When disaster strikes, public safety officials need an instantaneous way to reach millions of people at once. Superstorm Sandy’s aftermath in the Northeast demonstrated both the fragile limits of cell phone networks during times of emergency and the life-saving ability of TV broadcasting. Mobile TV is the backbone of a proven new Mobile Emergency Alert System (mobile EAS) that is now being standardized and commercialized.
Using conventional TV broadcasts that are enhanced with data and mobile TV transmissions, mobile EAS will deliver multimedia alerts (utilizing video, audio, text and graphics) to mobile TV-equipped cellphones, tablets, laptops and in-car navigation systems. Utilizing the inherent one-to-many architecture of TV broadcasting, mobile EAS alerts avoid the roadblocks and chronic congestion of cellular systems during emergencies. The mobile EAS system, which is now being standardized by the Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC), will complement the recently activated cellular-based system that transmits up to 90-character text messages to mobile phones.
The new alerting application developed for mobile EAS utilizes existing standards for implementation. The U.S. broadcast standard for mobile television, the ATSC A/153 Mobile DTV Standard, uses Internet Protocol (IP) at its core. The use of IP allows the new application to be flexible and extensible. Data delivery, non-real-time delivery and electronic service guides are all included. Mobile EAS is compliant with the international Common Alerting Protocol and designed for full incorporation into the U.S. Integrated Public Alert and Warning System.
Broadcasters view mobile EAS as a very important element of mobile TV, one that aligns perfectly with stations’ public interest mission and our commitment to being the prime source of emergency alerting information for the public, while further demonstrating the value of broadcast spectrum.
2013 NAB Show