Glossary

Middleware for Digital TV: It's the intermediate software layer that allows the development of interactive applications for Digital TV, regardless of the hardware platform used by set-top box manufacturers.

Ginga: It’s the specification for the intermediary software layer standard (middleware) developed for the Brazilian Digital TV System by Puc-RJ and UFPB.

Interactivity Component: This is the term created by TQTVD to classify each and every application sent by the open Digital TV signal that allows the user to interact with the application using the receiver’s remote control.

>> Other Terms Watch a Demonstration.

Digital TV

Brazilian Standard

Brazilian Inovations

ISDB-Tb (Brazilian Terrestrial Digital TV System) is the name given to the Brazilian Digital TV system.

There are three main innovations on the Brazilian system (over the Japanese):

  • Audio and video coding: The H.264 (MPEG-4) standard was adopted. The fixed transmission will use the H.264 - HP@L4.0 in the 480i, 480p, 720p and 1080i format;
  • Ginga Middleware: the standard sets interactivity requirements, time-space media objects synchronism, adaptability and fixed and portable multiple device support;
  • Social aspect: the standard has been developed in order to allow, in the future, TV applications such as t-Banking, e-government and Inland Revenue services.

Ginga Middleware

The standard offers two different programming paradigms for the Brazilian middleware. They are:

  • Ginga-NCL: declarative engine, focused on media objects synchronization. Instead of using instructions or procedures to define the interactive content, the NCL language defines the content as reactions to different events (timely, user interaction response, media action, etc). It allows different types of content (video, audio, images, text) to synchronize creating interactive content.
  • Ginga-J: procedural engine, allowing interactive content or applications to be developed in Java. The Ginga-J complements the Ginga-NCL enabling types of algorithms or complex applications to be developed which could not, otherwise, be deployed using the NCL language alone.

The key advantages offered by Ginga are:

  • Compatible with other systems;
  • The Ginga-NCL allows BML, DVB-HTML and ACAP/OCAP XHTML players to be added, enabling it to work in different countries, with varying systems (including via broadcast).
  • Enables interactivity. Its interface standard guarantees that applications and interactive content sent via broadcast are visualized correctly in any receiver.
  • It is flexible. It allows radiodifusores to create and develop advanced services according to their business needs.
  • Portability of the resident applications. It enables the development of Digital TV applications which may be embarked in any receiver, independent on the platform, model or manufacturer.
  • It allows simultaneous interaction by various users using different devices.
  • It allows other devices to be integrated to the receiver.