News from the 2005 China Digital TV Forum which was held on Thursday indicates that numerous standards in the realm of China's digital TV are being discussed or being drafted. China's television makers have raised a "standard" counter-offensive in the era of digital TV.

Dr. Zhang Subing, technical director with the China monitoring center for digital TV standards, revealed that China plans to establish a total of 85 standards in digital TV, of which six have been approved by the Ministry of Information Industry (MII), 22 drafts are being studied by MII, 11 drafts have been completed but not yet submitted to MII and the remaining 46 standards are still being worked on.

Digital TV standards include basic standards, product specs and functional standards, product test standards, connectivity standards, critical parts standards, interface standards etc. Of these, there are three basic standards and seven connectivity standards to be implemented by MII. In addition, there are also digital data broadcast and information standards and some are still being drafted. But the one attracting the greatest attention is the ground transmission standard. Dr. Zhang said that at present there are three news being melded and no known publication time.

(chinanews August 19, 2005)