Press release

Broadcast network operators call for European policy makers to support the deployment of 5G Broadcast technology, as new report describes an ambitious way forward.

Brussels 11 November 2025

Gathered in an exclusive live demonstration, European and national policy makers got hands on experience with 5G Broadcast transmissions delivered directly to mobile handsets from a high-rise transmitter in downtown Brussels.

The demonstration was organized by Broadcast Networks Europe (BNE) with the technical support of Media Broadcast and Belgian Tower company.

5G Broadcast technology enables citizens to receive linear video and audio, as well as data, on their mobile devices without the need for a SIM card or a mobile Internet subscription. Content reaches the user via existing terrestrial broadcast infrastructure and can be seamlessly integrated with on demand content delivery. 5G Broadcast can also deliver emergency alert messages to smartphones, even when the fixed and mobile networks fail, for instance in case of catastrophic event or black out.

“European stakeholders have taken a leading role in defining the next generation of terrestrial broadcasting, providing Europe with an industrial edge as this technology is now part of the worldwide mobile 3GPP standard” explained Antonio Arcidiacono, Director of Technology and Innovation at the European Broadcasting Union (EBU).

“In our daily lives, 5G Broadcast can uniquely support sovereign content distribution to mobile terminals. It can make the outstanding European content more accessible to the younger audience” emphasized Arnaud Lucaussy, Secretary General of TDF and Chair of Broadcast Networks Europe.

Those ambitions are substantiated by a new report “5G Broadcast- Horizons for Europe” prepared by strategic consultancy South 180.  As David Fernandez Quijada, co-founder and research director of South 180, put it “there is an ambitious way forward for European wide deployment by 2030, which will require support from public authorities at European level.”

As Arnaud Lucaussy concluded “in view of the European objectives and the immense challenges on democracy and security, Europe must urgently open a file to foster the great potential of 5G Broadcast as a strong innovative asset for the Digital Terrestrial Television”.