ftvlogo2.jpg (46120 bytes)                 Future TV

    Index

Introduction

    Future TV is a research project which aims to study the digital television as platform for new interactive multimedia services. The research project was started in March 1998 and it is planned to last for three years. The project is funded by Technology Development Center of Finland together with major finnish television, telecommunications, and digital media companies.

Research Plan

    The research work contains three overlapping research areas: 
     

    1. Software Architectures
    2. System Architecture
    3. Interactive Services and Consumers

    The aim of the Software Architecture module is the study the emerging Application Programming Interfaces (API) of the digital television: OpenTV, HTML, Java, and MHEG-5. Demonstration platforms based on both existing and self-developed software for each API will be build. Latter these platforms will be used as basis of comparative studies. Also, different implementations issues of Electronics Program Guides (EPG) will be studied. 

    In the System Architecture module, video and service databases, billing, return channels, and scalable video coding will be studied. These components will form the basis for interactive television utilizing heterogeneous networks and services. 

    The objective of the Interactive Services and Consumers module is to build trial services for interactive television. The services will be first evaluated based on their technological functionality. Then, the usability of the services will be measured. Finally, the methods of consumer research will be used to validate the services.

Partners

Contact Information

     



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This page was last updated 08.06.1999
URL: http://www.tcm.hut.fi/Tutkimus/future-tv/