E-Paper
Video streaming without internet connection soon? D2M to be tried in 19 cities
Trials of the home-grown Direct-to-Mobile (D2M) technology would soon be held in 19 cities.
Mobile users in India might be able to stream videos without an internet connection or a SIM card through the use of Direct-to-Mobile broadcasting technology soon.
Addressing a Broadcasting Summit, Information and Broadcasting Secretary Apurva Chandra said trials of the home-grown Direct-to-Mobile (D2M) technology would soon be held in 19 cities, according to PTI.
He also made a strong pitch for reserving the 470-582 MHz spectrum for this emerging technology.
In his address, Chandra argued that there exist over 80 crore smartphones in the country and 69 percent of content accessed by users is in video format.
Chandra said heavy use of video led to the clogging of mobile networks, which resulted in the buffering of content.
He argued that a shift of 25-30% of video traffic to D2M would unclog the 5G networks and accelerate the nation’s digital evolution and democratise content delivery.
According to him, the D2M technology would help reach nearly 8-9 crore “TV Dark” homes across the country. Of the 280 million households in the country, only 190 million have television sets.
Last year, pilot projects to test the technology were carried out in Bengaluru, Kartavya Path and Noida, according to PTI.
What is the D2M broadcasting technology?
The D2M broadcasting technology has been developed by Saankhya Labs and IIT Kanpur. This technology uses existing land-based communication systems and special frequencies assigned to public broadcasters to send video, audio, and data signals straight to mobile phones and smart devices that can handle them.
The tech has the potential to reach over a billion mobile devices. Its adoption promises transformative benefits, including cost reductions in data transmission and access, improvements in network efficiency and resilience, and potentially leading to the establishment of a nationwide emergency alert system.
