Error protection for satellite broadcast of HDTV and conventional TV

Efficient error protection strategies for robust satellite broadcast of high-definition television (HDTV) and conventional TV are investigated. The concatenated Reed-Solomon/convolutional code is preferred over the RS code for fewer adverse effects on variable-length codes. A decoded bit error rate of 10^-10 or below can be achieved for all transmitted information at a low threshold E_b/N₀. The most critical video packet data are received near-error-free by using an additional layer of block coding with minimal redundancy and complexity. The effect of loss of synchronization for variable-length codewords due to channel errors is minimized by simple error detection and concealment methods. Digital transmission architectures for the satellite broadcast of HDTV and conventional TV are outlined