Discovering and delivering linear TV services over 5G, combining broadband, broadcast and hybrid modes.
Overview
5G-MAG monitors and contributes to work on DVB-I service delivery over 5G systems. DVB-I (Digital Video Broadcasting - Internet) defines mechanisms for internet-connected devices to discover and access sets of linear TV services delivered over broadband or broadcast networks, together with the associated programme metadata. For the technical analysis of DVB-I service discovery and its deployment over 5G, see the Tech page linked below. For acronyms used here, see the Glossary.
The DVB / 5G-MAG Joint Task Force documented DVB-I deployment over 5G in DVB A178, published as ETSI TR 103 972.
Technology & Analysis
How DVB-I service discovery works alongside 5G delivery, and the deployment modes in detail.
Key Specifications
DVB publishes a specification as a numbered "BlueBook" (for example DVB A177), which is then published in identical technical form by ETSI under an ETSI number. The pairs relevant here are:
| DVB BlueBook | ETSI publication | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| DVB A177 | ETSI TS 103 770 | Service Discovery and Programme Metadata for DVB-I |
| DVB A178 | ETSI TR 103 972 | DVB-I service delivery over 5G Systems; Deployment Guidelines |
The specifications in scope, filterable by the layer they define: the DVB and ETSI service-discovery and deployment documents, the DVB delivery formats, and the 3GPP 5G transport (the unicast path is 5G Media Streaming, in the 26-series owned by SA4 media codecs and formats; the multicast/broadcast path is the 5G Multicast Broadcast Services user-service architecture, alongside the LTE-based broadcast profile published by ETSI). Search matches the specification number, its title and any scope note.
13 of 13 specifications
| Specification | Title | Layer |
|---|---|---|
| ETSI TS 103 720 | 5G Broadcast System for linear TV and radio services | DVB / ETSI |
| DVB A177 | Service Discovery and Programme Metadata for DVB-Ithe main DVB-I specification; published as ETSI TS 103 770 | DVB / ETSI |
| ETSI TS 103 770 | Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB); Service Discovery and Programme Metadata for DVB-IETSI-published form of DVB A177 | DVB / ETSI |
| DVB A178 | DVB-I service delivery over 5G Systems; Deployment Guidelinesbroader 5G delivery guidance for DVB-I, not limited to 5G Broadcast; published as ETSI TR 103 972 | DVB / ETSI |
| ETSI TR 103 972 | DVB-I service delivery over 5G Systems; Deployment GuidelinesETSI-published form of DVB A178; produced by the DVB / 5G-MAG Joint Task Force | DVB / ETSI |
| ETSI TS 103 285 | Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB); MPEG-DASH Profile for Transport of ISO BMFF Based DVB Services over IP Based NetworksDVB-DASH; the DVB profile of MPEG-DASH, ISO/IEC 23009-1 | DVB delivery formats |
| ETSI TS 103 769 | Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB); Adaptive media streaming over IP multicastDVB-MABR | DVB delivery formats |
| DVB A180 | Native IP BroadcastingDVB-NIP, the DVB end-to-end native-IP broadcast system that reuses DVB-I, DVB-DASH and DVB-MABR | DVB delivery formats |
| TS 26.501 | 5G Media Streaming (5GMS); General description and architecture | 3GPP unicast |
| TS 26.512 | 5G Media Streaming (5GMS); Protocols | 3GPP unicast |
| TS 26.511 | 5G Media Streaming (5GMS); Profiles, codecs and formats | 3GPP unicast |
| TS 26.502 | 5G multicast-broadcast services; User service architectureMBS | 3GPP broadcast |
| TS 23.247 | Architectural enhancements for 5G multicast-broadcast services | 3GPP broadcast |
Specifications by role
| Role in DVB-I over 5G | Specification(s) |
|---|---|
| Service discovery and programme metadata | DVB A177 / ETSI TS 103 770 |
| Deployment guidance for 5G | DVB A178 / ETSI TR 103 972 |
| Commercial requirements input | DVB C100 (Commercial Requirements for DVB-I over 5G) |
| Unicast media format | DVB-DASH (ETSI TS 103 285), profiling MPEG-DASH (ISO/IEC 23009-1) |
| Multicast media delivery | DVB-MABR (ETSI TS 103 769) |
| Unicast 5G transport | 3GPP 5GMS (TS 26.501, TS 26.512, TS 26.511) |
| Broadcast 5G transport | ETSI TS 103 720 (LTE-based 5G Broadcast); 3GPP MBS (TS 26.502, TS 23.247) |
Release and organisation view
DVB-I over 5G spans three standards bodies, so there is no single release line. The dependencies track as follows:
- DVB: A177 (published in successive revisions as ETSI TS 103 770) is the stable service-discovery base; A178 (ETSI TR 103 972 V1.1.1, 2023) is a technical report rather than a normative specification, so it records guidance and gaps rather than mandating behaviour. The commercial input came from DVB C100 (2021).
- 3GPP SA4: the 5GMS architecture (TS 26.501) was introduced in Release 16 and has been extended in later releases; the MBS user-service work (TS 26.502) and the underlying system architecture (TS 23.247) were introduced in Release 17 and continue to evolve.
- ETSI JTC Broadcast: the LTE-based 5G Broadcast profile (TS 103 720) has been aligned to successive 3GPP releases, with work items updating it toward Release 18 and Release 19.
Because A178 is a technical report, its main output is a set of recommended changes to specifications owned by DVB, 3GPP and ETSI; the follow-up happens in those bodies rather than in a single DVB-I-over-5G specification.
Delivery over 5G
DVB A178 (ETSI TR 103 972) maps the commercial requirements for DVB-I over 5G (captured in DVB BlueBook C100, the DVB commercial-requirements document) into a reference architecture and deployment guidance covering three service scenarios:
| Mode | Bearer | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| Unicast | 5G Media Streaming (5GMS) | On-demand and linear services delivered per device over broadband 5G |
| Broadcast | LTE-based 5G Broadcast | One-way, wide-area linear TV and radio to many devices |
| Concurrent / hybrid | Both 5GMS and 5G Broadcast | The same service over both bearers, or hybrid DVB-I services combining them |
The report also records gaps identified in existing specifications under the control of DVB, 3GPP and ETSI. For the reference architecture and scenario-by-scenario detail, see Tech: DVB-I Services over 5G.
5G-MAG tracking and contribution focus
5G-MAG follows the DVB / 5G-MAG Joint Task Force output and the downstream work in 3GPP and ETSI. The practical focus areas are:
- Tracking the recommended specification changes from A178 as they are taken up in DVB, 3GPP SA4, and ETSI JTC Broadcast.
- Interoperability between DVB-I discovery and 3GPP service announcement on the broadcast path.
For the implementer-facing view of the reference architecture and procedures, see the Tech: DVB-I Services over 5G page.
Related Standards Work
- Standards: 5G Media Streaming
- Standards: 5G Broadcast
- Standards: Multimedia Delivery Protocols
- Feedback and Requirements: how 5G-MAG processes feedback on the specifications it tracks
Refer to the Standards repository to contribute to this documentation.