Support for TV stations with non-compliant PMT PIDs (1 Viewer)

[omasse]

MediaPortal Version: 1.2.1
Windows Version: 7
1. TV Card Type: ATSC

Hi

I started this new thread to try to make a concise post explaining what has been reported in the two following threads, and to bring some new information (mods, if this is inappropriate, please merge my post with one of these threads):
https://forum.team-mediaportal.com/mediaportal-1-2-0-beta-540/atsc-scanning-problem-99537/
https://forum.team-mediaportal.com/bugreports-74/channel-18-ota-missing-101732/

In short, MediaPortal does not support ATSC stations that have a PMT PID below 0x0030 as this is not allowed by ATSC standards. mm provided a temporary patch to support such stations, but it most probably won't make it in a release. While a decision to follow established standards makes perfect sense, I think MediaPortal should be able to support these channels anyway for the two following reasons:

1. I extracted data from rabbitears.info and found that almost 2 percent of the channels in its database have a PMT below 0x0030. This is a significant number which makes me assume that most TV sets are able to get these channels even though they are not compliant.

2. It is not always easy for viewers to be heard by technical staff at TV stations, and they might be reluctant to change their PMT PID if only a few users are affected.

Therefore, I think it is essential for MediaPortal to have a configuration option that can be set to be able to support stations that have non-compliant PMT PIDs.

Thank you.

As a reference, here is a list of 41 TV stations that have a non-compliant PMT PID, this list excludes duplicates and stations with no program information:

16 (0x0010)  ATLC-DT
16 (0x0010)  CHCH-DT
16 (0x0010)  CHCHDT1
16 (0x0010)  CHCHDT2
16 (0x0010)  CJNT-DT
16 (0x0010)  KBTC-SD
16 (0x0010)  KLFY-HD
16 (0x0010)  KMOHDTV
16 (0x0010)  KNOV-DT
16 (0x0010)  WDPM
16 (0x0010)  WPCT-DT
32 (0x0020)  CHEK-DT
32 (0x0020)  CJCO-DT
32 (0x0020)  CJEO-DT
32 (0x0020)  CKAL-DT
32 (0x0020)  CKEM-DT
32 (0x0020)  CKVU-DT
32 (0x0020)  CKWS TV
32 (0x0020)  City HD
32 (0x0020)  Citytv
32 (0x0020)  KASY-TV
32 (0x0020)  KDEN-DT
32 (0x0020)  KHIZ-2
32 (0x0020)  KIKU-DT
32 (0x0020)  KMCT
32 (0x0020)  KMLM-DT
32 (0x0020)  KPAX-CW
32 (0x0020)  KPCB-DT
32 (0x0020)  KPTB-DT
32 (0x0020)  KRMT 41
32 (0x0020)  KTLN-DT
32 (0x0020)  OMNI 1
32 (0x0020)  OMNI1
32 (0x0020)  THIS TV
32 (0x0020)  WDCA DT
32 (0x0020)  WMMP-1
32 (0x0020)  WWAYRTV
32 (0x0020)  wfrz-sd
34 (0x0022)  Cornerstone
35 (0x0023)  WDRL
37 (0x0025)  KOCB HD

 

[mm1352000]

Hi omasse

Just a minor correction - it is PIDs equal to or below 0x12 that MP won't allow. The exact condition is that the service ID must be greater than 0 and the PMT PID must be greater than 0x12. Those PIDs are reserved by DVB standards. The fact that the stations you mentioned aren't following ATSC rules (as explained here) is interesting but less relevant (at least for me) than the fact that changing the code has potential to affect things for anyone who uses TV in MP.

mm

 

[omasse]

As I don't have the big picture, I'm obviously not in a position to argue.

If I can manage to build MP from source, I'll probably end up maintining my own tswriter.ax as a band-aid. In the mean time, I'm still waiting for something from my TV station, maybe threatening to issue a complaint with our regulation agency will make them react.

Thank you for your help with this issue.