Having successfully completed initial test runs in Berlin, Vodafone will demonstrate to the general public a mobile TV application based on the DVB-H standard. DVB-H stands for "Digital Video Broadcast Handheld" and is a transmission method modified for mobile terminal devices, i.e. mobile phones and PDAs, which is based on the terrestrial digital television standard DVB-T. With DVB-H, up to 30 TV programmes can be transmitted live.
A prototype mobile phone from Siemens will be used for the live demo at CeBIT, on which ongoing TV programmes can be watched.
It is not yet known when and how DVB-H will be launched. Vodafone is currently testing possibilities for designing a corresponding service and the business model required for this.
Mobile TV is already one of the most frequently used applications on the mobile portal "Vodafone live!" Vodafone Germany customers can watch the highlights of popular German TV programmes such as "TV Total" or "Rent a Pocher" via the Vodafone live! portal or download and store them on their 3G mobile phone for later viewing.
The company believes mobile TV on DVB-H standard will be available in two years.
