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Vol. 38 No. 4 - November 2016 Issue

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Vol. 38 No. 4 - November 2016 Issue

contents Volume 38 No. 4 - November 2016

commentary

ISSN 1751-0791

SCTE in Focus

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Chartered Supporters The SCTE is grateful to the following chartered supporters for their continued support of Broadband Journal: Arcom; ARRIS; ANGA; ATX Networks; Corning Optical Communications; DCT-Delta; DVEO; Jonard Tools; MOCA; Premlink; Technetix and Wisi.

Welcome to the November 2016 issue of Broadband Journal!

from the scte SCTE News

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All the latest on news and events from the SCTE. SCTE India Round-Up

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SCTE India sums up digital and cable developments in India over 2016. Mandatory Digitisation Of Cable Television In India 16 SCTE India is rising to the need for technician training to install, maintain and support quality cable networks in the country.

SCTE - The Society for Broadband Professionals

from the industry

Officers and Members of the Executive Committee President Mike Thornton FSCTE Vice President Mike Jones Chief Executive Dr. Roger Blakeway FIET, C.Eng Hon. Treasurer Chris Swires Secretary Beverley Walker FIAM Members Chris Bailey IEng MIMechIE; Laura Baskeyfield; Paul Broadhurst; John Callas; Costas Kyriacou MIEE BEng (Hons); Rien Baan; Paul Smith; Frank Summerfield; Dave Hodges and Owen Williams.

Industry News

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technical The latest global news from the industry. Standards Update: Standards and Brexit 30 What will be the impact of a UK exit from the EU on European and international standards? Convert Speed, Virtualization and Efficiency into Revenue 32 Cable operators have a growing opportunity to turn their strengths and advantages into new revenue streams. An Eye on IBC 36 We review this year’s IBC conference and exhibition in Amsterdam and chronicle the reactions of SCTE’s IBC bursary winners. An Update on the Human Visual System 44 This article provides a comprehensive overview of the history of objective video quality measurement, touching on the current methods used as well as new research into the HVS that enables operators to deliver more consistent, superior video quality. US Lessons Learned: OTT, Data Usage Growth and Monetisation Results 50 By leveraging the network and user behaviour knowledge with cost-effective, cloud- based tools and solutions, European providers are in a unique position to not only provide an optimal user experience but actually monetise the market expansion. A Design Procedure for a 1-to-4 Ultra-Wideband Wilkinson Power Divider 56 The design of a physically small, equal phase and equal power 1-to-4 ultrawideband Wilkinson power divider is presented. Initially, a 1-to-2 divider was designed and optimised for the 3.1GHz-to-10.6GHz range. The 1-to-4 divider was then built using three 1-to-2 dividers and further optimised for full-band insertion loss, return loss and isolation. The circuits were constructed using a 0.75mm thick Rogers RO3035 substrate, and experimentally validated. from the archives Passive Components for Cable Television Systems 61 The important parameters of other passives for cable distribution systems. Chris Swires discusses the design and operation of splitters, subscribers' taps and system outlets.

SCTE Communications House, 41a Market Street, Watford, Hertfordshire WD18 0PN, UK Tel: +44 (0) 1923 815500 Fax: +44 (0) 1923 803203 Email: office@theSCTE.eu Website: www.theSCTE.eu Managing Editor Sara Waddington 28 Westwood Drive, Amersham, Bucks HP6 6RJ, UK Tel: +44 (0)777 3488771 E-mail: sara.waddington@theSCTE.eu European Editorial Consultant Dipl.Ing. Thomas Lang BCN-Consulting PO Box 1163 D-82050 Sauerlach, Germany Tel: +49 8104 8889800 Email: thomas.lang@bcn-consulting.de

Publisher Evolution Print & Design Ltd

ANGA

143 Cavendish Road, Leicester LE2 7PJ, UK Tel: +44 (0) 116 274 7700/0330 010 0004 Email: sales@evolutiondc.co.uk

ANGA COM 2017: Exhibitor Registration Opens for New Halls 68 ANGA COM 2017, from 30 May to 1 June 2017, will move into new two new exhibition halls in Cologne, Germany.

Broadband Journal is published on behalf of the SCTE (Society for Broadband Professionals) by Evolution Print and Design Ltd. Neither the editor nor the Society, as a body, is responsible for expression of opinion appearing in the journal unless otherwise stated. Papers and contributions for consideration for publication in Broadband or for reading at meetings are welcome and should be sent to Sara Waddington. Letters Broadband Journal is your forum for debate on issues affecting the industry. Let us have your news and views. Write to The Editor, c/o Communications House, marking your letter ‘for publication’. For reasons of space, we reserve the right to edit letters published in Broadband .

products

Making the Complex Simple 72 Products that allow visibility into sophisticated network infrastructures can solve one of the biggest issues for those trying to diagnose and fix complex network issues in a timely fashion. The Customer Connection 76 In a competitive environment in which access to market and capturing customers is key, reliability and speed are critical. The modularity and simplicity of the hardened connector in a pre-terminated fibre cabling distribution system can accelerate customer coverage with minimal capital investment. Product Reviews 80 Read about the latest technologies on the market.

service finder diary dates

© 2016 Broadband Journal Information in Broadband Journal may not be reproduced, changed or used without prior written permission from the SCTE.

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Vol. 38 No. 4 - November 2016 Issue

commentary SCTE in focus Welcome to the November 2016 issue of Broadband Journal!

Welcome to the November 2016 issue of Broadband Journal which will be distributed at Convergence India, the FTTH event (France) and DVB Forum (Austria). You can meet us at all these events. SCTE members are strongly encouraged to apply for bursaries (flights, accommodation and entrance paid by the SCTE and its partners) for the FTTH 2017 conference and exhibition (Marseille), DVB World 2017 (Vienna), ANGA COM 2017 (Cologne) and IBC 2017 (Amsterdam) plus the Spring and Autumn 2017 lectures in London. See page 5 for further details. This year, SCTE India has moved from strength to strength – it has formed a new Governing Council and is launching its own technology journal for the Indian market (see page 8). In this issue, one of its founder members, Colonel Vinod Khare, discusses the development of Cable TV in India (page 16). SCTE India’s Honorary National Secretary, Rahul Nehra, also analyses the status of India’s digitisation pathway on page 12. Meet SCTE India at next year’s Convergence India ( 8-10 February 2017 ) on stand E33 in Hall 12A. Nominations are now being sought for the 2017 SCTE Technological Innovation Awards and 2017 SCTE Individual Achievement Awards, which will be presented at the SCTE Gala Awards Dinner on 17 June 2017 at Draper’s Hall in

London. The best overall submission will receive the SCTE 2017 Technological Innovation of the Year Award. The deadline for entries is 28 February 2017 (see page 6). The Society offers its members several discounted offers on a regular basis, ranging from 20-30% attendance discounts at international broadband conferences and events around the world to special PR packages and training discounts. These special offers are e-blasted to all SCTE members regularly. Join us today by emailing office@thescte.eu 2016 has been a busy year for the Society but it is with sadness that we say goodbye to a valued member, Ray Seacombe, whose obituary is below. We wish you all the very best for 2017 and will catch up with you again in the New Year.

Sara Waddington Managing Editor

SCTE, Society for Broadband Professionals E-mail: sara.waddington@theSCTE.eu Website: www.theSCTE.eu

InMemory of R J (Ray) Seacombe HFSCTE

the SCTE Executive Committee in 1966, remaining on the Committee until 1995. This represented some 30 years of valuable service to the Society, including two terms as President in 1971 and 1987. For most of his time with the SCTE, Ray served on the international standards committees and chaired the British Standards Committee for Cable Networks. Ray also regularly lectured and wrote excellent technical articles for the SCTE during his time on the Committee and also designed the original SCTE ‘bowtie’ logo. In 2004, Ray was awarded the SCTE Tom Hall Award for his outstanding contribution to the cable industry. In all, Ray made a considerable contribution to the Society and his legacy is the continuing high standards which he helped the Society to achieve.

Our friend and colleague, Ray Seacombe, sadly passed away on 19 October 2016 at the age of 82. Ray had a long and successful career in the cable television industry. After leaving South East

Essex Technical College, Ray worked in the surface coating industry before spending three years in the RAF as an air radar fitter. Ray became involved in cable when he

joined Teleng Ltd in 1958 as a planning engineer and where he eventually rose to chief systems engineer. In 1968, he joined Rediffusion Engineering as a liaison engineer and then British Relay (subsequently Visionhire) in 1974, rising to become chief engineer. Ray spent some time with BT in the Broadband Services Division before joining City Centre Cable and CUC Cablevision in the early 1990s. Ray first joined the SCTE in 1961 and was elected onto

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Book now for SCTE Benelux Gala Dinner

Don’t miss this year’s sumptuous Benelux Gala Dinner on 2 February 2017 at Montfoort Castle (Kasteel Montfoort) in the Netherlands. The black tie dinner will be preceded by a drinks reception, followed by a four-course banquet. Montfoort (or Montfurt) Castle is in the Dutch city of Utrecht. It was built in 1163 by Bishop Godfrey to protect the diocese from attack. The name comes from 'Mont Fortis’ or "strong mountain”. The castle was destroyed in 1672 during an invasion

of French troops under the leadership of Louis XIV – however, the old gatehouse and an octagonal tower remain standing.

The Montfurt family was the principal owner of the castle after the bishop up until 1648, when it sold the building to the city authorities. Since the beginning of the 19th century, the castle has been a hostel, then a school for girls and, since 1989, a restaurant that also hosts corporate meetings.

For further details of the Benelux Gala Dinner, email rien@proditel.nl

DOCSIS 3.1, LTE and FTTH at the SCTE Autumn Lecture

SCTE members can now download presentations and video from SCTE’s Autumn Lecture Meeting and AGM on 19 October 2016 at the Royal College of Surgeons in London. The event featured presentations covering topics such as “HFC Evolution from DOCSIS to FTTH”, “Delivering Gigabit Speed to the Home – Next Evolution in Access Architecture”, “BSI's Stance on Brexit and the Creation of a Technical Specification for LTE Filters” and ““DOCSIS® 3.1 – An Overview” (in two

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parts). A cocktail party was also held in the library at the Royal College of Surgeons after the lecture programme for all attendees.

Presentations and speakers included:-

n “HFC Evolution from DOCSIS to FTTH” by Jeff Finkelstein, CTO, Cox Communications. n “Delivering Gigabit Speed to the Home – Next Evolution in Access Architecture” by Tal Laufer, Director, Product Line Management for CMTS and CCAP, ARRIS. n “BSI's Stance onBrexit and theCreation of a Technical Specification for LTE Filters” by Dave Hodges, Managing Director, Blakeglow Systems Ltd. n “Networks Reshaped: 5G, Fronthaul and Fixed-Mobile Convergence” by Vanesa Diaz, Market Development Manager - Access Networks, EMEA, Corning Optical Communications. n “DOCSIS® 3.1 – An Overview (Parts 1 and 2)” by Ron Hranac, Technical Leader, Cisco Systems. n “Advances in Technology for High Power CATV Gain Blocks and the Related Challenges in Linearity Testing during Design and Volume Production” by Rainer Hillermeier, Engineering Manager CATV Design, Qorvo.

The full programme can be downloaded at http://goo.gl/Tucg6i Download the Autumn lecture presentations at https://goo.gl/oZvLLg or see the SCTE’s YouTube channel for the video from the event at https://www.youtube.com/user/thescte

Travel free with the SCTE

European SCTE members are encouraged to apply for SCTE grants for numerous events next year. We are soliciting bursary applications (flights and hotels paid for by the SCTE and conference/exhibition fees paid by its partners) for next year’s FTTH conference (France), DVB World (Austria), ANGA COM (Germany) and IBC 2017 (The Netherlands). Bursaries are also available for the SCTE Spring and Autumn lectures in London next year. Still not applied for your SCTE bursary? Read about some of our bursary winners’ experiences at this year’s IBC exhibition on page 36 of this issue to help you make up your mind. Please email 300 words to office@thescte.eu on why you wish to be considered for the bursary.

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Apply now for SCTE awards

Above: SCTE award winners in 2016

SCTE, the Society for Broadband Professionals, is now seeking nominations for its 2017 Individual and Technological Innovation Awards which recognize individual and company success in the broadband industry. The deadline for nominations is 28 February 2017 . Individual awards include “Engineer of the Year”, the “Richard Harris Member of the Year Award” and the “Tom Hall Award”. The SCTE’s Technological Innovation awards, open to the entire broadband industry, are for technological innovation in the broadband arena and may be for a product, system or concept. The three award categories are:

There is also an award for the winner of the best overall submission - the SCTE 2017 Technological Innovation of the Year Award. To apply for the awards, see http://www.thescte. eu/component/proforms/technology-innovation-awards or email office@thescte.eu The awards ceremony will take place at the SCTE’s Annual Gala Dinner on 17 June 2017 at Draper’s Hall in London. The Annual Gala Dinner includes a champagne reception with live entertainment, a four-course banquet dinner, a souvenir gift for every attendee, an awards presentation and dancing to a live band. A number of sponsorship packages are still available for the event.

n Best broadband network transmission solution.

n Best CPE solution.

n Best digital processing solution.

For further details, email sara.waddington@thescte.eu

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ATX Networks completes new acquisition

H.I.G. Capital, LLC ("H.I.G."), a global private equity investment firm with more than US$ 20 billion of equity capital under management, has announced that its portfolio company, ATX Networks Corporation, has acquired InnoTrans Communications, Inc. (“InnoTrans”). ATX (an SCTE corporate member) is a leading designer and developer of patented, Hybrid Fibre Coax (HFC) and digital video processing equipment used by cable operators and a growing number of private video networks, A/V integrators and telecommunication companies. InnoTrans’ advanced fibre optic solutions will broaden ATX’s portfolio. Headquartered in San Jose, CA, InnoTrans develops and manufactures optical transport solutions for cable operators. The merger of InnoTrans with ATX aims to establish a diversified, HFC access market leader to serve operators as they continue upgrading network capacity. The scale, resources and

infrastructure of ATX will speed new product development and enable InnoTrans to transform into a leading global player in the HFC access market, the company told Broadband Journal. Camilo E. Horvilleur, Managing Director at H.I.G. Capital, said, “InnoTrans represents a transformative investment for ATX Networks, allowing the company to become a diversified network infrastructure solutions provider. The partnership provides InnoTrans with the resources and backing of a larger, more global business, enabling better customer experiences and faster development of new, innovative products.” Mr. Ramachandran will serve as President of a newly created Optical Network Solutions Division within ATX, which will base its foundation for expansion using the current InnoTrans team.

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SCTE India announces a power- packed Governing Council

Embarking on F.Y. 2016-17, SCTE India started by announcing a new power-packed governing council. The initiative was taken on the recommendation of Mike Jones, Vice President of SCTE in the UK, and Rahul Nehra (Hon. National Secretary, SCTE India) and supported by the President, Vice President and all the founder members. n Mr. Vivek Garg, Head (DTH Business), Reliance Big TV Limited. n Mr. Rajat Nigam, Group Chief Technology Officer, Network18 Media & Investments Ltd. n Mr. N K Mohapatra, Chief Executive Officer, Electronics Sector Skills Council of India. n Mr. Sandeep Bhargava, Executive Vice President, Corporate Affairs and Public Policy, Vodafone India Limited. n Mr. Gurdeep Singh Bakshi, Managing Director, Asia Pacific, PPC Broadband Inc. n Mr. Shaji Mathews, Chief Operating Officer, GTPL, Hathway Pvt. Ltd. Rahul Nehra, Hon. National Secretary, while welcoming the Governing Council, said: “SCTE stands to play a pivotal role in emerging Digital India from a skills and innovation perspective and the new governing council will be the defining light of efforts going forward.” Adding to this, Rajat Nigam, Network18 Media & Investments Ltd, said: “SCTE deserves salutation for driving technology enhancement and culture in the industry. I am happy to be a part of the campaign. Today, innovation is a tradition that needs to be adhered to in order to continue the fast-paced tech journey enhancing the user experience.” The SCTE Society has also created the following three sub-committees with a Chairman and a Co-Chair to each committee which will together address and align the needs of the industry and the Society’s vision and current set of activities and possibilities. The committees formed are: The executives joining SCTE India’s Governing Council are:

n Training, Innovation, Standards and Technology Committee.

n Industry Relationships Committee.

n Memberships & Member Relations Committee.

Specific goals for this year include developing technical skills in the digital space, collaborating with policy-makers to fast- track innovation and learning, driving standards in the eco- system and adopting innovation. SCTE India has also planned to launch its own India Broadband Journal which will be a quarterly thought-leading magazine in technology-related offerings in India's cable and broadband world. “This shall enable us to focus on the needs of the broadband sector and help build relationships with various stakeholders in government and industry and create the right policy environment,” said Sandeep Bhargava, Chairman, SCTE India's Industry Relationships Committee. SCTE India is based in New Delhi and led by nine founding members from the Indian telecoms industry. Like the SCTE, SCTE India is an educational society designed to promote expertise, exchange of information and experience and the training and accreditation of members. Membership of SCTE India is open to all wireline engineers and technicians throughout the Indian sub-continent. For additional updates, follow SCTE India on Facebook at https://facebook.com/scteindia , Twitter at https://twitter. com/scteindia and Linkedin at https://linkedin.com/ company/scte-india/ or visit www.scteindia.org and email diksha.allawadhi@scteindia.org

For further information, see www.scteindia.org

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AND grows its Balkans presence

SCTE corporate member, AND, continues to grow its presence in the Balkans. Following projects in Croatia, Slovenia, Macedonia and Bulgaria, it can now add Serbia to its list of customer countries in the region. In October 2016, the Belgrade cable operator Kopernikus placed its order for the AND SystemSolution. Delivery and installation of the system is expected later in November. With training scheduled to take place before the end of the year the operator, which was established in 2006 and today offers triple play services to over 50,000 customers nationwide, will begin re-documentation of its existing DOCSIS cable network.

"Once completed, it will have documentation with integrated engineering allowing users to access essential information when out on the network via their tablets and other mobile devices. They will also be equipped for any network expansions and upgrades, for example towards DOCSIS 3.1," explained AND. This October, AND partnered with Axiros at the Broadband World Forum at London’s Docklands, where it demonstrated the AND SystemSolution, a software solution for the design, documentation and operational support of access networks including FTTH, G.fast, HFC/RFoG and campus networks.

For further information, see www.and.com

DVBWorld 2017 gears up

Topics on the agenda for the first two days include: DVB Receiver Technology; TV Business Models; End-to-end OTT; Digital TV in Austria; DTT-Wideband; DTT-Mobile/3GPP; Satellite Now; DVB UHD-1 Phase 2 (HDR HFR NGA); UHD Phase 2 Features, Benefits, Tests; UHD + HDR in Practice/ HLG Production; HbbTV 2.0 in Practice, Roll Out (Italy, UK); IP - Personalisation, Measurement, Targeted Advertising and IP - ABR/DASH UHD.

The DVB World 2017 conference and exhibition, to which SCTE will be sending two bursary winners, will take place in the Austrian capital, Vienna, from 13-15 March 2017. The three-day event will be held at the city's Hilton Danube Waterfront Hotel, overlooking the River Danube. The hotel is close to Vienna city centre and is a 20-minute drive from Vienna International Airport.

Day three will be given over to topics such as Virtual Reality, Next- Generation Video Compression Standards and 5G/Mobile.

The DVB World evening networking event will include the chance to take a ride on the Riesenrad, Vienna's giant Ferris wheel and one of the oldest operating Ferris wheels in the world. The 213-feet high attraction provides exceptional views over the entire city of Vienna. The Riesenrad was built in 1897 to honour Emperor Franz Josef I's 50th Jubilee and has been one of the city's most beloved attractions ever since. It even played a prominent role in the classic movie adaptation of Graham Greene's novel "The Third Man". The next evening, delegates are invited to join a one-hour sightseeing bus tour leaving from the Hilton Danube Hotel.

Prof. Albert Heuberger, Executive Director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS, is to deliver one of the keynote addresses. The pre-conference Masterclass will be on the subject of Virtual Reality, following the recent publication of the Executive Summary of the in- depth DVB Study Mission on VR.

Above: Prof. Heuberger

See www.dvbworld.org for further details or follow the event on Twitter #dvbworld . SCTE members can apply for two bursaries to the event (flights and hotel paid for by the SCTE and event entrance provided by DVB World). Email 300 words to office@thescte.eu on why you should receive the bursary.

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69 years of telecoms history

SCTE members can easily access the SCTE’s searchable web-based archive, which chronicles the development of the modern telecoms industry from its early beginnings to the exciting multimedia possibilities of today’s high speed broadband. One of SCTE’s archive articles, from CTE Journal, has been published in this issue of Broadband Journal (see page 61). The comprehensive collection of documents and articles is now available online and is now fully searchable for SCTE members all over the world. This valuable research resource encompasses over 69 years of telecoms history – a rich

source of content that includes archive copies as far back as 1946 of the SCTE’s Broadband Journal/CTE Journal . It also includes the Crosstalk, Bulletin and selected International Communications News archives. This unique collection of documents and published materials stretches back to the dawn of modern communications. SCTE members can access and browse the archive with their usernames and passwords. Why not start today? It is invaluable for international telecoms engineers and industry experts and can be viewed via www.thescte.eu

See www.thescte.eu/downloads/members-only-content-1/broadband-cte-magazine-archives-1

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The Path to Digitisation By Rahul Nehra, Honorary National Secretary, SCTE India SCTE India sums up digital and cable developments in India over 2016.

Launches and mergers Let's start with the biggest and boldest shift, the Reliance Jio wake up! This big announcement is bound to have ramifications for the entire telecoms sector - Reliance Jio has kicked off a digital revolution. Chairman, Mukesh Ambani, commercially launched the group's telecoms venture, Jio, on 1 September 2016 offering voice free of charge for life, even while roaming, besides offering data at around a fifth of industry rates. As per the company's welcome offer, the data will be free of charge for all subscribers until the end of this year. Hailing mobile internet as the future, Ambani said there are no doubts that it is a life-changing, world-changing technology for this century. He also added that technology is a huge opportunity and those who took risks would reap rewards. So, "Jio is not really a telecom company. It is a tech company," he told The Times of India. Confident of a bright future, Ambani said that Jio would enable India to be among the top 10 countries in broadband and internet access within the next few years and is aiming to acquire 100 million customers in the shortest possible time. Meanwhile, a merger changed the global numbers' game in the DTH world with the merger of Dish TV and Videocon D2H as a single DTH company. Ending months of speculation, India's largest Direct-To-Home (DTH) player Dish TV and NASDAQ- listed Videocon d2h (Vd2h) decided to merge operations to form

As the year ends, the digital world of India has unfolded at a pace which has surprised many. 2016 is set to be remembered as a year when the world of multimedia, multiscreen and quadruple play embraced users from the cities to the villages.

This shift has a few key contributors such as Reliance Jio; APSFL; Amazon; Zee; Hotstar; Airtel; Google; Facebook; Vodafone; MIB and MOC.

Rahul Nehra, Honorary National Secretary, SCTE India

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Above: SCTE India's booth at Convergence India 2015

one of the largest Pay TV operators in the world with 27.6 million net subscribers. The Board of Directors of the two companies approved a scheme for amalgamation. Dish TV shareholders will own 55.4%, while the remaining 44.6% shares will be owned by Vd2h shareholders in the new entity, Dish TV Videocon Limited.

Current Dish TV CMD, Jawahar Goel, will head the new company as chairman and managing director, while Vd2h will nominate two directors - one of whom will be vice chairman and the other a deputy managing director of the company.

Become aMember! The Society for Broadband Professionals

As India goes digital, join SCTE India and share in the growth!

l Professional Qualifications l Training and Certification l Quarterly Technical Journal l Lecture Meetings l Conferences and Exhibitions l Social Activities l Networking Opportunities

The Society covers all aspects of Broadband Technology including Cable, Satellite, DSL and WiFi.

www.scteindia.org

For more information, email us at office@thescte.eu

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OTT in focus OTT mania seems to be taking over India as mobile proliferation and bandwidth on three airwaves headed north. With 400- million plus smartphones and a national seventy per cent coverage projection of the country by 2017/18, OTT is set to grow to a hundred players at 45-50 per cent annual growth. A couple of recent reports on the media and entertainment industry highlight OTT’s bright future in the country. According to Deloitte Technology, Media and Telecommunications Predictions 2016 report, “Over-The-Top is likely to bring new dynamics in digital media”. A few reasons why OTT will gain market share in coming years are the three Cs—convenience, content and control. “4G will bring the complete transformation of the current television viewing experience and mark a shift in control from the broadcaster to the consumer,” said the Deloitte report. The use of smaller screens on personal devices will fuel ‘personal escapism’ or watching content individually, with 45% of all content consumed expected to be on the small screen by 2020, as claimed by another report from consultants, EY. So in five years, we may see a different world of media and entertainment with OTT proving to be the technology of the future. All the major operators, content houses and broadcasters have thrown their hats into the OTT ring. Star; Zee; Viacom; Sun; Balaji; Airtel; Vodafone; ETV and Eros have all set in motion a The Indian government and the court seem to have finally put markers down on the ever-shifting deadlines of Digitisation Phase III. The deadline for implementing Digital Addressable System (DAS) in the phase III cities expired on 31 December 2015 , which was challenged on the grounds on non-availability of set-top boxes and others by multiple local cable operators in different state high courts. In the recent order, as reported on 7 November 2016 , Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva of the Delhi High Court’s single bench has over-ruled orders passed by various other High Courts re the stay granted for extension of digitisation. The court also directed the petitioners to run a scroll on their networks about digitisation and switch off analogue signals within three weeks i.e. by 24 November 2016 . definite OTT strategy for a piece of the pie. India’s digitisation programme

“It’s a welcome move that the law is taking its own course and this would be in favour of broadcasters as well as viewers. Broadcasters would be able to increase revenues, while viewers will get the power of choice,” said Kaushik Moitra, partner at the boutique telecom and media law firm, TMT Law Practice. VD Wadhwa, CEO of SITI Networks, said, “This is a very important judgement as the Delhi High Court has dismissed the nine cases, thus paving the way for digitisation. Not just in DAS Phase III areas, this order will also clear the passage for timely implementation of DAS Phase IV of digitisation.” The Andhra Pradesh government has successfully set a global standard of delivering triple play to the villages across Andhra Pradesh in record time, paving the way for rural India to savour the fruits of the emerging digital divide and also bridge the digital divide. Another interesting development was the view of all stakeholders that digital growth would also mean that the industry would need to protect itself against digital video piracy and we saw global specialists, such as Friends MTS, engaging across the eco-system and building best practises for harnessing the revenues that the fragile digital world would generate.

All this illustrates that India’s growth story is on track, in motion and irreversible.

The SCTE India governing council, which met in September, acknowledged this and set in motion a fast-track process to meet the skills challenges that will unfold from this digital growth story. I can safely now say that 2017 will be an ‘anywhere – everywhere' world for the consumer for entertainment, information and education.

Meet SCTE India at Convergence India in New Delhi from 8-10 February 2017 on booth E-33 in hall 12A. Alternatively, to join SCTE India, see www.scteindia.org CONTACT

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SCTE India is rising to the need for technician training to install, maintain and support quality cable networks in the country. By Lt. Col. VC Khare, Founder Member, SCTE India Mandatory Digitisation Of Cable Television In India

Cable Television in India is believed to have started some time in 1977 with the extension of VCR displays in hotels. It then graduated from wired extensions of satellite streams to viewer homes, coupled with cable streaming of feature films as video channels by cable operators. The activity remained totally private, as it was sourced from private funds. The screening of Gulf War and Satellite streams of STAR TV in the early nineties was popular in India and led to the proliferation of TV broadcasting as well as the popularity of the wireline-delivered service. At present, over 150 million cable homes in India are stated to be contributing to these services, delivering over 300 programmes (not channels, as they are loosely referred to, since several programmes in digital services are compressed

into one 7- or 8MHz RF channel in the 47-862MHz RF spectrum).

The announcement of India’s Cable TV Networks Regulation Act 1995 legalised the service, resulting in the emergence of MSO (Multi-Service Operators), although in India they provide only uni-directional television re-broadcast over HFC (Hybrid Fibre Coaxial Cable) over wireline networks. The estimated number of MSOs at present in India is about 6000. The MSOs run headends feeding the service over optical fibre to an interconnection near the cable operator. The O2E (Optical to Electrical) converter (not strictly a node, since the services are uni-directional i.e. without any return path requirement) is the property and responsibility of the cable operator (registered as the network operator and essentially

The estimated number of MSOs at present in India is about 6000.

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news from the scte

Over 150 million subscribers are served through an estimated 60,000 cable operators, employing over 240,000 technicians.

subscribers are not aware of DAS provisions. They are reliant on technicians who, in turn, have not received any recognized/ structured training on the subject. In the absence of any enforced easement rights, technician philosophy is based upon a vaguely connected approach without valid RoW (Right of Way). Most of them have little understanding of Indian standards on EoL (End of Line) specifications for connectivity, digital transmission parameters for assured QoS (Quality of Service) and resultant QoE (Quality of Experience). Paradoxically, these technicians were expected to appraise the subscribers on the user perspective on DAS when installing addressable STBs but could not do so in the absence of any formal training. The outcome, after four years of the mandate, is that subscribers still do not understand DAS except for their compulsion to install an STB, not always conforming to Indian standards, and continue to pay a fixed monthly subscription for watching more content with improved noise reduction on their TV screens, thanks to digital transmission mandates. India’s Prime Minister has conceived a ‘Digital India’ with 150 million cable homes (at present, uni-directional) to proliferate broadband into homes and dilute the digital divide. Potential for SCTE training in India In the absence of any organised training facilities for mandatory DAS, the SCTE philosophy is very conducive to the Indian environment. SCTE training modules already exist for:- (a) Installers to follow recommended practices for installing CPE (Customer Premises Equipment) i.e. STB, fixed line telephones and broadband modems. This training is deemed to confine itself to the in-house environment with full training on subscriber relations and awareness as the ‘nearest and always available’ point of service restoration. (b) Network engineers, proficient in the route from the DEMARC point (telco terminology) all the way up to the Headend/Central Office. (c) Headend/Central Office engineers who understand the lay-out of a designed Headend/Central office and

Lt. Col. VC Khare, Founder Member, SCTE India

prohibited from performing any technical functions of a headend). Coaxial cable is extended through amplifiers and passives to subscriber premises and accessed through an addressable Set-Top Box (STB). MSOs, (totalling approximately 6000 headends), were mandated to encode and encrypt all content transported from their headend (strictly prohibiting any analogue transmission) in encrypted, digitally addressable format. Addressability, in simple terms, refers to enabling or disabling viewing through the STB remotely and selectively from the headend through a compatible SMS (Subscriber Management System). At the subscriber end, it involved installing an STB, conforming to Indian standards, for the subscriber to select and view programmes of their choice only (authorised in the addressable STB), be billed for the same and remit charges for the service when billed. Over 150 million subscribers are served through an estimated 60,000 cable operators, employing over 240,000 technicians. Training perspective of mandatory DAS India is a country with a very large population and lean degrees of understanding of wireline/CATV technology and the intricacies of legislation and compliance issues. Hence,

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news from the scte

its ancillaries, Headend/Central Office management system, the network management system, the subscriber management systemand affiliated customer care operating procedures. Essentially, this covers daily checks on quality and 99.99% reliability for all aspects of Headend/Central Office operation. Indian CATV networking is nearly 30 years old now and serves over 150 million homes which are mandated to comply with DAS provisions. The implementation remains confined to estimating implementation from statistics on the number of STBs sent out (and hence deemed installed) from MSO warehouses. Therefore, there is a need to focus on training needs, to upskill the workforce using SCTE training courses and for quality indicators.

Increasing awareness and the resulting improvement in service through the customisation of delivery platforms suits the environment in India, where no academic qualification is necessary for the personnel who deliver wireline content to over 150 million subscribers. Driving further membership to SCTE India is also essential to impact the QoT (Quality of Training), inherent in the SCTE philosophy, and to upskill those individuals expected to maintain and install services at subscriber premises. Such a skilled work force can quickly become an international asset.

For further information on SCTE India, or to join, see www.scteindia.org CONTACT

SCTE members can now Ask the Expert via a facility that allows members to ask technical questions and

receive considered responses and answers from experienced SCTE Executive Committee Members. Questions and answers will be posted on the SCTE website and also emailed directly to the enquirer. Don’t miss your chance to benefit from the long experience of the committee and ask your question now by logging into the member section of the SCTE website and accessing http://www.thescte.eu/members/ask-the- experts or emailing technical@thescte.eu , citing your member number and question.

Ask the EXPERT

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Vol. 38 No. 4 - November 2016 Issue

industry news

Innovative technique for shaping light could solve bandwidth crunch

As data demands continue to grow, scientists predict that it’s only a matter of time before today’s telecommunications networks reach capacity unless new technologies are developed for transporting data. A new technique could help avert this bandwidth crunch by allowing light-based optical networks to carry more than one hundred times more data than is possible with current technologies. Laser light comes in many different shapes, or spatial modes. However, today’s optical networks use just one spatial mode to carry information, limiting the amount of data that can be transmitted at one time. Researchers led by Andrew Forbes, a professor at the University of Witwatersrand, South Africa, have developed a technique known as spatial multiplexing that re-shapes a laser beam into many spatial modes that can each carry information. In a paper presented at the OSA Laser Congress in Boston on 3 November 2016 , the researchers demonstrated optical communication with more than 100 spatial modes by combining their new spatial multiplexing approach with Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM), which uses different wavelengths of light to carry information. “We created 35 spatial modes encoded in three different wavelengths, producing 105 total modes,” said Carmelo Rosales-Guzmán, research fellow and first author of the paper. “Our new method might serve as the basis for future communication technologies.” The researchers demonstrated that their technique can transmit data with 98 per cent efficiency in a laboratory free- space optical network, which uses light to transmit information over the air. The scientists say the approach should also work in optical fibres, the basis for fibre-optic communications. The new technique makes use of light with an orbital angular momentum, which gives it a twisted, or helical, shape. Different spatial modes can be created by varying the number

of twists, known as the azimuthal degrees of freedom. While other scientists have been exploring the use of azimuthal degrees of freedom for increasing bandwidth, recent research showed that even though, in theory, the set of modes with orbital angular momentum is infinite, in practice there aren’t enough modes available to make significant improvements. Forbes’ team solved this problem by using the azimuthal degrees of freedom plus another variable, known as a radial degree of freedom. Each azimuthal degree of freedom can have, in theory, an infinite amount of radial degrees of freedom, but there are practical limitations that restrict this number. Because all the modes are orthogonal to each other, the signals don’t get mixed up as they travel and can be separated upon arrival at their destination. The researchers say that this is the first time that two spatial degrees of freedom have been used to optically encode information. Key to this new approach is an optical device known as a spatial light modulator. The researchers used one spatial light modulator to shape the laser light into the various modes and another to reverse the process on the receiving end. “One of the advantages of our approach is that we only need a single detector to demultiplex all the spatial modes to recover all the information,” said Rosales-Guzmán. “This is faster than other approaches for increasing bandwidth that need multiple detectors.” As a next step, the researchers are partnering with experts in free-space communication to adapt their technique for practical applications. “We are working with a company in South Africa that already makes a device that has the ability to use different spatial modes for free space communication,” said Rosales-Guzmán. “We are interested in trying to increase the bandwidth of their device to four times what it is capable of now.”

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industry news

G.fast set for nearly 30 million end users by 2021

markets already including the technology in their upgrade plans,” added the Gigabit Networks' report.

Openreach, BT’s local network division, is expected to be one of the first operators in the world to launch commercial G.fast services, with a launch expected during 2017. It is aiming to make ultra-fast speeds available to 12 million premises in the UK by the end of 2020 – using a mix of G.fast and Fibre-To- The-Premises (FTTP) technologies. Openreach is already working to conduct the largest G.fast field trials in the world, delivering speeds of up to 330Mbps. The company recently announced an extension to its pilot which will see around 140,000 homes and businesses across the country given access to G.fast by March 2017. “Developed by Nokia Bell Labs, XG-FAST is targeting throughput of up to 10Gbps over very short bonded copper lines,” explained the report. ““This effectively positions XG- FAST as a fibre extension solution that avoids the cost, and often logistical challenges, of accessing the premises.” Dennis Steiger, nbn's chief technology officer, said: “This report shows the potential that G.fast has for delivering ultra-fast broadband services in the global market. It is very challenging to deliver fibre into every home. Having the option to use G.fast in a Fibre-to-the-Building or Fibre-to-the-Curb setting is a great option for any operator.” Clive Selley, CEO of Openreach, added: “Our aim is to make ultra-fast broadband available to 12 million homes and businesses in the UK by the end of 2020, and we’re embracing a mix of technologies with G.fast and FTTP to achieve that. We have pioneered G.fast in our labs, driven the global standards and have been working closely with our communications provider customers on the trials, so we’re very excited that it’s time to start rolling this technology out nationwide. The great thing about G.fast is that allows us to deliver affordable ultra-fast speeds to customers quickly and at scale.”

Above: Clive Selley, CEO, BT Openreach

Above: Dennis Steiger, nbn's chief technology officer

A new Ovum report, jointly commissioned by nbn and BT, has predicted that new ultra-fast copper technology, G.fast, will be serving nearly 30 million subscriber homes and businesses around the world by 2021. This is just four years after the first commercial G.fast services are due to launch in 2017. “In 2021, Ovum expects G.fast to be supporting nearly 29 million subscribers, representing 3% of the global fixed broadband market,” said the Gigabit Networks' report. “As an emerging technology, the growth in new G.fast subscribers is expected to accelerate in each year, rising from 330,000 in 2017 to nearly 11.5 million in 2021.” Nbn held its first G.fast trial in October 2015 and has been conducting additional lab trials of XG.FAST in recent weeks. It recently announced its intention to deploy Fibre-To-The- Curb (FTTC) technology to approximately 700,000 premises – a platform for potentially deploying both future G.fast and XG.FAST services. Ovum is forecasting particularly strong take-up of G.fast in Europe, with operators including BT, Swisscom, Deutsche Telekom, Telekom Austria and Proximus (Belgium) all planning to deploy G.fast technology to deliver affordable ultrafast connectivity quickly and cost-effectively.

“About 11% of broadband services in Western Europe may be delivered via G.fast within five years, with a number of major

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industry news

Virtual Reality in focus

FutureSource Consulting analyst, Michael Boreham, told attendees at VRAR World in London recently that "we have finally entered an age where VR can become a commercial reality as the hardware and, more importantly, cost had reached a tipping point".

“Many people, while aware of VR, haven’t experienced a truly great VR experience yet,” he said. However, Boreham pointed out that the number of 19 to 35-year-olds that had tried VR was double the average. “Retail channel is key here, to raise awareness,” he added, especially with the number of consumer releases in gaming. “The console space is beginning to get really interesting,” he said. FutureSource believes that, by 2020, total content revenue will be in excess of US$ 6bn worldwide. This will be split 24% to video and 76% to games. The gaming VR market, however, at US$ 4.8bn is still only 2.5% of the overall gaming market. Boreham believes that, in the shorter term, Pay-Per-View will be the preferred way to monetise VR in sports, echoing the early days of satellite TV. “In the short-term, it will be PPV around key boxing matches or other sporting events that we tap into on that basis”. He also suggested that major TV or movie franchises might also tap into VR. “This could include big studios or a tie-in to gaming, as we’ve seen with Fantastic Beasts,” he explained. “It might be bundled, so it might be a VR companion piece to our BluRay of a film.”

Above: Michael Boreham at VRAR World

However, Boreham told the audience in his session on’ Virtual Reality – Niche or Reality’ that “content is a bit further away, we are still in experimental mode”. He said that, thanks to the recent launches in gaming VR, “games are a bit closer than TV. But there is a lot of experimentation in broadcast”. Boreham explained that one of the major challenges to the true uptake of VR was monetisation. “It is not cheap to produce this content. Often content is quite short, so getting consumers to pay is difficult. From a consumer point of view, it is more accessible. The PS4 and others have helped here. There is a lot to be done to raise awareness. But is there an appetite? There is a challenge there in terms of raising appetite.” Another factor, he told the audience, was awareness. FutureSource research found that only 7% of UK consumers had tried VR, compared with 5% and 4% respectively in Germany and France. In the US, the figure stood at 8%.

The watershed for TV will be 2018, according to FutureSource, when the technology and take-up will be large enough.

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