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BPN 022

EBU WEBCASTING PROJECT GROUP

Practical WebcastingBMC/WBJune 30th 1999

The New Range of Opportunities forTraditional Broadcasters

Report by the EBU Webcasting Group 2

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.Table of Contents

About the contributors ..........................................................................5

Executive Summary...............................................................................6

The Story Continues… ......................................................................... 6

Challenges for public service broadcasting.............................................. 7

Public Subsidies Still Essential .............................................................. 8

EBU Research & Testing Continues ........................................................ 9

Rapid Growth Not Slowing Down..........................................................10

Section 1: New definitions for Webcasting ..........................................11

A Bit Is A Bit.....................................................................................11

Webcasting: Global Reach from the Start ..............................................12

Section 2: Internet into the home: Who is out there?..........................14

Europe On Line .................................................................................15

How people use the Internet ...............................................................16

Is there a General User Profile of the Internet?.......................................16

Audio and Video Over The Internet.......................................................17

Section 3: Browser Types: Who is winning in June 1999? ...................20

Section 4: At The Station: Crafting Content to Fit the Medium............21

Content and Form .............................................................................23

Copy and Paste Journalism Threat........................................................24

Section 5: Building the Active Archive .................................................26

The Digital Cue Sheet ........................................................................28

Section 6: A New Age for Audio Devices ..............................................30

The Search Engine On The Front Of The Radio .......................................30

New Concepts for Audio On-The-Move ..................................................32

Portable Audio Devices: The Solid-State Walkman ..................................34


MP-3 Players Not Ready for Internet Radio ............................................35

Section 7: Don’t ignore the phone companies......................................36

Mobile Connection Speed Increases......................................................38

Third Generation Phones ....................................................................39

The Media Mix On The Phone...............................................................39

Broadcast-Mobile Phone Alliances.........................................................40

Section 8: Internet via the cable .........................................................42

Enhanced Television ..........................................................................43

Competition from ADSL ......................................................................43

Section 9: Internet via the sky ............................................................44

Stratospheric Platforms ......................................................................46

The Iridium Project............................................................................46

Section 10: Other Interactive Carriers.................................................47

Section 11: Streaming Audio: Now and in the near future ...................48

Table 11.3 Bit rate Comparison ...........................................................51

Streaming and Downloading Audio .......................................................52

How Does Webcasting Differ From Traditional Broadcasting? ....................52

Bandwidth: Unicast versus Multicast............Error! Bookmark not defined.

Compression Schemes ..............................Error! Bookmark not defined.

Audio quality of current Compression schemes.......................................56

Streaming Audio Software: Requirements on the Transmitting side ...........58

How the audio streamers work ............................................................59

Server for Streaming Audio.................................................................60

Network Protocols for Streaming Audio to deliver 'QOS' - Quality ofService ............................................................................................61

Receiving end: Players for Streaming Audio...........................................62

Section 12: EBU members on-line; the 1999 survey results.................64

Infrastructure ...................................................................................64

Extra Activities..................................................................................65


Delivery of News Services on the Internet .............................................66

Section 13: Starting a Web Site…the do's and don'ts ..........................68

Make sure your objectives are clear......................................................68

Technical Considerations ....................................................................69

Options for Web site management .......................................................70

Tools for creating Web Pages ..............................................................71

Presentation of Web Pages..................................................................71

Getting User Feedback .......................................................................72

Section 14: Legal Questions ................................................................73

Regulation of Content ........................................................................73

Questions of Liability..........................................................................73

Domain Names and Web Economics .....................................................74

Copyright.........................................................................................74

Copying Material Out Of Context ..........................................................74

Translation.......................................................................................75

The Right to Build Hyperlinks ..............................................................75

Reissues on CD-ROMS and the Web. ....................................................75

Music Rights .....................................................................................75

Freelance Contributions......................................................................76

Appendix 1 : Multimedia applications for different delivery methodsand receivers.......................................................................................77


About the contributors

This document is published by the EBU/BMC Webcasting Group.

It was edited and compiled by the chairperson of the group DianaJanssen, (Radio Netherlands, Hilversum, The Netherlands). For questionsor comments about the report, please send e-mail to:[email protected]

It was made possible thanks to input from the members of the EBU/BMCWebcasting group: Franc Kozamernik and Heijo Ruijsenaars (EBU),Gerhard Stoll (IRT Germany), Robert Tamm (YLE Finland), ZoltanÜrmössy (MTV Hungary),Nicole le Minous-David (France Telecom/CNET),Mauro Milita and Florenzo Petitta (Radio Vaticana), Pascal Vuylsteker(INA France), Eric Duval-Valachs (Radio France), Philip Deibert (ZDF,Germany), Dominic Riley (BBC UK).

Additional research and comments were supplied by Jonathan Marks,Director of Programmes at Radio Netherlands and Andy Sennitt of AGSMedia.

Attempts have been made to illustrate this report with examples ofcommercial products. The inclusion or exclusion of any particular branddoes not imply an endorsement of these products by the EBU or itmembers.


Report by the EBU Webcasting Group

Executive Summary

The Story Continues…

Almost two years ago, the European Broadcasting Union published anextensive report on the state of streaming audio for radio channels forbroadcasting via the Internet. Since then the number of stations on-linehas grown exponentially. However, the range of streaming players hasconsolidated along the lines predicted by the EBU working group. In theconsumer field, there was a brief alliance between Microsoft’s WindowsMedia Player (formerly Netshow) and Real Networks (formerlyProgressive Networks). Both companies have steadily improved thestreaming software so that the audio sounds so much better. AppleComputing has also been active and has now developed streamingcapability to its QuickTime 4 player, introduced in a beta version in April1999.

At the same time there is the assumption by developers that domesticInternet connections are getting faster. 28.8k modems are now the bareminimum, with 33k being the average in most parts of Europe usinganalogue lines and 64k for ISDN connections. Even wider bandwidthchannels via cable, satellite and new forms of phone technology arepromised at the start of the new millennium. Trials are already runningacross Europe.

The Internet is still an emerging technology. The tools that can be usedto prepare Web pages today will be obsolete in one year’s time, replacedby something better. There is a clear need for information about what isout there and how it can be used to make a better Web site. This reporttries to give that overview, with quite a lot of detail in specific areas ofinterest to broadcasters.

There is no substitute for hands-on experience. EBU members areencouraged to actively look at other Web sites, try them out and learnwhat is good and bad about them. This will help build a better site;regular Internet users can easily tell whether the person who designed aWeb site really understands what it’s like to be “on the receiving end”.Don’t get caught out and make serious design errors in public. Try outyour site off-line and make sure everything works as intended. It’s yourimage and your reputation, which suffer when things go wrong.


An earlier version of this report included a list of more than 700 Internetsites being run by public broadcasters in Europe and their commercialcompetitors. It is not being re-printed in this version because it is out ofdate by the time it is printed. A much better resource is the Web itself.For further info, look at the links posted on the Radio Netherlandswebsite at http://www.rnw.nl/realradio/links/html/hitlist_index.html thatalso has an extensive list of links to other broadcasters around the world.

There is also the list produced by the Massachusetts Institute ofTechnology, with hypertext links to the Web sites, is available athttp://wmbr.mit.edu/stations/euro.html. Our research in late May 1999shows that with some 8000 stations, this list is the largest.Unfortunately, this list still has a lot of duplications, but it is another goodstarting point in the search for who is on-line.

Challenges for public service broadcasting

None of the distribution systems to mobile, portable or fixed receiversshould be in the hands of a government or private monopoly. In theperiod 1960-1990 across Europe, commercial radio and television wasintroduced to break the monopoly and acquired arrogance of public radioand television. Curiously, satellite television developed the other wayround, being driven by commercial interests. In many cases, public TVstations are totally or partially dependent on a private monopoly foraccess into the home. As digital set-top boxes introduce the concept ofsubscriber management, universal access to the home by public servicebroadcasters is further restricted.

Electronic access to information is destined to become one of the mainfactors of competition. It is already affecting economic growth, jobcreation and, increasingly, the quality of life.

Such radical changes in our society are having profound effects on thosewho work in the broadcasting business. They are being forced to breakdown the barriers between the different media. Despite an obvious short-term hype about the Internet, it should NOT be seen as a gimmick.Technology is merging several industries so that the future lies in beingable to supply content to fit the new and traditional media. Because ofthe economics of European satellite TV, some language groups apartfrom French, German and English are already in the grips of privatemonopolies or cartels.


Public Subsidies Still Essential

In order to make an informed opinion at elections, access to abroad range of information is a basic human right. This implies thatpublic subsidy will always be needed to fund educational programmeproduction and broad interest services (e.g. news, certain forms ofscientific and cultural programming.). This task has traditionally beengiven to public institutions with a mandate for impartiality. But withaudience fragmentation, there is a strong danger that commercial marketparameters (e.g. viewing figures) become the only driving force.

Public money will still be needed to fund educational and documentaryprogramme production. The challenge will be to find new formats thatretain an overall mass appeal to justify the expense. Falling productioncosts due to digitalisation is one factor helping this, but increased“zapping” by consumers is reducing the effectiveness of long-formprogramming in the current “broadcast” mode of distribution. But in thelong-term, new forms of broadband distribution may give viewers accessto archive material. This gives quality material a second life.

The use of the term “free-TV” in some circles may be replaced by theterm “unrestricted access”. Public broadcasting, whether by radio, TV orthe Web is not free - some now regard it as compulsory Pay-TV/Radiowith a subscription price determined by the government. “Free” in thiscase, means that reception of the information is possible using astandard receiver located anywhere with the footprint of the satellitetransponder (e.g. across the European Union). “Conditional access” issimply gate-keeping by an organisation positioned between theprogramme producer and the consumer.

On May 1st 1999 the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) welcomed theentry into force of the new European Union Treaty as a landmark forpublic service broadcasting. European Union heads of state andgovernment in Amsterdam agreed the Treaty in June 1997. An associatedProtocol makes clear that funding granted to broadcasters in fulfilment oftheir national public service remit that is compatible with Europeancompetition rules.

For the first time, the legal framework of the European Union containsexplicit recognition of the role and specific nature of public servicebroadcasting, decisively contributing to Europe’s political and culturalidentity. This important recognition reflects a firm political consensus thatpublic service broadcasting is vital to the citizens of Europe, and giveslegal security to its funding.


The Protocol to the Amsterdam Treaty was agreed in 1997 following callsfrom the European Parliament and Council of Europe for theindependence of public service broadcasting to be safeguarded throughan appropriate, secure and transparent funding framework.

Protocol on the system of public broadcasting in the Member States

THE HIGH CONTRACTING PARTIES,

CONSIDERING that the system of public broadcasting in the Member States is directlyrelated to the democratic, social and cultural needs of each society and to the need topreserve media pluralism,

HAVE AGREED UPON the following interpretative provisions, which shall be annexed tothe Treaty establishing the European community,

The provisions of the Treaty establishing the European Community shall be withoutprejudice to the competence of Member States to provide for the funding of public servicebroadcasting insofar as such funding is granted to broadcasting organisations for thefulfilment of the public service remit as conferred, defined and organised by each MemberState, and insofar as such funding does not affect trading conditions and competition inthe Community to an extent which would be contrary to the common interest, while therealisations of the remit of that public service shall be taken into account.

EBU Research & Testing Continues

In the last three years, the EBU has conducted several practical softwaretests under the direction of Gerhard Stoll of the IRT in Munich, Germany.His latest report follows later in the document. This practical research hasalso been combined with general interviews with managementrepresentatives conducted at recent EBU gatherings in Switzerland,Spain, The Netherlands and Portugal. As this report goes to press, workis being finalised on an EBU Webcasting Reference site. This will containan online version of this report as well as side-by-side comparisons ofaudio players. More details can be found at the support website for thisproject which is hosted at http://www.rnw.nl/corporate/partners.html assoon as they are available.

Because of the development cycle of the major software players, thescene is constantly changing. An “Internet year” is currently equivalent toaround three months in the real world. This means that roughly everyfour-six months major software companies such as Apple, Microsoft and


Netscape are introducing significant new products and/or features. In thecourse of the EBU discussions several revisions of this document havehad to be made just before the publication date in mid June 1999.

As browsers and servers add new functions, the features supportedchange. What looked great on a webpage three months ago, just isn’tgood enough today to please a growing number of discerning users.Trends come and go like the seasons. One minute “push” is thebuzzword, then suddenly it is out of favour for clogging the overloadeddistribution pipes of the web and corporate intranets. Clickable banneradvertising on web pages is another example of a phenomenon that islosing its popularity. Although there was a 27 percent increase in thenumber of Web sites seeking advertising in the first quarter of 1999, theclick-through rate for many companies in North America and Europe hasnow dropped to around 0.05%.

Rapid Growth Not Slowing Down

It is estimated that 1 million pages of content are added to the Interneteach day. 78% comes from the USA, Europe trailing with about 14%. Thecurrent page count is in the region of 480 million!

A survey in May 1999 of EBU member websites show that only a handfulof radio and TV networks in Europe do not have some form of “homepage”. But the level of Internet awareness amongst professionals in thebroadcast industry still varies enormously across the European Union.Some European public broadcasters can compete well with the majorityof their North American counterparts. It is noticeable that countries suchas Portugal, Spain and France have made major investments in their on-line presence and pay a lot of attention to creative design. However,stations in some other countries still offer a very static on-line version ofcorporate publicity brochures that were originally printed on paper. Insome respects (especially interactivity and constant updating) nationalnewspaper concerns have adapted their resources for the web betterthan broadcasters. Often this is because the written word lends itselfbetter to adaptation for the screen than transcribed text from radio ortelevision.

This report looks at new forms of webcasting, including those that involvethe third generation of mobile phones.


Section 1: New definitions for Webcasting

Webcasting is a new term and therefore needs to be defined. It has twodistinct components:

Production: Webcasting involves creative hyperlinked relationshipsbetween text and audio, text and visuals (graphics or video) or all three.The final production is accessed via a browser-like interface.

Distribution: By interacting, the audience can shape what is delivered.The simplest form involves streaming media (audio, video and text)where the production centre determines the context. The most complexform is information on demand, where the consumer determines thecontext and depth of what is delivered.

Appendix 1 gives a more detailed overview of the variouscombinations of webcast production and delivery.

The hype and trading surrounding the webcasting business has neverbeen more intense. In the first quarter of 1999,several important websites with audio contentwent public. Then in a deal billed as one of the“worst kept secrets” the search engine siteYahoo agreed to buy the webcasting operationBroadcast.com (www.broadcast.com) for US$5.7billion in stock. The agreement at the start ofApril 199 was the second largest cyber marriageso far, second only to America Online's US$9.4

billion take-over of Netscape.

Even sceptics were surprised at how quickly Internet stock increased invalue. At press-time, many still believe these are over-valued. Web sitesand e-mail addresses are on business cards, just like fax machinenumbers were in the mid-1990’s. Commercials on television, featureprogrammes on radio, even a cinema trailer for the next Hollywoodspecial effects epic, many of these now feature the Uniform ResourceLocator or URL for a web page.

A Bit Is A Bit

Traditionally, print, telephone, radio and television have had separatedistribution systems into the home. But the arrival of teletext, messagepagers, and now the audio-, video- and text capabilities of the Internet,have meant content producers have a choice of methods to reachconsumers. In the digital world, a “bit is a bit”. During this centuryinternational co-ordinating bodies such as the ITU as well as national


administrations have allocated spectrum for a specific use (e.g. certainsections of spectrum reserved for maritime mobile communications) isbeing challenged by a creative European media industry.

New digital compression technologies used by a creative media industryallow more efficient use of the frequency spectrum and require less datacapacity than conventional analogue technologies. Improvements incompression technologies for audio, video and data allow even moreprogramme channels over the air and via the Internet.

Less than a decade ago, a term such a “TV broadcast” used to meanputting out a television programme over a terrestrial transmitter, therebyreaching millions of people. Now a television programme streamed overthe Internet and/or distributed through satellite, cable or cassette canalso reach an audience. Targeting 120,000 Urdu speakers in the UK wasnot financially viable in the 1980’s using conventional distributionchannels. But the arrival of satellite TV and a dramatic drop indistribution costs has created several lucrative markets for niche TV andon-line services targeting communities.

Other media have limitations to their global penetration too. Books andnewspapers are expensive to print and distribute. Shops can only carry alimited and generally popular stock. Books are generally not very topical.

Most radio and TV systems are national. International radio suffers fromthe limited fidelity of analogue short-wave. Developments have now beenmade to switch analogue AM transmissions into a new multimedia digitaltransmission mode. 1999 is a crucial year for standards within the DigitalRadio Mondiale (www.drm.org) group.

Even satellite radio & TV stations have well-defined geographical targetareas. Asiasat 2 reaches viewers and listeners in Asia. Because thetransponder is below the European horizon, broadcasters on Asiasat 2cannot reach clients in Europe.

Webcasting: Global Reach from the Start

Webcasting starts with the instant potential of global distribution (exceptto countries like Singapore, Malaysia, Peoples’ Republic of China (andassuming new proposed legislation is passed in 1999 – Australia) withproxy servers to filter unwanted Internet sites. One person can shareaudio/video/text on his/her computer with millions around the world. Theinformation can be highly topical, as well as very controversial.

While digital distribution systems are coming together, there is a growingdivergence at both the production and user end of the “digital pipeline”.There is another production factor. As Internet expands, so the cost


to reach the individual is dropping. Consumer acceptance of newprogramme sources and ideas is strongly influenced by four factors:

• Ease of finding desired programming. On-line, interactive andintelligent programme guides are essential in markets of dozens orhundreds of TV channels. The public is increasingly reluctant to payfor channels they don’t consume.

• Range and cost of the programme delivered. Several cable andsatellite providers have learned the value of programme “bouquets”.More choice means the programme producer reaches a more selectivebut fragmented public.

• Price of the receiving device. Digital satellite receivers providebetter quality than analogue sets. But they are currently at least oneand a half times the price. There are impulses being made toencourage a changeover. In Holland, most satellite operators switchedabruptly to digital with only a few months of simulcast. Germanbroadcasters have a much longer-term commitment to analogue. Inthe UK in May 1999, both satellite and terrestrial programmeproviders announced schemes to supply free receiver/decoderscombined with subscriptions. Analogue satellite TV services will bestopped in December 2002.

• Available bandwidth at the point of reception. Streaming videovia the Internet is crude at the moment. That is because video wasnever designed to be distributed over the narrow bandwidth offeredby a standard phone line.


Section 2: Internet into the home: Who is out there?

Everyone seems to agree that trying to estimate the numbers of peopleon-line is one of the most in-exacting sciences at the moment. InternetProviders often exaggerate. Many people have two accounts, one forhome, the other at work. Surveys abound on the Internet, using all sortsof measurement parameters. However, there are ‘educated guesses’ tobe made and as of May 1999 the number of on-line users as reported byNua Internet Surveys ( http://www.nua.ie) in Ireland is 165 million.

World Total 165 million

Africa 1.14 million

Asia/Pacific 26.97 million

Europe 40.09 million

Middle East 0.88 million

Canada & USA 90.63 million

South America 5.29 million

The latest figures are posted athttp://www.nua.ie/surveys/how_many_online/index.html .

Although the figures are easy to download, remember it is extremelydifficult to get hard and fast figures in many countries. There are a widevariety of methodologies in use. The Northern European countries seemto be leading the way. This might be linked to the cold winter nights andthe various national cultures! The cost of on-line connections is stillextremely high in countries like Germany at the moment. Despite this,the penetration of Internet in Germany is ahead of France and Spain.Note that the web version of this document allows you to check the linksfor more current information. The number of Internet subscriberscontinues to grow fast and shows no sign of levelling off.


Europe On Line

COUNTRY DATE OF LATEST SURVEY ESTIMATED NUMBER SOURCE

Austria August 1998 442,000 IDC Research

Belgium February 1999 1,400,000 Initiative Media Brussels

Czech Republic January 1998 270,000 IDC

Denmark May 1999 1,700,000 Business Area Stockholm

Estonia October 1998 152,000 BMF Gallup Media

Finland May 1999 1,600,000 Business Area Stockholm

France May 1998 2,500,000 Mediangles

Germany October 1998 7.300,000 GfK

Greece January 1998 111,000 IDC Research

Hungary May 1998 200,000 Steven Carlson iSYS Hungary Kft Est.

Iceland December 1998 121,074 PWC

Ireland March 1999 388,176 Amarach Consulting

Italy May 1998 2.600,000 Osservatorio Internet Italia

Netherlands April 1999 2,300,000 ProActive

Norway January 1998 601,000 IDC

Poland November 1997 700,000 Nua est.

Portugal January 1998 188,000 IDC Research

Russia March 1999 1,300,000 COMCON

Slovak Republic September 1998 510,000 Net Projekt

Spain May 1999 2,740,000 AIMC

Sweden May 1999 3.600,000 Business Arena Stockholm

Switzerland September 1998 1,200,000 Burke

Turkey October 1998 700,000 VOT Estimate

UK December 1998 10,600,000 NOP Research Group


How people use the Internet

It is now difficult to generalise across the European continent, but inconversations at EBU meetings and from the vast amount of publishedliterature, there is a trend that the “experimental” aimless surfing phaseof Internet users is getting shorter. During the first few months or so, thetypical Internet user “surfs” the Web out of curiosity to learn and getacquainted with it. Users are impressed by graphics, and make heavy useof hypertext links to get from one place to another on the Web. Theinformation obtained from this “Web surfing” is for private use.

After this initial period, the user no longer relies so much on surfing andusing the links provided by someone else. They start to make use ofsearch engines such as Alta Vista, Yahoo, Excite and Hot Bot, to look forspecific information which will often be more business or commercerelated.

Sites of particular interest will be saved as Bookmarks/Favourites or in ahot-list, and the user gradually builds up a personal portfolio of Websites, consulting this on a regular basis. The aim of any Web site operatoris, therefore, to try and get into as many bookmark or hot-list files aspossible. To stay there requires the information provider to keep the site“alive” with frequent updates, news services etc. A site that is rarely, ornever, updated can seriously harm the image of its operator. It is for thisreason that broadcast sites with a news component usually do well.

Is there a General User Profile of the Internet?

As of May 1999, an estimated 165 million people world-wide had accessto the Internet. Nordic Countries have some of the highest penetration ofInternet into the household. North America is not far behind. 42 percentof the total US adult population (over 18) are regular Internet users,which is up 20 percent from the previous year. One study, issued inSpring 1999 by CyberStats, found that men are more frequent Internetusers only by a fraction. Of the entire online population in the US, 51.4percent are male and 48.6 percent are female. 44.9 million had accessedthe Internet from home while 31.3 percent accessed from work duringthe survey.

But looking through the data, it is clear that unlike two years ago, ageneral European profile of the Internet user is rather meaningless. Apartfrom the fact that men still have more access to the Internet, thestatistics per country are becoming quite diverse. Several reports point toSweden as the leading e-commerce country in Europe. According to arecent study by Intelligence, a web research company in Stockholm, 57%of the population is online, while for the rest of Sweden, 46% were onlineusers.

In Eastern Europe, there is quite a range of Internet acceptance. InSlovenia, for instance, at the end of 1998 nearly 300’000 people were


online, representing 15 % of the population. About half of them wereweekly users and 12 % were monthly users. The primary form of accessis dial up access using the primary telecom service. About 80 % of largecompanies are online in Slovenia and 67 % of small companies haveInternet.

Contrast this data with Spain, where a survey by AIMC in April 1999estimated that only 8 percent of the Spanish population are active on theNet. Of the 2.74 million Spaniards over the age of 14 who now haveInternet access, 65.5 percent were male. 70.8 percent of those whoaccessed the Net in the previous month were male. The majority of usersin Spain continue to access the Net from home, 50.4 percent, while workis the primary place of access in 36.4 percent of cases, and university in17.3 percent of cases.

Half way in between are the statistics from The Netherlands. The typicalDutch Internet user is online 3 days per week, spending an average of 56minutes online. In total, almost 1 million hours is spent on the Internetper day in the Netherlands. An estimated 2.3 million Dutch people overthe age of 15 now have Internet access, according to a survey byProActive. The study found that in the two-week survey period in March1999, 80 percent of Dutch users went online to use email. 70 percentwent online in search of specific information, 61 percent to surf without agoal, and 55 percent to download files. Business users were morefocussed in their use, with 68 percent going online to search for specificinformation, 60 to email, and 40 percent to access news and backgroundinformation.

So the statistics continue, many of them openly publicised by researchfirms to encourage the growth of on-line business activities. For in thecommercial world, the big question remains – when do you start e-commerce ventures? There has to be enough of the target group on lineto avoid huge losses at start up. At the moment there appears to be aclear North-South divide across Europe. Companies in countries like theUK, Sweden, Finland, Germany and Denmark are investing heavily tolaunch this year. Germany is surprising, again because of the extremelyhigh cost of Internet access –for the time being. The Benelux is expectedto be ready in 2000, whilst e-commerce in countries such as Poland,France, Spain and Greece is expected to take off in 2001 or later.

Audio and Video Over The Internet

The Internet radio audience in the USA has doubled in the last half year.In the United States, a January 1999 survey by Arbitron, the broadcastradio measurement company, gave a big morale boost to radio stationsoperating on the web. The study found that about 31 million people, or13 percent of the U.S. population, have listened to Internet radio,compared with only 6 percent in an earlier study. The increase inbandwidth has meant that Internet radio sounds better and there aremore sound cards installed at PCs in the workplace. The office is also the


place where Internet connections tend to be faster and radio signals tendto be weaker because of shielding by the building and interference fromoffice equipment and fluorescent lights.

By mixing local and national content, individual station Web sites areevolving into mini information gateways (current buzzword is portal) withlocal news, weather and traffic reports. There is e-commerce on manysites too, with listeners able to buy concert tickets, music memorabilia,and hold auctions. One of the promises of Internet radio is that once Websurfers lock onto a webcaster, research indicates they aren’t so quick tojump to another site. For instance, at the 21 streaming ABC-owned radiostations online, the average listening time is 40 minutes. National PublicRadio in Washington reports around a million pageviews a day to its sitecontaining audio on demand segments from news and current affairsprogrammes.

Download and Shop

The use of video is less than audio. Streaming video is still in an earlydevelopment stage and unless bandwidth is available, results are likewatching a fuzzy postage-stamp. Perhaps the exception is the filmindustry, where large downloads are reported for movie trailers,especially blockbuster movies such as the new Star Wars: The PhantomMenace film or the X-Files. More details about the streaming technologyare given later in this report.

Very little comparative data has so far been published to create a clearprofile of the typical European Internet radio/TV consumer. Most of thebroadcasters currently on the Net are still in the learning processthemselves. Through feedback they are just starting to get an idea ofwho is out there and what services they require. Nevertheless, somegeneral observations can be made as to the various ways people aremaking use of audio on the Internet:

Expatriates can listen to radio from their home country, often for news,but sometimes just for entertainment, and to enjoy hearing something intheir native language. Traditionally, this has been the role of theinternational broadcasters, but gradually more and more people are usingInternet either in addition to, or even as a replacement for, listening tothese services on the radio. In the case of some stations such as RTEIreland, Swiss Radio Internationale or Radio France Internationale, thereis limited or no short-wave radio alternative.

Business people can make use of news and financial information. But it’simportant that such services are updated on a timely basis. CNN Financial


Network deliberately delays material by 20 minutes. In the US the stockexchanges supply real time data to brokerages and to subscriptionservices, allowing them to make their money.


Section 3: Browser Types: Who is winning in June 1999?

In the browser war, everyone claims to be a winner. It is possible to trackthe browser statistics. One large broadcast site in Europe notes thebalance through May 1999 as set out below. But other sites may showslightly different statistics. On March 18th 1999, Microsoft launched thefull version of its IE5 web browser.

Microsoft Internet Explorer 43.9%

Netscape Navigator 42.8%

Cyberdog 2.34%

IBrowse 2.17%

Opera-3.0 1.07%

Echo 0.99%

Lynx 0.78%

iCab 0.58%

AmigaVoyager 0.57%

Lycos_Spider_(T-Rex) 0.52%

IBM WebExplorer 0.52%

Ultraseek 0.38%

There is no question that Open Source Development is the softwaredevelopment model of the 21st century. Closed development leads tolonger development times, lesser quality, high-budget projects, non-standard Implementations, limited platform coverage, software that doesnot inter-operate well with other products, and eventual feature sets thatrisk losing connection with consumer and market demands. On the otherhand, software developed under open source, such as Linux and Apachedo not suffer from these problems.

Netscape has suffered a severe setback in its market-share over the lastyear. The acquisition of the company in late 1998 by America-On-Linemarks a major change in direction, away from what some Web buildershoped would be a free non-commercial Internet. Despite financialtroubles and some so-far relatively unsuccessful moves to position as aportal, Netscape still has the name as the company that launched the“big idea” of easy Internet access. The new owner, AOL, is all about massaccess and keeping things simple. Netscape, until now, has been verydeveloper orientated. Perhaps not enough “ordinary” users can keep upwith what they are doing.


Section 4: At The Station: Crafting Content to Fit the Medium

Figure 1: Screen shot of a networked multimedia production system.Eventually, real-time video browsing will reach some 10,000 terminals.

Across Europe, there is a gradual trend towards a single workstation,rather than a physics laboratory of screens, discrete applications and dualkeyboards. However, stability problems with running hybrid systems suchas Windows 95/98, Windows NT and Novell client servers have raisedcompatibility issues at many EBU member stations. At most broadcastcentres, sound or vision editing terminals are still separate from PC'srunning Office 95/97. But at trade shows such as the Audio EngineeringSociety meeting in Munich in May 1999, some major manufacturer’s wereoffering integrated solutions for both radio and television production.

Production staff at all stations emphasises that training at the rightmoment has been crucial to any system's acceptance. People want tolearn new skills just before they use them. Journalists need practicalinstruction working to real deadlines using material they're familiar with.Courses have to give a general overview and then focus on specific tasks.In general, this approach works. The challenge of different formats is amajor logistics barrier for anyone working in a multi-lingual environment.

Whereas some companies make a standard version and try and geteveryone to use it, perhaps others go too far in providing customversions. That is because of the scale of the networks and only majorradio/TV network hubs are really interested in these kind of networked

This is a test of browserquality video


audio systems and newsrooms. One needs a 4-5 terminal system tomake networked audio worthwhile. Networked video is coming tobroadcast centres too.

The Integrated Approach

Modern radio and TV productionsystems tend to divide thescreen in half. On the left is therange of resources, both audio,video, graphics and incomingtext reports. On the right is anarea which can be used to writea radio script, determine arunning order for TV, or publisha 500 word illustrated report tothe Web. This is the nearfuture. At present, many web

departments at broadcast stations are struggling with a tangle ofapplications and information resources that cannot communicate witheach other easily. Export - Import routines absorb a lot of productiontime.

Additional and supplementary information can be established in adatabase for delivery via teletext or the net. Some material for Internetor other delivery can be extracted from conventional radio and televisionoutput. For example, audio can be relayed directly to streamingequipment or fed into an audio library store.

Programme content production: the availability of different broadcastdelivery means, the supply of multimedia material for home PCs and theemergence of new receiver products is starting to have a major impacton the way broadcasters approach programme production. Increasingly,programme makers will need to consider a range of programme elementsthat can be co-ordinated under the umbrella of a single programme. Thedifferent elements are capable of being delivered by different means to awide range of different receivers with different levels of audio, video,data-handling and memory capabilities and different user-interfaces.Some, but not all, receivers will be capable of interacting with the sender.


Figure 2: The changing face of workstations

Whilst being aware of the new opportunities, programme producerscannot be encumbered with managing additional programme output indifferent formats and different levels of technical quality: the programmeoutput should be provided to the “highest common” standard andadditional versions derived automatically as required. Video can beconverted as necessary to provide an appropriate hierarchical level oftransmission and video “clips” can be supplied to a video library store.Still pictures can be “grabbed” off video to create stills for delivery overthe Net or to illustrate radio.

Content and Form

Radio is not a broken TV. Neither is the web a medium just for streamingconventional radio and television. The type of journalism needed tocapture and maintain interest on a 15 inch screen of a computer monitoris different from a 26 inch television screen!

Appendix 1 lists categories of multimedia applications that could lead to avast range of service possibilities. Against each application there is anindication (using an asterisk) about its suitability for the different meansof delivery and for different receiver types. The delivery mechanisms aredivided into conventional FM/AM terrestrial radio, conventional analoguetelevision, digital radio and television and the Internet. Receivers areclassified as home (meaning fixed and with good directional aerials),personal computer (PC) with appropriate sound cards, portables andmobile receiver in vehicles.

Analogue delivery can provide some multimedia support with feedbackthrough “phone-ins”, letters, faxes and even E-mail. Digital deliveryopens up the service possibilities with all the advantages that the flexibledigital multiplex can offer. There are already technical discussions aboutthe best way to provide feedback channels using GSM and the Web. TheInternet stands out as being one form of delivery that has built-infeedback, which may be used in conjunction with the other forms ofdelivery. The Internet is potentially able to provide a “one-to-one” or“service-on-demand” requirement.


Broadcast journalists and programme makers make extensive use of theInternet for e-mail, which is often far more efficient than a fax machine.In some cases it is also more effective than a phone. An e-mail stillconveys a sense of urgency and all broadcasters are making use of suchfacilities. However, the ease with which users can take material and“copy to” hundreds of others at the click of a button is leading to “e-mailoverload”. Software packages such as Outlook and Eudora offer filters toget rid of junk-mail and pre-sort incoming mail into predefined folders.

Text sent from a correspondent in Venezuela can be “cut-and-paste”straight into a script without the need to re-type. Many e-mail packagesallow the user to send an attached file. Firewall protection systems atbroadcast stations, on the other hand, usually get suspicious aboutattached files. In some cases they are banned altogether, in others amaximum of 6-8 Megabytes seems to be the norm. This allows shortaudio clips or reports of 2-3 minutes in MP-3 format, but not entireprogrammes. Several EBU members continue to experiment with radioediting software at external bureaux. In these remote centres, expensivenetwork audio systems are not needed. Simple editing software in theform of editing packages such as Fast Edit and Cool Edit Pro seems tosuffice. Standard sound cards are used. The final report is thencompressed into MP-3 format before being sent over the Internet. Othersolutions include ISDN codecs for live reports as well as digital modemsthat work over standard analogue phone-lines.

Copy and Paste Journalism Threat

It is important that broadcast managers and editors keep an eye on thecreative production process. Once barriers to formats are removed, thereis a danger of “cut-and-paste” journalism. It is so easy to re-write copy.The pressures of time are increasing. Automation should remove theburden of administration to allow creative people more time to create.Sadly, in many cases, a reduction in production costs is often siphonedoff to other areas of the business.

Figure 3: Cool Edit Pro Multi-Track Screen

This production market is evolving quickly, especially in the race to findsome form of standard between codec systems. Broadcast stations still


have to waste a lot of time trying to match a myriad of ISDN protocols.Few journalists understand what is meant by “L2 MONO” or “G.722”. Instations where the number of studio technicians has dropped, thesetechnical confusions are often a cause of frustration. Radio Netherlandsand Deutsche Welle are just some of the stations experimenting withInternet as a contribution medium.

Figure 4:AVID Terminal

Internet is also part of the television production process. At theInternational Broadcasting Convention in Amsterdam in September 1998,advanced forms of video browsing were demonstrated. A TVcorrespondent in Washington was able to download a file and see apostage-stamp size version of her piece as edited in Madrid. This allowedher to write continuity text which fitted the pictures and send the audiofrom Washington to Madrid via the Internet. Even in June 1999,bandwidth limitations mean that video transmission is not practical, butaudio is improving quite rapidly.

The use of Internet is certainly cheaper and less complicated than ISDN,which is not as widespread as the “Plain Old Telephone Service”. In themeantime, some electronic newsroom production systems (such as ENPS,DAVID, RadioMan, DALET TeamNews and AVID) now embrace theInternet protocol, so that you can search both internal and externaldatabases for sound clips, relevant texts and, in some cases, video.

A growing number of European stations that serve foreign audiences viapartner stations find that the Internet is a useful alternative to courierservices for business to business distribution. Stations with suitableInternet connections are able to download news and audio clips from thehost station. In this case, the main station avoids postage and handlingcosts.


Section 5: Building the Active Archive

Traditionally, radio and television stations put their archives at the end ofthe broadcast chain. Programmes are researched, produced, broadcastand then permanently archived. (Some programmes may be held in atemporary store between production and the broadcast date, but theyare not generally accessible to other users at this stage)

In many European broadcast centres, the audio and video archives areunder financial pressure. It is expensive to catalogue programmes andthus maintain a logical collection.

Whereas television tends to have more money for detailed archiving(partly to keep track of picture copyrights as a possible source ofrevenue), radio programme makers are notorious for forgetting to fill inarchive forms. It is enough to ensure that contributors and musicians arepaid, let alone archive the programme properly for producers of thefuture.

Because the broadcast output of many stations has tripled over the last4-5 years, the detail of many recent productions has been lost. Producerskeep piles of tapes in the hope that “one day they will get around toarchiving it”. Eventually they leave the station or the pile gets so highthey are forced to do something. This often leads to snap decisions to

Pre-Production

(incl. Research)

Transmission

Audio & VideoArchive


throw valuable material away. The other alternative is simply to keepeverything…a luxury few stations can afford.

Some television programmes have a clear advantage over radio. Theyreceive subsidy to subtitle the programme for the hard of hearing. This isautomatically a full-text index of the entire programme. It can be storedin a database. An Internet-style search engine can be used to makelogical deductions about the content. A much smaller proportion of radiois scripted, compared to 15 years ago. Interviews and sound-bites aremore common that the prepared talk, but these are rarely, if ever,transcribed. The result is a faster paced programme, but no writtenrecord of what was said. Radio scripts are now more a set of operationalinstructions and often do not make much sense on their own.

For the web producer, hoping to use a radio programme as a resource,the logistical barriers are quite phenomenal. After searching a titlecatalogue, the producer has to listen and select the material. Then thedesired material needs to be copied from tape into some type of digitalproduction tool. And the final audio production then needs to beconverted into an audio file that can be browsed on the web (e.g. RealAudio or MP-3).

Figure 5: A typical radio newsroom is still a jungle of screens, tapesand paper

Television has similar format conversion hurdles. Few Web workstationshave Digital Betacam play-out facilities, so lower grade S-VHS/Hi-8copies of Digital Betacam tapes have to be made in real time. Thesetapes are then used for the production of streaming video (e.g. RealNetworks G2). TV items, however, often provide the source for a relevantgraphics or stills, whereas radio items need illustrations that are notalways to hand.

The solution may be to move the archiving process further up thetransmission chain. The pre-production process will generate aprogramme element, which is stored on-line. Radio playout centres willaccess the material to compile a radio transmission. Web productionteams will use the material to make web pages. The difference will be


that the audio, video and text will be linked to each other in a database.Conversion from one format to another (e.g. text to HTML) will occur as abackground process. This results in a very different picture.

This means that the process of export-convert-import from onestandard to another is replaced by drag-and-drop. Significant valuableproduction time is available for new creative content instead ofconverting the same content from one medium to another. Estimates forpublic stations in New Zealand, presented at the 1998 ABU conference inShanghai, showed that this new type of approach can release a full 35%of production time which would otherwise be taken up with logistics.

The Digital Cue Sheet

An increasingly important term now emerging is so called Metadata.This is structured information associated with any audio-visualprogramme. Audio and video storage media are changing. Producerscurrently use physical tapes or discs and include a written cue sheet in oron the box to give some idea of the contents. In the digital age, theaudio and video material is being stored as ones and zeros. This demandsnew disciplines from programme producers and archivists to managecontent. Otherwise valuable data will be lost, much of which is importantto pay the respective rights holders.

On-LineArchive

Broadcast (contextdetermined by station)

Webcast (contextdetermined by user).These users includeprofessional clients

Off-LinePermanent

Archive

Pre-Production


There have always been international standardsfor tape speeds, to enable programme exchangebetween broadcasters. The structure of theMetadata needs to be standardised to ensure thatdigital exchange of programme items will loadeffortlessly into a wide variety of productionsystems.

At the end of April 1999, the European Broadcasting Union launched atwo-year project designed to develop a common approach tostandardising and exchanging programme-related information andembedded metadata throughout the production and distribution lifecycleof audio-visual material.

The work is expected to connect with similar thinking in related industriessuch as music and print publishing, and pave the way for media e-commerce in Europe.

EBU P/Meta Project leader is Carol Owens who is Head of the BBC’sMedia Data Group. She believes that unless broadcasters can use theemerging technology of metadata embedded in the content itself to lockidentifying data with the images and sounds, as well as create links withbusiness systems, then there is no way of taking full advantage ofconvergence.

EBU members involved in the P/Meta project will first identify andstandardise the information commonly exchanged between broadcastersand content providers, using the BBC’s Standard Media ExchangeFramework (SMEF™) as the reference model. They will then assess thefeasibility of applying new SMPTE (Society of Motion Picture andTelevision Engineers) metadata standards within Europe to support theagreed exchange framework, and move towards implementation.

It will be necessary that a metadata structure be developed notonly for conventional audio-visual archives but also forwebcasting products and related archives. Such web metadata willprovide for an internationally agreed set of data allowing an easiersearch, retrieval and storage of webcasting material.


Section 6: A New Age for Audio Devices

It is fascinating to dig through life-style magazines written in the middleof the 1950's by authors living in Europe or North America. Television isbecoming a viable medium and the outlook for "old fashioned radio" isbleak. Half a century later there have never been so many radio stations.Public radio in Europe is currently doing well, partly because stationshave clarity of purpose In many countries though, there is still a shortageof spectrum space to satisfy the demand from private entrepreneurs.

Radio adapted to the threat of television. It switched from being anobject in the living room to a portable and personal device. The"wireless" is still the best medium for stimulating three-dimensionalideas. Good radio programmes involve listeners in a way that isimpossible once the camera intrudes.

But now, radio is about to adapt again. Gradually, there are digital routesto pump information directly into the home. Concepts for the telephone,Personal Computer and Television are broadening. Because the"pipelines" just carry numbers, the identity and form of the message isno longer discrete. The numbers could be parts of a fax, or a radioprogramme, or a television documentary. The new word is"convergence". In fact though, on both the production and consumersides of the digital pipeline, there is divergence.

When radio started, listeners were enticed to tune around by themysterious names on the dial; Daventry, Cairo, Hilversum, Moscow,Peking, Johannesburg. The names were often the transmitter sites. Therevolution with FM saw the on-air promotion of dial-position switch tofrequency. Jingles scream " one-hundred-point-one-f-m" and hope thatlisteners remember it. Some do, most don't. But one day soon, listenerswill be able to tune a radio based on content.

The Search Engine On The Front Of The Radio

In fact, it is useful for the purposes of this discussion, to regardbroadcasting as the knowledge-sharing business. As informationbrokers, broadcasters are using clever combinations of audio, video andtext. The creative and successful stations of tomorrow will find newcombinations of all three to achieve their goal. It is vital that programmemakers realise that the sound medium must stimulate the imagination;radio is not a broken TV. But it is also important that radio and televisionstations in the future will dream up other ways to present informationthan the sequencing system that we use now.

There are now thousands of radio stations on the Internet. Externalbroadcasters, such as BBC World Service, Radio Netherlands, RadioFrance Internationale and Deutsche Welle, are starting to provide a whole


new range of services. It could be the text of a news bulletin, a picture toillustrate a radio programme, or the ability to find material by SUBJECTrather than by frequency.

Newspaper listings for radio have been reduced to programme titles, ifthey are there at all. Radio via the Internet allows consumers to pick andchoose information in a much more efficient way. Note that in the firstquarter of 1999, several important websites with audio content wentpublic. Then in a deal billed as one of the “worst kept secrets” the searchengine site Yahoo agreed to buy the webcasting operation Broadcast.com(www.broadcast.com) for US$5.7 billion in stock. The agreement at thestart of April 199 was the second largest cyber marriage so far, secondonly to America Online's US$9.4 billion take-over of Netscape. At thesame time new software is emerging to allow intelligent searches of bothaudio and video material, even generating automatic transcripts.

But there is still a drawback to this development for most Europeanusers. For unless you live in the US or Canada or you are one of the fewpeople with a cable modem, you pay by the second to be connected tothe Internet. That means, in effect, that pay-radio has been introduced inEurope. On the other hand, radio shows via the airwaves are still free andyou can still carry them around. Research shows that telecom regulationhas a direct impact on Internet usage and de-regulation leads to lowerprices for Internet access. In Europe, access to the Internet via a dial-upmodem is still charged by the minute or second. (In the US and Canada,a call to an Internet Provider is usually free for home users…somebusinesses using dial-up modems are charged for a local call. But thenmost businesses making serious use of the Internet have permanentconnections)

Terrestrial digital broadcast systems

Digital broadcast systems such as DAB and DVB offer considerablebandwidth and can be used as efficient delivery channels for multimediaservices targeted at large user groups. Even if many such services stillare in an experimental phase, it may be assumed that eventually anumber of them will not be substantially different in nature from thosedelivered via the telecommunications networks. For instance, a‘broadcast web site’ can be browsed locally in the receiver using thesame types of software as used for normal Internet browsing. The publicis likely to prefer multimedia services to be similar regardless of theunderlying delivery system and are not interested in technical detailsabout how services are delivered.

In sound broadcasting, multimedia may mean a combination of theprimary component – audio, together with some ancillary services suchas text, still pictures, graphics. These can, but do not have to be relatedto the audio content. In television, multimedia may mean a parallelcombination of the primary component – video, along with some ancillaryservices (e.g. audio, text, and graphics).


Broadcast multimedia services may also be completely independent ofthe primary service, rather like teletekst on a television channel.Experiments with ’broadcasting a web site’ have been undertaken. Other,more specialised applications and services are currently being developed.For example, the general TPEG protocol can be used to deliver a range ofTTI (travel and transport information) services to mobile receivers. Sowhile a travel programme runs on the radio, relevant maps and stopoversuggestions can be transmitted to the set for later reference on a screen.

There is a key differentiator between ‘broadcast multimedia’ (whetheraimed at fixed or mobile receivers) and ‘networked multimedia’. This issimply that conventional broadcast networks have no return channelbetween the user and the content provider. Many techniques exist,however, to combine ‘broadcast terminals’ with existing networks such asthe public service telephone network or GSM, or recently developedwireless systems, such as SFDMA, to create the necessary infrastructurefor network-wide interactivity.

For radio waves can do more than carry radio programmes. They alsoconnect people on a one-to-one basis. The telecommunications businessis spending 10 to 15 times more on developing new services than thebroadcasters. The boundaries between radio, TV, telephone and theInternet are starting to blur already. If paging devices can deliver newsheadlines or you can listen to radio programmes via a PC, perhaps weneed some new definitions.

New Concepts for Audio On-The-Move

The DAB radio industry is busy coming on stream since the global launchof Eureka 147 in September 1997. But it is not alone in analysing themobile market. There are other initiatives that have started life from themusic industry or GPS navigation. In the UK, a company called EMPEG isbusy on a car radio that can also store MP-3 audio as well as play it back.Initial systems require you to fill-up with audio in the same way as youfill the petrol tank. But over the air methods are in development allowingdevices to trickle-charge information for off-line playback. CommandAudio claims to be the world's first portable radio-on-demand service.Whether commuting, walking or exercising, the users will be able to hearjust the programmes they want, whenever they want.


From production studios in California, Command Audio is getting ready toprovide a searchable catalogue of hundreds of interesting programmes,wither adapted from popular magazines or using material from well-known television and radio shows. For US$15 a month, users will be ableto get personalised news, weather, sports, business, and traffic reportsfor specific routes, even quotes on particular financial stocks.

The Command Audio service is accessed through a special portablereceiver being manufactured by Thomson-RCA. The set stores up to 6hours of audio and plays back through the car radio (via a low-power FMtransmitter in the device) or its own internal speaker. When theCommand Audio service debuts in mid-1999, the receiver will beavailable at major retailers in the US for around US$200 and theCommand Audio programming will be introduced in ten markets; Denverand Phoenix will be first. Beginning in 2000, the system will roll outacross that country. Since DAB is not yet implemented in the US, thissystem makes use of the subcarrier authorisation over conventional FMtransmitters. This ability to broadcast a second programme over astandard FM transmitter to secure receivers is widely used in NorthAmerica for “Talking Newspapers the Blind” as well as continuous musicservices to supermarkets. In Europe, one watch company has used thesubcarrier authorisation on a national FM network to set up abeeper/messaging system for its brand of watches.

Others believe that navigation systems will merge with the car radio,being an integral part of the car dashboard, rather than a separate,“stealable” device at the moment. The concept integrates car audio,computing functions, GPS satellite navigation and wireless GSM-stylecommunications by hands-free voice activation. The technology has beensqueezed into the standard car-radio DIN unit in the dashboard of anautomobile. In future though, there seems no need to keep this deviceseparate. Auto PC is powered by the Microsoft Windows CE operatingsystem and is being developed by a number of manufacturers includeAlpine Japan, Clarion, Intel, PSA - Citroen and Volkswagen

The idea is that with a simple touchof a button on the Auto PC faceplate,the motorist can call up services thatare based on knowing the location of

the user's vehicle. The system integrates technology and wirelesstelecommunications. More commercial information can be found athttp://www.autopc.com. It seems logical to assume that many of theseconcepts will be integrated into future DAB strategies.


Portable Audio Devices: The Solid-State Walkman

Every hour of the day the airwaves are full of fascinatingmaterial. Yet, whereas we have video recorders with timers totime-shift TV programmes we want to see later, the numberof listeners that store radio programmes on cassette tape isvery small. Radio is the "now" medium. Cassette decks don'tusually have a timer facility. But that's about to change as

portable solid state playback devices are being launched in North Americaand Europe.

Flash memory capacity has dropped in price so that several companiesbelieve it is worthwhile marketing portable players with no moving parts.They are called “Rio”, “MPMan”, “MPLayer3”or “Yepp” at the moment,with many more to come later in 1999. This palm-size "Walkman-style"player that can store up to 120 minutes of high-quality audio (12 hoursof dictation quality) into an on-board 64K memory stick. The cheapestversion of this device costs around US$200 in the USA.

At present these devices are being used to download music from theInternet which is then transferred very quickly into the player. The musicis coded in the so-called MP-3 format, short for MPEG1/2 Layer 3. AKorean company initially started offering such players over the Internetin July 1998. But the concept really hit the headlines in late 1998 whenthe American manufacturer Diamond MultiMedia was taken to court bythe US Record Industry but won the case. Hundreds of thousands ofdevices have been sold. A search on the Internet reveals hundreds ofsites offering music tracks for download. Some are indeed a stimulus tonew bands trying to break through. Others are offering illegal copies ofcommercial CD’s.

MPMan

The announcement in May 1999 that Sony Music and Microsoft will startto sell single tracks directly via the Internet is clearly a sign thatpublishers are keen to go with the trend rather than fight it. The potentialis huge. The US firm of Forrester Research estimates that online CD saleswill reach about US $7 billion in 2003 from the level of US$148 milliontoday. Digital music sales from downloading songs from companies likeSony are expected to be $1.1 billion by 2003. That does not includeonline ticket sales for concerts, which could reach $1.8 billion in the nextfew years, according to figures from Jupiter Communications research.

The Frauenhofer Institute in Erlangen, Germany was one of thepioneering companies producing the software needed for audio


compression. They report that after a few years of no contact, recordcompanies and software manufacturers have started a Secure DigitalMusic Initiative (SDMI) in February 1999. As this report goes to press,work is being done to come up with new “secure” players that should beon sale by the start of the year 2000. Long discussions are going on toagree on encryption, fingerprinting and watermarking methods. For inorder to succeed, the new SDMI devices must all be compatible and theyhave to be easy to use. But because insecure players are already in themarket, it will be a challenge to the manufacturers to launch new playerswith more restricted download capabilities. Music purchased over the netwill then only playback on one player.

Rocket Book

This encryption concept was launched from the start by themanufacturers of “e-books”. Large book vendors in the US are alreadyselling electronic books on-line. The system checks that the purchaser isan authorised e-book user before download can commence. Some largepublishers have announced that certain best sellers will now be launchedearlier over the net than in print, but at the same price. Since you cannotlend an e-book to another reader (unless you part with your own US$499e-book player), users are currently paying a premium for the privilege.But the concept is coming to fruition.

MP-3 Players Not Ready for Internet Radio

At the moment, the MP-3 audio players will not store streaming audioformats such as Real Audio or QuickTime. So these devices cannot (yet)store radio programmes downloaded from the net, offering programmes-on-demand to portable listeners. Amongst the euphoria of on-line audiocoming of age, it should be remembered that when music companies cansell music directly to the public, the radio broadcasting business will haveto develop new and more innovative ways of programming musiccontent. Soon, anyone will be able to publish a jukebox.

However, in a year that sees the launch of the wireless handheld devices,combinations of broadcast and telecom devices is also possible.Developments are outlined in the next section.


Section 7: Don’t ignore the phone companies

Figure 6: The growth in subscribers (Figures; Ericsson)

The global penetration rates of mobile phones reached 5% at the end of1998. At first glance, this may not seem significant. But the figure is notevenly spread. It ranges from 4% in the Middle East to 16% in WesternEurope. Nordic countries stand out as areas where the mobile phone hasbeen adopted by more than 57% of the population. Latin America (3%),Asia (2% -excluding Japan), and most countries in Africa still have a longway to go. But the impact of the mobile phone can be compared with thegrowth of the Internet. In fact, in many ways it is growing faster.

During the last twenty years, desktop computing has become a realityand sales of personal computers have grown strongly. However, in thelast two years the global market for mobile phones is already larger thanthat of personal computers. Data too will become increasingly mobile andthe next generation of handsets will include media phones. They will beweb optimised and communicate with a combination of letters, words,colours and still or moving images.

Several major phone manufacturers believe that at the end of the year2000 more media phones will be sold than portable personal computers.By 2001, the Finnish company of Nokia estimates that some 10-15 % ofall mobile phones sold will then have Internet capability. Mobile mediaphones will affect electronic banking, on-line catalogues, as well as newsand information services.


In June 1999, estimates for the number of mobile phone users varybetween 210 and 300 million mobile phone users worldwide. But nomatter whom you talk to, the growth is vast, with the largest companyclaiming sales of 100 million phones per year. Nokia predicts that by theyear 2005 there will be over one billion mobile phone users in the world.This will mean that the number of mobile phone subscribers will exceedthe number of fixed telephone lines.

Several initiatives signed by major players in the phone industry willmake also media phones even more appealing:

• WAP - the Wireless Application Protocol - acts as the platform on whichthe media phone operates. It provides an open standard to deliverInternet content and advanced services to mobile phones and wirelessdevices.

• Symbian, a company jointly owned by the leading wireless companies.Symbian is creating a common operating system platform and userinterface on which to base future media phone applications.

• Bluetooth, provides an additional local networking dimension to mobiledevices. It is an open standard for short-range radio, enabling radio-on-a-chip. A company in Cambridge UK has announced the first chipsets,others are expected to follow in 2000. Soon, connecting a computer tothe local office network, updating databases, even connecting hi-fi anddomestic video components may be done with this technology. Of courseit is essential that different devices use the same standard.

WebServer

WirelessApplicationProtocolstack


Mobile Connection Speed Increases

Figure 7: How data over phones gets faster: Source Ericsson

But the current rate of data transfer on GSM is very slow indeed, muchworse than a standard 14.4k modem. In fact the data rate is reminiscentof the fax machine! In order to make portable Internet viable, thepresent transmission speeds in mobile networks will have to beincreased. That means providing broadband wireless access.

In around two years time, Enhanced Data Rate for GSM Evolution (so-called EDGE technology), will take data rates up to 384kbps. That is theequivalent of allowing 125 pages of information to be transmitted in asingle second. It is about 40 times faster than conventional GSM wasdesigned to achieve. It is well beyond the speeds that can be achievedwith a modem over a conventional phone. A data rate of 384kbps is fastenough to handle low-definition quality one-way or even two-way video.


Third Generation Phones

Figure 8: Future Designs for G-3 Phones include colour screens

All these initiatives are enhancements to the GSM cellular radio systems.But starting in 2001, the introduction of third generation cellular phonesis expected. It will be the first cellular standard designed with therequirements of the Wireless Information Society in mind. Trial systemsfor 3rd generation mobile services have already started in China.

Third generation will feature mobile data rates of 384 kbps and 2Mbps forstationary applications. The so-called Wideband Code Division MultipleAccess (WCDMA) supports data rates from 144 to 512 kbps efficientlywith wide area coverage, and can go up to 2 Mbps for more localcoverage. It will thus complement the wide coverage and internationalroaming of GSM to give the capacity needed for Personal Multimediaservices.

The Media Mix On The Phone

Third generation terminals will also be multi-tasking, allowing you tohave a mix of applications running. They will able to handle up to 6different simultaneous calls, whether data, video or voice, and all withoutwires. Third generation cellular has the potential to turn multi-media intopersonal multimedia, just as second generation cellular turned standardtelephony into what’s termed “personal” communications. Somedistinctions such as those between mobile phones, radio, fixedtelephones, portable computers and personal digital assistants disappear.

In the office, for example, the Local Area Network (LAN) will notnecessarily mean a fixed wire-bound network. The Wireless Local AreaNetwork will provide a flexible extension of the LAN, which most officeemployees are already accustomed to use. Such a system will supportvery high bit rates - over 20Mbps.

Wireless LANs should thus provide the complement to third generationcellular radio systems. In the office for example, the wireless LAN willprovide an extremely high bit rate resource for information-intensive


communications - such as complex graphics or software programs. It willallow users to literally connect with the centre of the corporation withouthaving to worry about cables or protocols. And they will be able to do itfrom wherever they need to be within the office environment. This willhave a major impact on the way broadcast journalism operates.

Broadcast-Mobile Phone Alliances

If broadcasters are using the web for new services and the mobile phonecompanies are planning to use content from the Internet, alliancesbetween the two parties look like a logical next step. In fact, a start hasalready been made.

Towards the end of February 1999, Atlanta-based CNN Interactivelaunched CNN Mobile together with the Finnish company of NOKIA. Butbecause digital phone penetration in the USA is relatively low, CNN hasbeen concentrating instead on Europe and the Asia/Pacific markets. Thestation is claiming to be the first mobile telephone news and informationservice to be available globally with pan-regional content. Nine operatorsfrom Europe and Asia have signed up and when all have implemented theservice, CNN Mobile will be available to just under eight million customersin seven countries. The current list reads; EuroTel Prague (CzechRepublic), Orange Israel, Sonera (Finland), Sonofon (Denmark) and Telia(Sweden); and in Asia, Mobile One (Singapore), Hong Kong Telecom,New World Mobility and Smartone (Hong Kong).

Figure 9: Multimedia text is not limited to Roman letters

Turner Broadcasting System (TBS) Europe Ltd has increased the level ofregionalised programming from London and Hong Kong, recruiting some70 additional staff. CNN Mobile's content is currently limited to what canbe accommodated by the Short Message Service (SMS) delivery system.But it is also Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) compliant, so as thescreens on phones permit more use can be made of graphics and audio.


News headlines and market information are updated every 30 minutes,and sports scores and weather forecasts are updated regularlythroughout the day. Breaking news is delivered immediately. It is up tothe network operator to decide if the news, weather, financial info andsports service is “pushed: to the subscriber for free or if the phone userhas to pay a fee to get updates. A combination of both is possible.

YLE Radio Finland is also in contact with NOKIA with the hope ofdeveloping specific multimedia content for the Finnish market. No detailshad been released at press time. Initiatives in The Netherlands andNorway are also underway.


Section 8: Internet via the cable

In some countries with high cable penetration, such as The Netherlandsand Belgium, experiments are currently being conducted with Internetaccess via cable. These are either hybrid systems involving the telephoneto provide a return path, or full two way service. Prices are around 10 -25% higher than monthly access charges from dial-up providers, butthere are no dial-up charges. This favours heavy Internet users.

In Amsterdam, for instance, the A2000 cable companymakes use of a proxy-server. This stores informationfrom the most popular websites to speed up web access.It costs around EUR 230 to get a connection installed andthen a charge of EUR 40 per month. This combinationgives you unlimited Internet access. This gives you anupload speed of 256 kbps and a download speed of 1.5

Mbps. However, it is important to point out that this bandwidth isSHARED amongst other cable users. If users start making major use ofthe Web from a home office environment, the system can slow down.Initial reaction to the system has been mainly positive with the exceptionof complaints about an understaffed helpdesk.

A recent independent survey in February 1999 (InterView, Amsterdam) inthe Netherlands showed that 6 out of 10 cable modem users thoughttheir monthly bill was either low compared to the phone-bill or aboutwhat it should be.

By comparison, in the US, there are currently around half a million cablemodems, but numbers are projected to rise to 8 million by 2002.

Companies such as @Home are now active in Europe developing new,simpler interfaces to enable Internet access using the televisionconnected to the cable. Since the “three metre experience” is differentfrom the way people use a computer monitor, existing sites have to beadapted by the browser to maintain good readability from the armchair.


Enhanced Television

A lot of work is being done in both Europe and North America to developprotocols for television programming enhanced with data such asInternet content. Experimental programming is being broadcast atpresent although at a rather small scale. The Advanced TelevisionEnhancement Forum (www.ATVEF.com) is a group of companies trying tocome up with a common specification that will work regardless ofwhether a country selects the US (ATSC) or European (DVB) digitaltelevision transmitter standards. Commercial broadcasters in particularare concerned that enhanced television may distract viewers away fromcommercial blocks. New business models will have to be developed. It isbeyond the scope of this document to discuss enhanced television infurther detail. A good overview of the issues is presented on the ATVEFwebsite.

Competition from ADSL

In addition to high speed modem connections via the cable, someEuropean PTT’s are experimenting with Asymmetric Digital SubscriberLine (ADSL) which offers broadband communication via conventionaltelephone lines. By applying ADSL in combination with a network on thebasis of ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode), it is possible to create anetwork suitable for broadband on-line multi-media applications.

In one experiment, a thousand people in Amsterdam have been loaned acomputer with which they can tour the Internet at top speed, 24 hours aday, and make use of special services These include music clips,concerts, songs for children and “Delay TV” allowing users to see sectionsof commercial and public television on-demand” The experiment will beextended in order to test new applications, like tele-working, tele-education and to test payment facilities.

For this particular ADSL test, KPN Telecom guarantees a speed of 2 Mbpsfrom the Telecom exchange to the ADSL user. From the user to theexchange a rate of approximately 200 kbps applies. This is a high enoughrate to allow the reception of moving images with VHS quality.


Section 9: Internet via the sky

In areas outside the highly cabled countries, some satellite-televisionoperators see potential for Internet delivery via the sky. ASTRA(www.astra.lu) has already started a business to business project aimedat providing Internet and Near Video on Demand services to hotels.Direct-to-Home (DTH) consumers will follow the new millennium.Working with Europe Online Networks, SES has leased two transponderson its analogue and digital series of satellites to downlink widebandInternet feeds. The equipment required to receive the service consists ofa DVB-MPEG2 card for the PC at the user’s premises and a 60 cmantenna which can be the same as the one already used to receivetelevision services. On the transmission side a normal modem and atelephone line are all that are required. Speeds of up to 38 Mbps pertransponder are claimed.

EUTELSAT (www.eutelsat.org) has also announced ambitious schemes toget into the multimedia business. EUTELSAT has selected COMSATLaboratories' new Linkway 2000™ satellite terminal to provide computer,Internet, multimedia, and other data-intensive networking via satellite.This service provides the capability to integrate satellite communicationsinto advanced terrestrial networks in a fully meshed configuration. Thisprovides transmission rates from 500 kbps up to an aggregate rate of 32Mbps (using a gateway-sized antenna). In April 1999 Eutelsat announceda joint venture with British Telecom Broadcast Services and EasynetLimited to deliver Internet connectivity at a flat rate of 835 Euro’s .

Both Astra and Eutelsat claim the service will enable more efficient accessto multimedia services via the Internet. It may help to alleviate thebottleneck problems increasingly encountered by Internet users. Themost ambitious plan comes from Teledesic (www.teledesic.com), aprivate company backed by several giant corporations. Teledesic'sprimary investors are McCaw, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates, Motorola,Saudi Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal and The Boeing Company. Founded in1990, Teledesic is a private company based in Kirkland, Washington, asuburb of Seattle.


Figure 10; Teledesic satellite

They are planning to launch as many as 288 Low Earth Orbit (LEO)satellites around the globe divided into 12 planes, each with 24 satellites.They aim to set up a system of broadband service for video conferencing,Internet applications and other high bandwidth applications. The firstsatellite will be launched in 2001 and the service is still targeted to beginin 2003. Teledesic will operate in a portion of the high-frequency Ka-band(28.6 - 29.1 GHz uplink and 18.8 - 19.3 GHz downlink). Within anycircular area of 100 km radius, the Teledesic Network can support over500 megabits per second of data to and from user terminals. The systemsupports bandwidth-on-demand, allowing a user to request and re

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