MPEG-H TV Audio On The Air as South Korea Launches UHD TV Services Based on ATSC 3.0

The MPEG-H TV Audio System is the first next-generation audio codec worldwide to go on air 24/7 as South Korea launched its 4K UHD TV services, broadcast using the next-generation ATSC 3.0 standard, on May 31, 2017. Not only will this new, ultra-high definition television service deliver pin-sharp pictures, it also brings with it never-heard-before novelties in sound, thanks to the MPEG-H TV Audio System.

In advance of the launch of the world’s first terrestrial 4K TV broadcast service in South Korea, Media Excel, a leading supplier of software solutions, is taking the first step to integrate MPEG-H Audio software from Fraunhofer IIS. Media Excel’s latest UHD HEVC encoder will be among the first encoders to support MPEG-H Audio real-time encoding of immersive and interactive sound.

Cadence Design Systems announced immediate availability of the next-generation MPEG-H Audio decoder based on Cadence Tensilica HiFi DSPs. MPEG-H Audio is a future broadcast standard and is expected to be one of the key audio technologies adopted worldwide for new TVs. Through close collaboration with Fraunhofer, one of the developers of the open ISO MPEG-H Audio standard, Cadence is first to market with an implementation for a licensable DSP.

Audio Precision released an application utility that facilitates the testing of small loudspeakers per requirements established by the Republic of Korea’s Telecommunications Technology Association (TTA). APx users are now able to verify the performance of micro and slim speakers conformance to TTA’s specifications.