CEA Publishes Bulletin on Protocol Data for DTV Transmissions

[Gregg Lengling]

Arlington, Virginia 11/6/02

The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) announced today that it has published a new bulletin providing guidance to DTV receiver manufacturers on the use of Program and System Information Protocol (PSIP) data transmitted by DTV stations. PSIP data is broadcast with digital TV programming to describe the digital television broadcast. PSIP may be used by a DTV receiver to provide a number of features. These include the ability to set the receiver's clock and the opportunity to create an electronic program guide that allows parents to block programming from their children.
"This bulletin is an important tool for manufacturers of digital television receivers," said Adam Goldberg, manager of standards, Sharp Laboratories of America and chairman of CEA's TV Data Systems Committee. "It will help advance the digital television transition by recommending consistent usage of PSIP data features."

The new bulletin, EIA/CEA-CEB12 PSIP Recommended Practice, is the latest example of the cooperative effort of the broadcast and consumer electronics industries to accelerate the transition to DTV. EIA/CEA-CEB12 is meant for use in conjunction with ATSC A/65A, Program and System Information for Terrestrial Broadcast and Cable, and ATSC A/69, Program and System Information Protocol Implementation Guidelines for Broadcasters.

The guide recommends how a receiver should react to and process the broadcast PSIP information. One example is that it provides information on what a DTV receiver should do with PSIP data when a consumer first brings the set home from the store. It also recommends what data the receiver should request from the consumer to make maximum use of PSIP information.

In addition the piece suggests how the receiver should collect and maintain PSIP data in order to keep the program guide and the list of available stations current. It also provides information on how the receiver should use the data while the consumer is watching television, (i.e., how to tune channels, choose closed captioning data and screen programs based on content advisory information.)

The bulletin, EIA/CEA-CEB12 PSIP Recommended Practice, is available from Global Engineering Documents and can be accessed at: http://global.ihs.com.