CES: OMVC Expands Membership To Manufacturers, Others

The Open Mobile Video Coalition has for the first time
invited non-broadcast members to join the group through a new Mobile DTV Forum.

The coalition, which is working through the technical issues
of mobile DTV, is an association of over 900 TV stations and now at least four
electronics manufacturers--Dell, Harris, LG and Samsung Mobile.

That those would be the anchor institutions for OMVC's
expansion of membership to tech companies and beyond should come as no
surprise.

LG and Samsung have a long history in the short history of
mobile DTV development, teaming up back in 2008 to head off a possible
standards battle over a technical standard for the service.

OMVC was using Samsung, Dell and LG receivers and laptops in
its D.C. test of mobile DTV service last year, while Harris teamed with LG on
the transmission standard for mobile DTV.

But OMVC says it will also be recruiting members from
software and content providers to "represent the entire Mobile DTV ecosystem."

John Eggerton

Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.