn more about what is involved in getting ready for 4K broadcasting.

“I hope that you will have the chance to come to Korea and experience this,” said Choi.

See also:

TV Technology’s ATSC3 silo.

LAS VEGAS—LG Electronics said its once again collaborating with Korean broadcasters KBS and SBS to demonstrate real-world implementation of ATSC 3.0.

In the Korean broadcasting exhibit in the ATSC 3.0 Broadcast Pavilion at the NAB Show, KBS and SBS will show how over-the-air ATSC 3.0 will deliver pristine 4K Ultra HD video on LG 65-inch 4KTVs equipped with ATSC 3.0 demodulator/tuner chips.

“Korean terrestrial broadcasters including KBS are preparing to launch the commercial UHD broadcasts with advanced services, including electronic service guides, emergency alerts and video-on-demand, by February 2017. Our collaboration with LG at the NAB Show demonstrates our unique UHD service in the U.S. for the first time,” said Byeong-Ryeol Park, technology executive managing director at KBS, which has been conducting terrestrial UHD experimental broadcasts since 2012.

SBS Technical Director Dr. Young-Soo Park said the ATSC 3.0 demonstrations at the NAB Show set the stage for implementation of next-generation broadcasting in Korea in advance of over-the-air 4K broadcasts of 2018 Winter Olympic Games. “With Korea preparing to launch terrestrial UHD TV commercial services in early 2017, we hope our alliance with LG at the NAB Show inspires other broadcasters around the world to have the confidence to also move ahead with next-gen broadcasting.”

ATSC 3.0’s progress in Korea is in fact significant for the United States, according to Sam Matheny, the NAB’s executive vice president and chief technology officer. “As U.S. broadcasters consider their ATSC 3.0-related business models and implementation plans, there is keen interest in South Korea and their fast-track launch of next-generation television broadcasting,” he said.

ATSC 3.0 is an IP-based broadcasting system that combines broadcasting and broadband. The KBS-SBS-LG demonstrations at the NAB Show include IP technologies based on the Dynamic Adaptive Streaming over HTTP, or “DASH” streaming media format and the Real-Time Object Delivery Over Unidirectional Transport IP delivery protocol, aka “ROUTE.”

“ATSC 3.0 represents the next frontier for broadcast television. Korean broadcasters and manufacturers take great pride in their important role in developing, demonstrating and implementing next-gen broadcasting in Korea and in the U.S.,” said Dr. K.Y. Kwak, executive vice president of LG’s Advanced Standard Research & Development Lab.

The KBS and SBS demonstrations with LG at the NAB Show build on 4K ATSC 3.0 broadcast field tests in Korea. LG said that it and KBS demonstrated the DASH/ROUTE IP technologies delivering advanced emergency alerting and electronic service guide data in an end-to-end live terrestrial broadcast a couple of weeks ago. LG, SBS and other vendors demoed a live end-to-end 4K Ultra HD broadcast in February. The broadcast used a live camera feed with real-time IP transmissions from the SBS network studio in Mokdong to the broadcaster’s Gwanak Mountain transmitter. The IP signals transmitted over the air on SBS Channel 53 were then received using a simple antenna and decoded by a 4K Ultra HDTV ATSC 3.0 receiver developed by LG Electronics.

Also see...
TV Technology’sATSC 3.0 vertical, and...
February 24, 2016
“Korea to Launch ATSC 3.0 Broadcasting in 2017”
Several Korean broadcasters announced this week that they will begin transmitting ATSC 3.0 OTA broadcasts starting in February 2017. The news comes after the two broadcast networks, SBS and MBC—in conjunction with LG Electronics, ETRI and several equipment vendors—announced the first successful live end-to-end ATSC 3.0 broadcast in the country, and represents perhaps the best confirmation yet that the ATSC 3.0 next generation broadcast standard is on schedule to be completed within the next 12 months.

SEOUL—Several Korean broadcasters announced this week that they will begin transmitting ATSC 3.0 OTA broadcasts starting in February 2017. The news comes after the two broadcast networks, SBS and MBC—in conjunction with LG Electronics, ETRI and several equipment vendors—announced the first successful live end-to-end ATSC 3.0 broadcast in the country, and represents perhaps the best confirmation yet that the ATSC 3.0 next generation broadcast standard is on schedule to be completed within the next 12 months.

Real-World 4K Broadcast Demonstrates ATSC 3.0 Global Collaboration with Ultra HD Broadcast Service Scheduled to Begin in Korea Next February. (Photo Credit: LG Electronics)

The first end-to-end broadcast of 4K Ultra HD represents a significant development, according to LG, because past demonstrations (including several Futurecast tests conducted in the U.S. in 2014 and 2015) have simply used pre-recorded material loaded directly to a transmitter. This test broadcast featured a live camera feed with real-time IP transmissions from the SBS network studio (one of the two in Mokdong to the broadcaster’s Gwanak Mountain transmitter. The IP signals transmitted over the air on Channel 53 were then received using a simple antenna and decoded by a 4K Ultra HDTV ATSC 3.0 receiver developed by LG Electronics. Signals in the Korean broadcast were delivered with next-generation IP technologies based on the DASH (Dynamic Adaptive Streaming over HTTP) streaming media format and ROUTE (Real-Time Object Delivery Over Unidirectional Transport) IP delivery protocol.

SBS coordinated a combination of broadcast equipment and systems, including the 4K video server, ROUTE-based HEVC (High Efficiency Video Coding) encoder, ROUTE-based multiplexer, signaling server, and ATSC 3.0 management system, all of which were used for the broadcasting demonstration. MBC participated in the broadcast transmission interface and reception measurement testing. DigiCap provided the ATSC 3.0 signaling server, and Media Excel provided the HEVC real-time encoder.

Being developed as a global standard by the U.S.-based Advanced Television Systems Committee, the ATSC 3.0 standard is being touted as the world’s first Internet Protocol (IP)-based broadcast system, combining broadcasting the broadband for the first time. Most of the 20 elements that comprise the ATSC standard have now moved to Candidate Standard status, one of the last steps in the standardization process.

ATSC is the broadcast standard for a half dozen countries in North America, including Canada and Mexico and South Korea’s ETRI has been viewed as a leader in the development of ATSC 3.0. There have been numerous tests of the ATSC 3.0 standard conducted in the United States, including the aforementioned Futurecast, as well as tests from Sinclair Broadcast Group with Technicolor in 2014 and 2015and the 2016 CES, which focused on transmitting 4K HDR content. An LG spokesman noted that the Futurecast tests conducted last year were designed to “show the relative performance of LG technology as proposed for the Physical Layer,” he said. “In the end, several elements from LG were incorporated in the Physical Layer that is now elevated to Candidate Standard status.”

Korean-based Samsung, the world’s largest consumer electronics manufacturer, has also been involved in developing and testing the ATSC 3.0 standard, teaming up with Sinclair and start-up ONE Media for several over-the-air tests over the past year.

Dr. Young-Soo Park, SBS technical director, said, “The success of this trial highlights the potential for Korea’s launch of terrestrial UHD TV commercial services using ATSC 3.0 in February 2017. And the fact that Korean companies are playing such an important role in ATSC 3.0 provides a good opportunity for Korean equipment manufacturers to advance in the U.S. market.”

Following the success of the experimental broadcast, SBS and MBC said they plan to work with LG and ETRI (the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute) of Korea to take full advantage of new capabilities of ATSC 3.0, such as the combination of broadcast and broadband signals. “We will continue to develop technologies to help commercialize ATSC 3.0 as the next great advance in terrestrial broadcasting,” said Dr. K.Y. Kwak, executive vice president, LG’s Advanced Standard Research & Development Lab.

Also see:

Jan. 6, 2016
"KHMP-LD Delivers Live HDR 4KTV in ATSC 3.0 at CES"
LG is reporting that KHMP-LD is live broadcasting 4K Ultra HDTV with high dynamic range using the new ATSC 3.0 Candidate Standard at CES 2016.

Dec. 3, 2015
"Sinclair Demos HDR 4KTV Over ATSC 3.0 in Vegas"
Sinclair Broadcast Group, along with subsidiary One Media and Technicolor, report they have successfully transmitted high-dynamic range 4KTV over the air using the proposed ATSC 3.0 standard and a prototype reception device.

Nov. 17, 2015
“ATSC 3.0 DTV Standard Gets Far East ‘Test Drive'”
History was made here last month as a multinational group of television engineers gathered to perform systems compatibility testing of the ATSC 3.0 digital TV standard. The event, officially dubbed “Plug Fest 2015,” was hosted by China’s National Engineering Research Center of Digital Television, Oct. 19-23.

Oct. 18. 2014
"Sinclair and Technicolor Do ATSC 3.0 4K Over-the-Air Broadcast"
Sinclair Broadcast Group and Technicolor said they successfully deployed Technicolor’s ATSC 3.0 4K UltraHD testbed platform and receiving an over-the-air signal. 

July 13, 2015
"Inside the Cleveland Futurecast ATSC 3.0 Transmission Tests"
Work on a future ATSC 3.0 standard is moving swiftly, with officials from GatesAir, LG and Zenith’s research and development lab predicting that there will be a “candidate standard” by the end of this year. 

Jan. 12, 2016
"ATSC 3.0 Brings Flexibility of IP to Broadcast"
The hardest part of the ATSC 3.0 proposed broadcast standard to get one’s head around is probably the IP transport piece. Over-the-air TV, as it stands, might have its distribution network issues, but they pale when compared to the Internet’s limitations.

May 28. 2015
"Why Move to ATSC 3.0?"
Why move to ATSC 3.0? There are many answers to that question, and the hundreds of people who attended the annual ATSC Broadcast Television Conference and ATSC 3.0 Boot Camp earlier this month came away with new insights about how broadcasters will reach tomorrow’s audience hungry for local news, emergency alerts, favorite shows, and a seamless experience that merges broadcasting with the Internet.

WASHINGTON—Congratulations to the Advanced Television Systems Committee for elevating the “Physical Layer” transmission system for ATSC 3.0 next-generation television broadcasting to “Candidate Standard” status. The standards organization has accomplished a major feat, harnessing the expertise of companies and researchers across the broadcast “spectrum,” not only in the U.S. but around the world.

Although the ATSC is reluctant to characterize the development of 3.0 as being “fast-tracked,” let’s not kid ourselves; this work is not being done in a vacuum. Between the impact of next year’s spectrum auctions (prompted by an FCC that is hostile to broadcasting), the decreasing interest among millennials for traditional television and the increasing reluctance of new players in the media world to adhere to any kind of standards, our industry is being forced to adapt to today’s accelerated pace of technological change. We don’t have the luxury of time that we had with ATSC 1.0.

One of the chief caveats about ATSC 3.0 is the fact that it is not backward-compatible, that a whole new generation of TV sets and mobile devices will have to be developed to handle the transmissions. Unlike the transition to DTV, there will be no government-sponsored program to help consumers this time. In addition, the jury is still out about how much support the major networks will put behind the standard and we’re still waiting to see when or if the National Association of Broadcasters will formally endorse it.

Although the primary work on the standard is based in the United States, there is another country that could very well play a major role in its success—Korea. The world’s 11th largest economic power is home to two of the world’s largest consumer electronics manufacturers—Samsung and LG Electronics—who have also played an important part in the development of ATSC 3.0. Add to that the fact that the Korean government is pushing for broadcasting the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang in UHD (although there is no formal commitment on how it will be delivered), and the picture gets more interesting.

“It’s become a national imperative in Korea to have wireless free Ultra HD before the 2018 Olympics,” said Rich Redmond, chief product officer for GatesAir. “The government has allocated new spectrum—not a repack—part of the 700 MHz is going to broadcasters for additional transmission methods to deliver Ultra HD.”

Trials are taking place both here in the U.S. (by groups like ONE Media and FutureCast) and in Korea by ETRI (Electronics Telecommunications Research Institute), but unlike here in the U.S., official govern-mentsupport for the standard is strong. “There may not be a mandate here [in the U.S.], but there’s clearly a mandate in Korea and that’s going to drive Samsung and LG to get [the standard] into consumer electronics,” Richmond said. “All the Korean broadcasters we met at NAB had very specific questions about how it’s being delivered.”

Could Korea save free over-the-air broadcasting in the United States? That’s a stretch, but without them, the road to success could be more difficult to tread.