Revision of DVB-I service discovery specification released

Latest DVB-I release accompanied by new implementation guidelines

A revision of the DVB-I service discovery specification has been published along with a new set of implementation guidelines. Both are available now as DVB BlueBooks. The DVB-I Service Discovery specification unifies broadcast and streaming, making all content available to end users in a single service list – from TV sets to tablets, smartphones and beyond.

The latest release of the spec, BlueBook A177r5, adds a new interoperability point, with technical and operational features aligned with the trial activities in Italy and Germany. This interoperability point will help to avoid market fragmentation and facilitate DVB-I adoption in different markets.

The Italian and German trials also provided valuable input resulting in several bug fixes and clarifications.

New features in A177r5 include the ability to signal the relative prominence of a service, which could be used to indicate those which are of general interest, in line with the European Union’s Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD), and additional parameters to support direct satellite tuning without the need for a scan.

Implementation guidelines

Since many of the issues being raised in relation to the DVB-I specification seemed to be related primarily to operational interoperability, it was decided to create a separate set of implementation guidelines, published now as DVB BlueBook A184. This document was also based on input from activities in Italy and Germany, as well as contributions to the open DVB-I Forum.

The implementation guidelines cover topics such as the interface between the DVB-I client and the DVB-DASH player, advice for handling multiple service lists, typical service installation procedures, and the interpretation of programme schedules.