The CONFLUENT bridging project: Enabling commercial application of convergent services in collaborative networks of UMTS and DVB-T systems

Start date:2002-07-01

End date:2003-06-30

Project Acronym:CONFLUENT

Project status:Completed

Coordinator

Description

Objective: This project will bridge the gap between the results achieved by other European funded RTD-projects and their commercial exploitation in FP6. Its target is to lay the foundation for an umbrella project in FP6, which is to provide solutions for the elements needed for the commercial exploitation of services for users of mobile/portable terminals that combine offerings of broadcast and broadband networks including Internet access. This project will carry out steps needed to identify work that needs to be completed to define the FP6 umbrella project. Service scenarios will be developed around core services. It will show how services developed for terminals with small user groups can be offered to users of other terminals. A receiver architecture for mobile/portable reception of DVB-T will be developed.

Objectives:
1. Develop an integrated solution for space diversity reception of DVB-T using low power front-end processing;
2. Enhancement of the APIs of two terminals developed under different EU projects so that each offers applications developed for the other;
3. Review the core services and applications identified from all EU projects on converged network operation and mobile/portable terminals and develop service scenarios around these core services for key network scenarios;
4. Provision of content to create and deliver an exemplary service to proof specific service scenarios.
5. A proposal for an umbrella project in FP6 which is to provide solutions for the elements needed for the commercial exploitation of services "any-where", combining UMTS and DVB-T.

Work description:
The CONFLUENT project will deliver prerequisites for the commercial exploitation of services combining UMTS and DVB-T, crucial to which is the availability of handheld terminals for high speed operation with low power consumption. The development in CONFLUENT of an integrated solution for space diversity reception of DVB-T using low-power front-end processing is a significant step towards the realisation of such terminals. Such terminals would provide widely available alternative platforms for Internet access thus contributing to one of the commission's main objectives, giving everyone access to the Internet. The CONFLUENT project takes important steps towards the commercial offering of services combining the offering of broadcast and broadband networks. The commission strongly believes that the provision of such services is the role of the private not the public sector. For the private sector to offer such services it must be possible to market such services to a critical mass of users. For this to be possible standardisation and regulation must be in place so that services can be offered at a European level. Recommendations for standardisation and regulation have force when made across industry sectors and through telecommunications administrations as then the recommendations have governmental support. CONFLUENT brings together partners across industry sectors that jointly are able to make a broad input to European standardisation and regulation initiatives. National administrations will be asked to support the recommendations of CONFLUENT.

Milestones:
At the end of the project there will be: a tested solution for mobile/portable terminals to overcome the deficient byte interleaving of DVB-T. Software API's demonstrating the transferability of applications. Content to create and deliver an exemplary service. Inputs to standardisation and regulatory bodies and the definition of an FP6 umbrella project.

Achievements:

General information:

Project Details

Start date:2002-07-01

End date:2003-06-30

Duration:12 months

Project Reference:IST-2001-38402

Project cost:1412473 EURO

Project Funding:781979 EURO

Programme Acronym: IST

Programme type:Fifth Framework Programme

Subprogramme Area:Networked audio-visual systems and services

Contract type:Cost-sharing contracts

URL:http://www.brunel.ac.uk/project/confluent

Subject index:Information Processing, Information Systems, Innovation, Technology Transfer

Other Indexes:

Other participants

Record control number:63316