Institut für Rundfunktechnik

The Institut für Rundfunktechnik GmbH (IRT) (Institute for Broadcasting Technology Ltd.) was a research centre of German broadcasters (ARD / ZDF / DLR), Austria's broadcaster (ORF) and the Swiss public broadcaster (SRG / SSR). It was responsible for research on broadcasting technology. It was founded in 1956^[1] and was located in Munich, Germany.

They invented or were influential in the research, development and field-testing of important standards such as ARI, RDS, VPS, DSR, DAB and DVB-T.

Institut für Rundfunktechnik was a founding member of the Hybrid Broadcast Broadband TV (HbbTV) consortium of broadcasting and Internet industry companies that established an open European standard (called HbbTV) for hybrid set-top boxes for the reception of broadcast TV and broadband multimedia applications with a single user interface.

In 2020, ZDF and then other supporters indicated that they planned to withdraw from the organization, so the IRT was closed by the end of 2020.^[1][2]

Former members

• Bayerischer Rundfunk
• Deutsche Welle
• Deutschlandradio
• Hessischer Rundfunk
• Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk
• Norddeutscher Rundfunk
• Österreichischer Rundfunk
• Radio Bremen
• Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg
• Saarländischer Rundfunk
• SRG SSR
• Südwestrundfunk
• Westdeutscher Rundfunk Köln
• ZDF

See also

• BBC Research & Development
• High Com FM (researched and field-trialed by IRT between 1979 and 1984)^[3]
• Wittmoor List (maintained by IRT up to June 2018)
• European Broadcasting Union (EBU)
• International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
• DVB Project
• WorldDAB
• Public broadcasting
• Teletext
• Fernmeldetechnisches Zentralamt [de] (FTZ)
• Rundfunk- und Fernsehtechnisches Zentralamt [de] (RFZ)
• Informations-Verarbeitungs-Zentrum [de] (IVZ)