Thomson Broadcast Supplies ATSC Mobile DTV System To WGCL-TV In Atlanta

Thomson Broadcast has announced that WGCL-TV, the CBS affiliate serving the Atlanta, Georgia, market, has purchased a new Thomson Mobile DTV transmission system based on the ATSC A/153 standard.
WGCL-TV contracted Thomson Broadcast to deliver, integrate and commission the fully redundant Mobile DTV package, which was taken online in September 2010 in a cost-effective upgrade to the station's existing digital TV transmitter.
The basic equipment needed to begin broadcasting mobile video services via ATSC Mobile DTV includes a programme encoder, a multiplexer, and an Electronic Service Guide (ESG) server, as well as a compatible DTV transmission exciter. Each of these devices is now available from Thomson in field-tested production models.
WGCL-TV is a longtime Thomson Broadcast customer. The station currently operates a two-tube Thomson DCX Millennium transmitter that already incorporates Thomson ADAPT-IV 8-VSB exciters. Thomson Broadcast simply upgraded these exciters with new software for full compatibility with the A/153 standard. The ADAPT-IV exciters provide the post-processing of the mobile DTV signal for maximum reception performance and simultaneous ATSC terrestrial and mobile DTV operation.
Steve Flanagan, Director of Engineering, WGCL-TV, said: "We needed a reliable way to send video to portable devices in our market and have had a good experience with our existing Thomson DCX Millennium transmitter for DTV, so we felt confident it would do the job. It was great that we were able to leverage our investment and upgrade our transmitter with ATSC Mobile DTV software because it got us on the air with a mobile signal quickly."
Thomson leveraged years of experience and a broad product portfolio to develop a complete ATSC Mobile DTV system that is fully integrated and preconfigured to ensure real-world success. The ATSC Mobile DTV Terrestrial Broadcast Technology is backward-compatible with legacy ATSC transmission systems, enabling stations to use their existing DTV channel and the mandated ATSC 8-VSB modulation scheme. The technology offers several significant advantages over other systems, including the use of M/H block coding to provide maximum capability for signal reception.
Richard Fiore, Vice President, Worldwide Sales, Thomson Broadcast, said: "Thomson has gained a lot of 'real-world' experience with Mobile DTV over the past few years, and we are ready to help customers get on the air with a mobile video signal in a highly cost-effective way. Thomson is the only company to offer a fully integrated ATSC Mobile DTV solution, so our customers know that all the equipment will work together seamlessly and that the user interface is simple, integrated and powerful."
(KMcA/GK)