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Apr. 20, 2009

If all goes according to plans, Washington D.C. will be the first city in the United States to get free digital TV broadcasts for mobile devices like cell phones, laptop computers and in-car entertainment systems.

Television broadcasts using new Mobile DTV technology are expected to begin at the end of August from five stations: local affiliates of CBS, NBC, PBS and Ion and one independent station owned by Fox Broadcasting.

The initial TV broadcasts will be very similar to those beamed to television sets, including the advertising.

It's still unclear what mobile devices might be available with the special receivers needed for the new signals. Mobile handsets are still the main candidates for the new technology.

However, and for the most part, wireless carriers have shown no enthusiasm so far, and the largest two have their own TV services which require subscriptions.

But Dell will be showcasing the prototype of a small laptop with a built-in mobile DTV receiver at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) trade show in Las Vegas Thursday. The computer maker joins mobile phone makers LG Electronics and Samsung Electronics in supporting the technology.

For its part, Kenwood also announced that it is developing car-based receivers, and should start shipping in mid-December.

Companies backing the new technology in the so-called Open Mobile Video Coalition said Washington D.C. was selected as a test market because the city is full of tech-savvy viewers who pay a lot of attention to local news.

Attention from politicians and regulators probably doesn't hurt either... The coalition has earlier pointed to the usefulness of free mobile TV broadcasts in case of emergencies and disasters like hurricanes.

Broadcasters plan to quickly start broadcasts in about 26 other U.S. cities by the end of 2009, covering almost 40 percent of households in the nation.

Among the target cities are New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Boston and Atlanta.

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Source: DCH.