Editorial

The DVB project
George T. Waters

Digital Video Broadcasting

Satellites, science and success – The DVB story
D. Wood (74 KB)

The European DVB Project is seen as something of a model for the development of new systems in many parts of the world.

In this article, the author describes the lessons learned in the 1980s which led to the foundation of the DVB Project in 1993, and the successes it has since achieved.

MPEG video – A simple introduction
S.R. Ely (89 KB)

The core element of all DVB systems is the MPEG-2 vision coding standard, which is based upon a flexible toolkit of techniques for bit-rate reduction.

The MPEG-2 specification only defines the bit-stream syntax and decoding process. The coding process is not specified, which means that compatible improvements in the picture quality will continue to be possible.

In this article, the author provides a simple introduction to the technicalities of the MPEG-2 video coding standard.

The DVB satellite, cable and SMATV systems – Why the technical choices were made
J. Seseña (105 KB)

The author describes the DVB systems that have been defined for the digital distribution of television, sound and data services via satellite, cable and SMATV networks.

Reasons are given for why the technical choices were made and the author briefly discusses future trends in digital broadcasting, especially the move towards interactive broadcasting.

Digital terrestrial television – The 8k system
L. Grete Möller (84 KB)

While this issue of the Review was being prepared, the DVB Steering Board agreed on the specification for terrestrial broadcasting of digital television signals (DVB-T). It is based on COFDM with two variants – one is known as the "8k system" and the other as the "2k system".

In this article, the author outlines the developments which led up to the DVB-T specification being agreed, and describes how an 8k system works.

The DAVIC Project – Rationale and goals
L. Chiariglioni (72 KB)

In this article, the author gives the reasons for the founding of the Digital Audio-Visual Council (DAVIC).

Its structure, the way it operates and the nature of the specifications it produces are described.

Also, the contents of Version 1.0 of the specification are explained and the programme of work for 1996 is outlined.

A functional model of a conditional access system for use with digital television broadcasts
EBU Project Group B/CA (76 KB)

EBU Project Group B/CA has developed a functional model of a conditional access system for use with digital television broadcasts. It should be of benefit to EBU Members who intend to introduce encrypted digital broadcasts; by using this reference model, Members will be able to evaluate the different conditional access systems that are available.

The model is not intended as a specification for a particular system. Rather, it provides a framework for defining the terms and operating principles of conditional access systems and it illustrates some of the conflicts and trade-offs that occur when designing such systems.