AES Technical Committee

Transmission and Broadcasting

Chair:	Stephen Lyman	(Send E-mail)
Chair:	Kimio Hamasaki	(Send E-mail)
Vice Chair:	Lars Jonsson	(Send E-mail)
Vice Chair:	Neville Thiele	(Send E-mail)

Areas of Concentration

1. Broadcast Studio Techniques
2. Distribution and Contribution Technologies
3. Test Methods and Equipment
4. DAB Broadcasting
5. Broadband Telecom Linking
6. Audio over IP contribution

Emerging Technology Trends

Emerging Technology Trends on TC-TB

The growth of digital broadcasting is the most remarkable trend in transmission and broadcasting. Digital terrestrial TV and radio broadcasting have been launched in several countries using the various technology standards listed below. Analog broadcasting has ceased in some countries

The World Wide Web has become a more and more common, alternate source of streamed or downloadable programming.

Digital terrestrial TV broadcasting

• DVB (Europe) DVB-T2 has been deployed in several countries for HD services

• ATSC (USA, Canada, Korea)

• ISDB-T (Japan, Brazil)

Digital terrestrial radio broadcasting

• DAB (Europe and Asia) DAB+ is state of the art in the DAB Eureka 147 family

• HD-Radio or IBOC (USA, Canada)

• ISDB-SB (Japan)

• DRM Digital Radio Mondiale(Europe and Asia) DRM is backed by major broadcasters and major countries like India and Russia with large potential audiencies. Low cost receivers are expected.

Digital terrestrial TV broadcasting for mobile receivers

• DVB-T2 lite (Europe) is still under development

• ISDB-T (Japan)

• DMB (Korea and a few trials in Europe)

• (USA) The Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC) has published final reports of two critical industry planning committees that have been investigating likely methods of enhancing broadcast TV with next-generation video compression, transmission and Internet Protocol technologies and developing scenarios for the transmission of three-dimensional (3D) programs via local broadcast TV stations.

The final reports of the ATSC Planning Teams on 3D-TV (PT-1) and on ATSC 3.0 Next Generation Broadcast Television (PT-2) are available now for free download from the ATSC web site on this link: http://atsc.org/cms/index.php/standards/other-technical-documents/262-planning-team-reports

The introduction of digital broadcasting has introduced such benefits as:

• High Definition TV (1080i, 720p)

• 5.1 3/2 surround sound, with future extension to additional channels, for instance for 3D audio (22.2 or Ambisonics)

• Data broadcasting including information related to a program.Due to the current availability of 5.1 surround sound in digital broadcasting, surround sound is an important trend in TV broadcasting.

Recent AES conventions have discussed the following digital broadcasting issues:

• strategies for the expansion of digital broadcasting

• audio coding quality issues for digital broadcasting and transmission

• the role and importance of audio in an era of digital multimedia broadcasting

• new program-production schemes for audio in digital multimedia broadcasting

• the future of radio including multicasting over the web and surround

The use of new methods for the distribution of signals to the home via the Internet with streaming services is an increasing trend. Web radio and IPTV are now getting audience figures that in a number of years from now will be closing in on the traditional systems. Distribution technologies with rapid growth in many countries are:

• ADSL/VDSL over copper or fiber, combined with WiFi in homes

• WIMAX and 3G/UMTS, 4G and WiFi hot spots for distribution to handheld devices

Loudness and True Peak measurements are replacing the conventional VU / PPM methods of controlling program levels. This has largely eliminated significant differences in the loudness of different programs (and advertisements) and the need for listeners to keep adjusting their volume controls.

Supporting International standards and operating practices have been published by several organizations such as ITU-R, EBU and ATSC listed below.

ITU-R

BS.1770: “Algorithms to measure audio programme loudness and true-peak audio level”

BS.1771: “Requirements for loudness and true-peak indicating meters”

EBU

The following five documents provide the core of the EBU Loudness work:

EBU R128

Loudness Recommendation

EBU Tech 3341

Metering specification

EBU Tech 3342

Loudness Range descriptor

EBU Tech 3343

Production Guidelines

EBU Tech 3344

Distribution Guidelines

ATSC A/85 – Techniques for Establishing and Maintaining Audio Loudness for Digital Television

These documents can be downloaded free of charge from http://tech.ebu.ch or from http://atsc.org/cms/index.php/standards/recommended-practices

More and more broadcasters now apply these standards in their program production and transmission chains.

The lip-sync issue remains unsolved, but is being discussed in digital broadcasting groups. Some international standards development organizations such as IEC and SMPTE are discussing new standards for measuring the time differences between audio and video.

Meeting Report:

These documents do not necessarily express the official position of the AES on the issues discussed at these meetings, and only represent the views of committee members participating in the discussion. Any unauthorized use of these publications is prohibited. Authorization must be obtained from the Executive Director of the AES: E-mail, Tel: +1 212 661 8528, Address: 60 East 42nd Street, Room 2520, New York, New York 10165-2520, USA.

2012-5-9     minutes TC-TB AES 132nd Budapest
Description: Minutes from Technical Council on Transmission and Broadcasting AES 132nd Budapest 2012-04-28

2011-5-16     Minutes on TC-TB 130th AES London 2011-05-13
Description: Minutes on TC-TB 130th AES London 2011-05-13

2010-11-8     Meeting report TC-TB 129 San Francisco
Description: Meeting minute of AES TC-TB at AES 129th Convention in San Francisco

2010-5-25     Meeting report TC-TB AES 128 London
Description: Meeting report of AES TC-TB at AES 128th Convention in London

2009-5-10     Meeting report TC-TB AES 126 Munich
Description: Meeting report of AES TC-TB at AES 126th Convention in Munich.

2008-10-5     Meeting report TC-TB AES 125 San Francisco
Description: Meeting report TC-TB meeting, held during 125th AES convention in San Francisco

2008-10-2     Meeting report TC TB AES 122 Viena
Description: Meeting report TC TB meeting, held during 122nd AES convention in Viena

2008-10-2     Meeting report TC TB AES 123 New York
Description: Minutes of TC TB meeting, held during the 123th AES convention in New York

2008-5-20     Minutes from Meeting AES Amsterdam
Description: Minutes from Transmission and Broadcasting Technical Committee

2008-4-12     AES TC BC AES 123rd New York Oct 2007
Description: Minutes of the meeting of the Transmission and Broadcasting Technical Committee/ New York 10th Oct 2007

2006-9-26     Minutes AES TC TB AES in Paris May 2006
Description: Minutes of the meeting of the Transmission and Broadcasting Technical Committee/ Paris May 22 2006

2001-7-25     Minutes AES TC TB Amsterdam May 2001
Description: Minutes of the meeting of the Transmission & Broadcasting Technical Committee (Amsterdam May 14, 2001)

2001-5-8     Minutes AES TC TB Los Angeles Sept 2000
Description: Minutes of the meeting of the Transmission & Broadcasting Technical Committee (Los Angeles Sept. 22,2000)

2000-8-18     Minutes AES 108 TC TB Paris 2000
Description: Vice chairman's Minutes of the meeting of the Transmission & Broadcasting Technical Committee (Paris, 19 February 2000)

Technical Report:

2001-5-8     Possible method for developing an objective Loudness measurement method
Description: An Annex to the Sept 2000 T&B meeting report. Work will be done in the Measurement Standards committee.

Committee Members

C. Robin Caine	Chris Gaunt	Claus Maeksinger
David Robinson	Irving Joel	Kimio Hamasaki
Louis Fielder	Martin Dietz	Mick Sawaguchi
Robert Finger	Ronald Ajemian	Stephen Lyman
Tim Shelton	Neville Thiele	Lars Mossberg
Lars Jonsson	Gerhard Moeller	Gregory Massey
Arne Borsum

To request membership in this Technical Committee please e-mail the Chair by using the link above.