Things are different now, claims MediaFLO
Despite very limited roll outs of mobile broadcast TV in Europe so far, increasing data use will drive operators to reconsider broadcast as a multimedia data delivery tool, according to Chem Assayag, Head of Business Development for Qualcomm MediaFLO Technologies.
Assayag said that MediaFLO is in talks with European operators now about using broadcast not just for TV, but for data casting and other uses.
“Twelve to 18 months ago operators would have been less concerned, but as they see increasing problems on their 3G networks their interest has evolved. They are now listening again,” he said.
“It’s quite a practical decision to make. What are the cost benefits of 3G and LTE against broadcast, if you have to deliver the same content to a million users? Some might say that LTE will solve the problems, but consumer expectations are also going to change. Today users are used to small screens and low quality, but as LTE is rolled out they will demand high resolutions and larger screens, meaning there will be more bandwidth demands on the cellular infrastructure.”
Assayag said that FLO could have an announcement about European activity within 6-12 months, but he couldn’t commit to any more than that. Mobile broadcast forms a complicated three-sided business model, with operators, broadcasters and device manufacturers all needing to see clear benefits of participating.
“These are very significant projects, that take a fair amount of time,” he said. Europe has also suffered from not operating as a single, consistent market in terms of spectrum availability, regulation and business models.
But if a case can be made, Assayag insisted that FLO offers the best change – with the most cost-efficient technology, largest device ecosystem and clearest business benefits such as proven interactive and value-added service elements.