New TV standard: DVB-I to merge linear television and streaming

In Germany, the market launch of the new TV standard DVB-I (Digital Video Broadcasting – Internet) is getting closer. Public and private television broadcasters as well as associations and authorities are pulling in the same direction. Following the establishment of a round table in 2024, working groups have been working on the relevant details for a possible DVB-I offering in Germany since the beginning of 2025, explained stakeholders such as the electrical engineering association ZVEI on Monday. These include the definition of product requirements, the organization and operation of a common service list and aspects of non-discriminatory access for broadcasters.

DVB-I is an open standard for the transmission of audio and video services via the Internet Protocol (IP). Viewers should be able to find and watch television content seamlessly, regardless of whether it is transmitted terrestrially via antenna, satellite, cable or broadband networks such as VDSL, fiber optics and 5G. Programs from these different distribution channels are combined in the TV set. In general, simple, integrated use of linear television should also be possible via IP streaming without launching a separate app.

According to the plan, content will be available to users on practically any end device. Smartphones, tablets, laptops or televisions should be accessible via a DVB-I client under a single user interface. The standard combines classic, linear television with the flexible options of streaming and video-on-demand. Viewers will continue to have the usual direct access to TV content on a user interface. In addition, there will be many additional services, an improved electronic program guide (EPG) and a seamless transition to non-linear offerings from broadcasters and other platforms such as YouTube.

DVB-I pilot project successfully completed

This extends the HbbTV (Hybrid Broadcast Broadband TV) approach familiar from smart TV sets. This also brings broadcast programs and broadband offerings together on one screen. With DVB-I, however, suitable devices can also adapt the transmitted data directly to their own screen. Different interfaces and applications will no longer play a role.

The new standard will "soon merge streaming and classic television even more closely", explained Thorsten Schmiege, President of the Bavarian Regulatory Authority for New Media (BLM). As coordinator of the Innovation and Infrastructure Committee of the Directors' Conference of the State Media Authorities (DLM), he is moderating the test runs for the market launch with all those involved at the round table. According to Schmiege, DVB-I combines "the findability of broadcasting, user-friendliness and efficient use of resources". This is why the media watchdogs campaigned for the necessary framework.

In addition to the ZVEI and the DLM, ARD and ZDF, ProSiebenSat.1, RTL, the Federal Network Agency and the industry association Vaunet are also involved. In the current working groups, the participants are also discussing the certification of receivers, for example. They are also drawing up a project plan for the DVB-I launch on the market. At the same time, a DVB-I task force of the German TV Platform is developing a technical implementation profile for TVs & Co. A pilot project with 19 organizations that began in September 2022, in which solutions for digital rights management (DRM), business models for subscription services and technical solutions were tested, has now been successfully completed. It remains to be seen when DVB-I will actually be launched in Germany.

(olb)