GA 2015: The ABU Technical Bureau members met in Istanbul

The ABU Technical Bureau met yesterday and discussed the whole agenda of the Technical Committee which will take place on 27-28 October.

Members are also looking forward to the special session presented by the host TRT which will present some of the advanced technologies implemented within TRT including Hybrid TV, Digital Archives, Audio description techniques and the newly initiated research studies on Emergency Warning Systems. The other highlight of the second day is the special keynote presentation by Dr Egon Verharen, the Chairman of EBU Technical Committee.

The two-day schedule of the TC was reviewed at the Technical Bureau meeting which concluded in the afternoon of 26-Oct. The annual Technical Bureau session was attended by 18 members and was chaired by the TC Chairman Mr Masakazu Iwaki of NHK. The two-hour meeting looked at various issues and elements of concern facing the broadcasting industry in the current environment. One of the main discussions focused on the ‘ABU Digital Strategy’ initiative which was first raised at the last mid-year meeting by the ABU Secretary-General who highlighted the need to have a strategy within ABU to address the move towards digitalization and issues concerning digital divide among members.

Another such discussion was the members view on safeguarding of the broadcast spectrum. The meeting took a final review of the planned process running up to the ITU’s World Radiocommunication Conference 2015 that will take place in November this year.

The Bureau also reviewed and approved the two recommendations that will be tabled at the Technical Committee. The Bureau also heard updates on the study topics from the respective chairpersons, who will be presenting those updated at the TC meeting.

The ABU Technical Bureau is an 18 member executive board elected by the Technical Committee. The Bureau meets twice every year to ensure the continuity and to monitor the technical activities carried out by the ABU.