PBS is a signatory to an international joint declaration, announced at 11 a.m. local time today (11/11) at the Future of Broadcast Television summit in Shanghai, calling for worldwide cooperation among over-the-air (OTA) television broadcasters to define requirements, unify standards and promote technology sharing, in order to benefit both developed and underdeveloped countries and conserve resources.
According to Advanced Television, a European media news site, the declaration stated in part, “We need to explore new ways of cooperation, seek the progressive unification of standards, and realize technology sharing so that the efficiency and convenience enabled by digitization will be realized — not reduced by system fragmentation. The 21st century is an era of integration of broadcasting, Internet, and communications, all of which have evolved in parallel. Consumers are calling for more convenient and user-friendly services. The development of digital technology opens the possibility of cooperation among all the different networks and transmission systems.”
PBS also is a founding organization of the summit, with others including the National Association of Broadcasters, Japan’s NHK and the European Broadcast Union.