Ericsson and Malaysian wholesale 5G operator Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB) said on Tuesday they successfully partnered with Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) to conduct what they say is the country’s first live TV broadcast over a commercial 5G network.
The live broadcast of Malaysia’s National Day parade was streamed via DNB’s 5G standalone (5G SA) network to the RTM production studio. DNB said the broadcast was “a successful proof-of-concept to trial five critical broadcasting elements – video, audio, controller, intercom and monitoring.”
The transmission leveraged network slicing technology that was configured to support specific features for broadcast-quality video such as high speed, ample capacity, enhanced security, and reliable performance.
According to Ericsson, the network slicing feature used its dynamic radio resource partitioning solution in a multi-operator 5G core network (MOCN), which dynamically allocates spectrum resources and supports service differentiation using AI intent-based operations.
The use of 5G also enabled RTM to use 5G wireless cameras to cover the parade, allowing camera operators to roam freely within the 5G coverage area and provide more dynamic camera angles.
DNB sees live broadcasting as a potential B2B use case for 5G, as it gives broadcasters like RTM a flexible option for covering live events.
Apart from the usual cited advantages of high bandwidth and low latency, 5G also enables remote broadcasts of breaking news to be launched more quickly and effectively – provided such news happens within range of a 5G site – since broadcasters won’t have to wait until the news truck to arrive and set up traditional broadcast equipment.
“This proof-of-concept shows that 5G network slicing can deliver secured and seamless broadcast management and ensure uninterrupted feed from the site to the newsroom using existing infrastructure,” said DNB’s CTO Ken Tan. “It also serves as a case for enterprises from the broadcast industry and beyond, to embrace 5G connectivity, enhance their efficiency and productivity, and ultimately transform their businesses.”
DNB and Ericsson claim Tuesday’s RTM broadcast was the first ever to be done using a live 5G network. That said, CelcomDigi, U Mobile and ZTE staged a similar event in August, in which RTM broadcast the opening ceremony of the 2024 Sukma Games using 5G-Advanced. That demo used 5G-A equipment deployed specifically for the broadcast.
