New research led by Dr. Gunther Friedl of the TUM School of Management and commissioned by the Bayerische Landeszentrale für neue Medien and Bayerischer Rundfunks confirms that LTE is not a feasible alternative to terrestrial broadcasting, according to the European Broadcasting Union.
This new German study, “Analysis of Radio Transmission in Bavaria Through DAB+ or LTE — Comparing the Costs of Supply” concludes “providing terrestrial radio exclusively via LTE would be around 40 times more costly than transmission via DAB+.”
LTE is often claimed as a solution to radio’s IP distribution problems because of its large download capacity. However, such statements represent an oversimplification of the issue, glossing over problems like net neutrality and cost, says the EBU.
These results show it is unrealistic to base radio distribution on mobile networks alone. The study concludes that migration from FM to DAB+ should be accelerated, although a possible terrestrial-LTE hybrid should not be precluded.
The EBU project group CTN Mobile also plans to publish a technical report assessing the delivery of broadcast content over LTE networks.
Last November a white paper from Swedish network provider Teracom published a white paper from research company A-focus also determined that “the need for terrestrial broadcasting will remain for an indefinite future.”
