CES 2010: NAB, OMVC, Sezmi to Partner on DTV Showcase

Will highlight new applications for broadcast spectrum

By Glen Dickson -- Broadcasting & Cable, 1/4/2010 7:35:00 PM

The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) said late Monday, Jan. 4., that it will demonstrate new applications for broadcast spectrum at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week. NAB is working in partnership with the Open Mobile Video Coalition (OMVC), a group of 800 stations that has been promoting mobile DTV, and Sezmi, a start-up that wants to sell a new pay-TV service based on both DTV transmission and Internet video and which has been negotiating with stations to lease some of their spectrum.

The announcement comes as the NAB is embroiled in a major lobbying effort to convince the FCC and Congress that broadcasters should retain their digital spectrum, and not be forced to give up some, or all of it, for applications such as wireless broadband access. New applications such as mobile DTV and multicasting services like Sezmi have been touted by NAB as vital uses for the digital spectrum alongside broadcasters' existing high-definition and standard-definition programming.

"Broadcasters are charging into 2010 working with innovative organizations like Sezmi and the Open Mobile Video Coalition that improve the quality, delivery and accessibility of broadcast content," said NAB president Gordon Smith in a statement. "Such services represent the vibrant future of broadcast-based services that will greatly benefit the public, and cannot be replicated by broadband. Their foundation is the digital television spectrum."

NAB says it will showcase the new applications, including demonstrations of mobile DTV and Sezmi's "Hybrid Broadcasting" model, at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas. That NAB is working with OMVC is not a surprise, as it has teamed with the group to promote mobile DTV development before, such as collaborating on market studies and mobile DTV demos. A formal relationship with Sezmi, which began trialing its service in Los Angeles last year and has yet to launch commercially, is new. However, Smith did mention Sezmi in his testimony last month before the House Subcommittee on Communications, Technology and the Internet, and said the company is "working with broadcasters to provide a blended broadcast-broadband system that is a more affordable, quality alternative to cable and satellite."

"Our breakthrough nationwide television service brings significant new revenue opportunities to broadcasters while providing consumer with competitive choice in television service," said Buno Pati, co-founder and CEO of Sezmi, in a statement. "As we prepare for our nationwide rollout this year, we're pleased to have the support of many television broadcasters paving the way for more competitive consumer choices in television."