Nordig HbbTV API & Saorview

The Cush

19 Apr 2012 : This week's announcement of a new broadcasting standard for Europe will likely have slipped under your radar but it could have massive implications for how broadcasters treat content and how viewers consume it.
Spearheaded by NorDig, the parent broadcasting organisation for the Nordic region, HbbTV (hybrid broadcast broadband television) is set for roll-out in Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, Denmark and Ireland, and has already been trialled in France, Germany, Spain and The Netherlands.

...

The bad news? Well we won't be seeing HbbTV in the near future. While the standard may be in place, and manufacturers are on board to the extent that new TVs are coming with HbbTV connectivity, there are no plans to take it to market in Ireland just yet.

HbbTV could provide a tipping point for connected television by making the viewing experience more immersive and flexible. For the moment we'll just have to look to Europe to see what kind of a reception it gets; pun intended.

Read more: http://www.techcentral.ie/18753/hybrid-tv-something-europe-can-agree-on#ixzz1t0YrBvLn
http://www.rte.ie/news/2012/0419/hybrid-tv-something-europe-can-agree-on-technology.html

On the 4th Apr Nordig released v.1 of its HbbTV specification which replaces MHP as its chosen API.

HbbTV services are now on air in Germany, France, Austria and Spain, while trial services are taking place in the Netherlands and Switzerland. Of the Nordig countries Denmark has a pilot service and Finland plans to start later this year.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/04/17/scandinavia_joins_procession_to_hbbtv_in_europe/
http://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2012/04/12/clovers-week-hbbtv-makes-its-way-across-europe/

lawhec

Hbb is being planned, but not yet confirmed, for future use on Freesat as well. MHEG5 is intended to run alongside it for compatibility with legacy receivers.

watty

I thought the UK is using MHEG-IC instead of HbbTV.

IMO it's a bit pointless. I'll write an article explaining why...

The TV companies need to concentrate on actually making good programs. HDTVs of course can make use of the ordinary Internet without MHEG-IC or HbbTV in a more practical fashion than smaller SD tvs. But good design of the remote, possibly with the underneath as a touch navigation pad like underside of PS Vita and keeping a Sky like Tactile set of buttons on top. A touch LCD like an iPad /iPhone is poorer idea for TV control. A qwerty keyboard has proved to be a bit of a failure on remotes.

Decent content, not integrating broadband and live TV is the important thing. All HDTVs will have "regular" internet anyway. Do we need an Interactive distraction away from the program we are watching or just the ability to use the standard Web Browser after the program?

The Cush

lawhec wrote: »

Hbb is being planned, but not yet confirmed, for future use on Freesat as well. MHEG5 is intended to run alongside it for compatibility with legacy receivers.

article - New Freesat Boxes to Run on HbbTV

watty

The plans codenamed G2, and already presented by the free-to-air satellite platform to some receiver manufacturers, run counter to the thinking by shareholders the BBC and ITV, which are also involved in YouView.

Bizarre.

Just having a WebBrowser & Ethernet socket standard is more use TBH.

Exactly what "compelling content" will be produced and how much resource will be diverted from making actual programs?

lawhec

watty wrote: »

I thought the UK is using MHEG-IC instead of HbbTV.

MHEG-IC is being used on Freeview, it's Freesat that plan to use HbbTV. At present MHEG-IC is only being used as far as I can see to deliver additional channels via IP, with a small about of MHEG data sent via a broadcast multiplex to instruct where to find the relevant streams and to provide its interface (for example, username and password entry for paid services). At present there is a foreign TV channels package in French, Polish, Turkish & Greek, there is also three CCTV (China) channels FTA, Sports Tonight (I might have mentioned it before, but think of TalkSport on TV with a budget of about £1) and Racing UK as a subscription channel.

On the point of remote controls, I'd agree - most people through building familiarity and tactile feeling will know where the most common buttons are on a remote control after a short while. I have an Android app that allows my phone to be used as a remote control for my television but the touch screen interface is either limited in "simple" mode, or very prone to errors in "full" mode where you have to scroll the screen to get to different buttons. The best use I've found for it is to use it for QWERTY input on varying features while the normal remote control only gives a standard mobile phone like keypad.