scope:

The following IPTV services and features fall within the scope of this document:

? Broadcast TV

? Pay-per-View (PPV)

? Video-on-Demand (VoD)

? Video Content Downloads (including "push VoD")

? Audio (broadcast, PPV, on-demand, and downloads)

? Closed captioning

? Parental control

The following specific aspects of metadata elements are considered in this document:

? Definitions of the required metadata elements.

? Interfaces across which the metadata elements need to be exchanged.

? Recommended formats for the metadata elements.

? Recommended protocols for metadata exchange (as appropriate).

? Other standards.

This document presents a series of use cases and associated metadata requirements, grouped by EPG application features or needs. At the end of the document is a summary table showing the metadata elements identified in these use cases and associated requirements.

Purpose

This document presents requirements for the metadata needed to support the Electronic Program Guide (EPG) function, one of the metadata areas specifically called out in the charge to the Alliance for Telecommunication Industry Solutions (ATIS) IPTV Interoperability Forum (IIF).

Interactive EPGs are essential in an IPTV environment, since consumers typically will have a vast amount of content available to them. Old fashioned up/down "channel surfing" will not be a feasible way to locate content of interest. Standardization of a rich set of EPG-related metadata in an IPTV environment is essential, because consumers using a wide variety of different IPTV Terminal Function (ITF) devices will need to locate, select, and acquire content delivered by a wide variety of different content providers, service providers, and network providers -- including both broadcast services and on-demand content. The interoperability enabled by standardization will greatly reduce the effort required by all the relevant parties to provide consumers with an EPG that provides a convenient, unified view of the different content available to them.