Overview: Channel identity
Channel identity connects broadcast services and multiplexes to the names or numbers presented in a lineup.
The number shown in a guide can be a logical label rather than a direct physical tuning frequency. Service identifiers and multiplex membership provide another layer of identity. These topics explain the mapping that connects a visible channel entry to the programme stream the source actually supplies.
Broadcast multiplexes
A broadcast multiplex combines several service/component data streams into one defined transport/acquisition context, with shared capacity and signaling linking the selected programme to its packets.Service identifiers
Broadcast service identifiers locate a programme within its defined network/transport/source context, independently of component PIDs and viewer-facing channel labels.Virtual channel numbers
Virtual channel numbers provide viewer-facing labels mapped through defined signaling or source information to the physical transport and programme actually acquired.Channel lineups
A channel lineup is a source-contextual inventory of service identities, labels and access/media locations that must be associated separately with guide descriptions.