Ahead of the rollout of 5G Broadcast services across the continent, the European 5G Broadcast handset taskforce has published its receiver profile for companies within the broadcast sphere.
The taskforce, which includes EBU and BNE members, aims to ease the process of standardisation in 5G broadcast-capable smartphones, as broadcasters prepare for the transition. Comprising members from France, Italy, Germany and Austria, the working group, supported by Qualcomm Technologies, is working to establish a common receiver profile and ensure compatibility, allowing broadcasters and network operators to work within a sustainable business model.
In a statement, the EBU said trials had been underway for several years with the first smartphone prototypes already developed, adding that 5G Broadcast has been ready for commercial rollout since early 2023.
Finalised and submitted to 5G-MAG, the industry association developing and maintaining the 5G Broadcast specification (ETSI TS 103 720), the profile is now open for review and feedback from the broadcast community. The taskforce aims to include the profile in the next version of the ETSI specification, allowing chipset and CE manufacturers to incorporate it into their product developments.
Antonio Arcidiacono, CTO and CIO at EBU, said: “5G Broadcast […] has been supported by several EBU Members in a series of trials in Europe since 2020. The Olympic large-scale demo of [this summer] in France, with hundreds of consumer devices, is marking a key evolution moving towards market introduction. The definition of the European profile gives a clear indication to all Chipset and CE manufacturers on the market needs in Europe. The launch of a 24/7 demonstration service in five main urban areas in Italy in 2025 will further accelerate the implementation of 5G Broadcast in the development roadmaps of key manufacturers.”
