FEATURE | NEXT- GEN CARR I ERS
GUIDE TO 5G IN TV PRODUCTION AND WHAT’S TO COME Despite the many announcements WORDS Todd Schneider, CTO at Dejero
WHY CONSUMER DEMAND IS DRIVING BROADCASTERS TO EMPLOY 5G TECHNOLOGY Increased consumption of high-quality video – not only by traditional viewers, but also through social media platforms – is driving 5G to the forefront of industry implementations. To meet these growing consumer demands, broadcasters and telcos must reduce latency and drive more content over IP connections. ARE THERE ANY PITFALLS WITH 5G? As 5G connections are deployed, Dejero customers want to leverage all possible connections, including 5G to secure the performance of their applications. Dejero blends multiple IP connections to deliver higher reliability than any single connection for transmitting and receiving video, as well as for general purpose connectivity. It’s important to note that 5G won’t be available everywhere for a while. Therefore, the ability to blend 5G with LTE, 4G etc will enable a smooth transition into 5G and enhance coverage in a seamless way during the roll-out process.
WHAT IS HAPPENING WITH 5G RIGHT NOW? We believe that 3G, 4G and LTE will be coexisting with 5G for considerable time, because of the time and costs associated with rolling it out and the capital investment mobile networks have already made. In a similar way to the roll- out of LTE replacing 3G, it will be a gradual adoption, but one that opens up significant opportunities for broadcasters. With patented smart blending technology, Dejero is embracing the transition as 5G, LTE, GEO satellites and emerging connectivity options (eg LEO satellites) unfold. The early locations for 5G cellular sites are likely to be stadiums and other venues, because the networks are looking at where they can get the most ‘bang for your buck’. The new sites may be something very small, on the side of a building, and not as large as the cell sites we have today. Even if widespread 5G deployment seems like a distant future, these microsites are being deployed with the current cellular technology now.
around 5G roll-outs, it is still going to take some time before the majority of areas have coverage and, inevitably, weak coverage areas will still exist. Thus, the added reliability realised by smart blending across multiple networks will continue to provide significant benefit. Cost and power consumption are also major considerations. Especially at the outset, 5G equipment and air time are likely to be more expensive than LTE. Initially, 5G is expected to consume more power than LTE, which will result in shorter device battery life. However, this should improve over time. On the spectrum allocation front, the sub-6GHz spectrum needs to be allocated or auctioned to enable global adoption. In early 2019, the EC announced the member states would harmonise across the 3.6 GHz spectrum for 5G deployments by the end of 2020. In the US, decisions regarding the C-band spectrum are expected to be settled by late 2019, while Canadian spectrum auctions for similar spectrum will occur in early 2020.
58 DEF I N I T ION | DECEMBER 20 1 9
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