US TV stations go mobile

A mobile TV effort by local broadcasters in the US is entering a new phase, with two large groups of stations showcasing new partnerships at the International Consumer Electronics Show; but the initiative still faces major hurdles, PC World writes.

TV stations covering much of the US are gearing up to deliver programming to phones and other devices using a standard from the body that oversees TV technology in North America.

Mobile Content Venture is designing devices that do not use up data plans or WiFi. Dyle TV, for instance, tunes in a free broadcast signal called MH (Mobile Handheld), Fox5 News writes.

The problem with portable televisions right now is that if you move the device even a few feet, the signal can drop. The idea behind the new mobile technology is that a user can be virtually anywhere and still hold the picture.

According to TV News Check, MCV, comprising Fox, NBC and leading TV station groups including Hearst Television and Gannett Broadcasting, demoed a Samsung Galaxy smartphone that MetroPCS has agreed to market along with the MCV's Dyle service.

The Mobile500 Alliance, comprising Sinclair and mostly smaller station groups, featured two dongles for turning smartphones and tablets into receivers of its yet unbranded service.

And Syncbak, a technology company backed by the NAB, the Consumer Electronics Association and others, presented its alternative approach for getting broadcast programming literally into the hands of viewers on the go, one that relies not on broadcasters' digital broadcast channels for distribution as mobile DTV does, but on wireless broadband networks.