Hong Kong's Temple Hill prepared for DTTV

RFS (Radio Frequency Systems), the global wireless and broadcast infrastructure specialist, has announced the completion of a major project to supply the components, expertise and consultancy required to make digital terrestrial TV (DTTV) a reality in Hong Kong via its main transmitter site  at Temple Hill.

Temple Hill is Hong Kong's main TV transmitter site, servicing around 50 percent of the special administrative region's populations with DTTV. The transmitter also services the analog TV needs of the region, although switch off of these transmissions is slated for 2012.

"Completing the Temple Hill project is the culmination of a three-year project in which we have worked closely with several major players in the Hong Kong TV industry, including ATV (Asia Television Limited) and TVB (Television Broadcasts Limited), the two main free-to-air TV broadcasters in Hong Kong," noted Steve Benz, RFS Broadcast Systems Sales Engineer.

According to Benz, RFS has supplied the switch frames, combiners, main feeders and antennas for the Temple Hill DTTV transmitter, as well as six passive microwave systems for the backhaul side of the network that drives Hong Kong's digital TV network.

Hong Kong has an unusual TV network transmission topology, stemming partly from its multi-island geography.The evolution of analog TV in Hong Kong has also been quite complex, with 40 main and secondary analog transmitters servicing the region.

Solving technical complexities

The DTTV network, though geographically simpler with the main Temple Hill transmitter site and five principle station sites, is technically complex; being based on a combination of MFN (multi-frequency network) and SFN (single-frequency network) multiplexes potentially spanning channels 22 to 62 in TV bands IV and V.

The primary MFN, says Benz, is shared between the two main broadcasters in Hong Kong, ATV and TVB who, although in competition with each other for viewers, are sharing the multiplex.

Because the two broadcasters are sharing the SFN antenna system on the Temple Hill transmitter station, RFS has been working very closely with the broadcasters to ensure that they achieve optimum coverage on the most cost-efficient basis.

This has been achieved, he explained, by taking the high quality TV broadcast architecture components which RFS is well-known in the industry for, and creating a tailored solution that exactly meets the needs of the broadcasters by carefully customizing the technology concerned.

Installing all of the necessary DTTV transmission hardware - as well as connecting the systems up to the six microwave backhaul circuits - on a space-efficient basis at the transmitter site has taken considerable planning and expertise on the part of RFS' engineers, according to Benz.

This planning and expertise, he explained, forms part of the company's end-to-end broadcasting solution strategy, which includes an in-depth site survey, coverage design, tailored system design, manufacture, project management, installation and commissioning services.

"We then round off this portfolio of services with a close client consultation process and a tailored design facilities where appropriate," he said.

On top of these services, he added, the tight rein on transmitter real estate has required components of the best possible quality to keep within the rigid transmission tolerance levels.

Hong Kong's TV signal propagation is unique in transmission term because of the large number of high-rise buildings in the special administrative region, so DTTV reception at ground level can be severely impaired.

The variable TV signal propagation is made all the more complex by the fact that the existing analog transmissions, both in the Special Administrative Region and on the mainland, imposed restrictions on the initial pattern. These restrictions may be removed post analog switch off.

Ready for the 2012 TV changeover

And supplying the hardware and allied systems to ensure that Hong Kong's seven million residents - who live in an area of just 1,104 km2 (426 sq mi) - receive crystal clear digital TV signals is only part of the equation. Come 2012, when the analog signals are turned off, the network will have to be retuned to account for the millions of DTTV viewers coming on-stream as their analog TVs are upgraded with set top boxes and other DTTV tuning equipment.

The good news, according to Benz, is that RFS' TV transmission technology on the Temple Hill site has been engineered so that only a single component - a customized power splitter - will need to be swapped out in 2012 to ensure optimum coverage and reception for both fixed and mobile DTTV viewers.

The customized power splitter allows the signal radiation of the antenna to be modified in the run-up to, during and after the analog switch off.

Initially the signal pattern was designed to protect the existing analog services and, after the switch-off, a few simple changes in the power divider network will allow for the DTTV coverage to be optimized.

Although the analog switch-off is not scheduled to take place until 2012, RFS has been working closely with all the broadcasters concerned for around three years, to ensure the best possible reception for TV viewers of all types and all frequencies in Hong Kong.

This close liaison is exemplified, says Benz, with the company's positive business relationship with ATV and TVB.

RFS has also been working closely with Hong Kong's TV broadcasters to meet their needs and that of several other third parties.

This liaison and consultation process, says Benz, has been informative and has helped the broadcasters achieve their aim of ensuring the migration path to digital TV is as smooth as possible for the special administrative region.

"By supplying the highest possible quality components, allied with the best consultancy and engineering systems, we have been able to create an end-to-end solution that has taken the headache out of the project for our clients," he said.

"And as more and more people in Hong Kong enjoy the benefits of mobile TV in the years ahead, we're proud that the technology installed at Temple Hill will see the broadcasters through to 2012 - and well beyond - when even more new digital services will arrive to better entertain the region's seven million TV Viewers."

Trademarks: Radio Frequency Systems^® and RFS^® are registered trademarks of Radio Frequency Systems. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

About RFS
Radio Frequency Systems (RFS) is a global designer and manufacturer of cable, antenna and tower systems, plus active and passive RF conditioning modules, providing total-package solutions for wireless infrastructure.

RFS serves OEMs, distributors, system integrators, operators and installers in the broadcast, wireless communications, land-mobile and microwave market sectors. As an ISO compliant organization with manufacturing and customer service facilities that span the globe, RFS offers cutting-edge engineering capabilities, superior field support and innovative product design. RFS is a leader in wireless infrastructure.


About ATV
Asia Television Limited, which was launched in 1957 as Rediffusion Television, was the first Television station in Hong Kong and was renamed (as ATV) in 1982, since when it has gained several awards for its programs.

ATV currently operates eight channels: the 24-hour Cantonese Home channel; the 22-hour English World channel; the 24-hour Cantonese satellite channel ATV Home (America), which is accessible in Mainland of China, one Cantonese American Channel, which is accessible in North America, and four digital channels: HD aTV, a 24-hour high-definition channel; CTi International of Taiwan; CCTV4, the international channel of Chinese Central Television, China; TVS, Shouthern Television Guangdong, China.

About TVB
Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) was the first commercial TV station in Hong Kong. Launched in 1967, the company now has a staff of around 4,500 people and now two analogue and five digital free-to-air channels in Hong Kong.

TVB Jade (Cantonese) and TVB Pearl (English) are TVB's flagship television channels. On the DTTV platform, which launched at the end of 2007, J2 and iNEWS are new channels launched with standard definition, while HD Jade is a 24-hour HD channel in Hong Kong.

TVB currently provides twelve pay-TV channels for its associated company, TVB Pay Vision Limited.