APT said the European Broadcast Union struck a deal with the codec manufacturer to use its WorldNet Oslo units as part of a pilot surround sound arrangement.
The supplier said the agreement “endorses both the Enhanced apt-X algorithm for 5.1 and the WorldNet Oslo as a suitable vehicle for carrying the content.”
Twenty WorldNet Oslos will be deployed to European Public Service broadcasters who will use them to transmit live radio broadcasts in surround. “Success for this pilot project will lead to the rollout of an additional 50 units in 2008 to the remaining member and affiliate broadcasters that belong to the EBU,” APT stated.
According to the manufacturer, EBU has been seeking to agree on formats and standards for transporting multi-channel audio.
“A working group brought together the collective findings of those broadcasters who had already experimented with live surround sound, including ORF in Austria and WDR in Cologne. Both of these broadcasters had successfully used APT products for this purpose and on the recommendation of WDR, fellow German state broadcasters Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR), SWR (SŸdwestrundfunk), ARD Crosspoint and HR (Hessischer Rundfunk) had also adopted APT’s WorldNet Oslo for their 5.1 transmissions.”
The WorldNet Oslo uses the Enhanced apt-X algorithm, based on ADPCM. “When incorporated into the WorldNet Oslo and used for multi-channel audio transmission, eight channels of Enhanced apt-X at 24 bit word resolution requires under 1.8 Mbit/s,” the company stated. “Reducing this to 16 bit requires under 1.5 Mbit/s. As such, a 2 Mbit/s can accommodate both a 5.1 and Lt/Rt program.”
