Rolling Out Broadcasting’s Next Generation

Posted on October 9, 2020 in ATSC News

Congratulations are due once again to U.S. broadcasters for their ongoing rollout of ATSC 3.0. With the launch of Austin, Texas, Next Gen TV services are now offered in a dozen markets, and we hear that more markets are on the path to launch this month. You can follow along on the on the ATSC Deployments webpage where we are continually tracking the progress.

BREAKING NEWS – Make that a “baker’s dozen” markets with the launch of the 13th market: Oklahoma City!

To hear even more about the rollout from broadcasters, solution vendors and consumer technology companies, be sure to attend the 2020 ATSC Next Gen Broadcast Conference, which will be streamed on October 26. Embedded within the NAB Show NY Virtual event, the ATSC conference will feature expert panelists and VIP guests sharing their experiences of launching the new service, and there may even be a few predictions about the future.  (ATSC members enjoy a 50% discount for the virtual edition of NAB NY, which includes the ATSC conference.  Watch the ATSC e-mail reflector for details.)

In addition to panel discussions and presentations, our conference will feature a special appearance by FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr as our keynote speaker. Commissioner Carr has been instrumental in fostering “Broadcast Internet” services within the FCC, and we look forward to his thoughts on ATSC 3.0, 5G networks, convergence and more.

And as we watch momentum build with more and more commercial deployments, we also have our eyes on the future. ATSC 3.0 was designed to be flexible to accommodate changing market conditions. We can think about ATSC 3.0 as a Platform that continually evolves over time. Consider how web browsers have changed over the years to keep pace with new consumer behaviors and emerging business models. It’s the ATSC members – the users of the ATSC 3.0 Platform – that perform the task of recognizing changes in the landscape and developing the platform to meet those changes. This effort will also be on display at the ATSC Next Gen Broadcast Conference as panelists explore “Core Network” technologies as a potential game-changer in the world of broadcasting.

Timed to coincide with our conference, we’ll issue an updated online ATSC 3.0 Progress Report on the ATSC website. The Progress Report, which initially launched in May 2020, has been among the most popular destinations at atsc.org, second only to the Deployments Map. ATSC Members have received a link to update their listings from the Spring edition, and we look forward to publishing the updated Progress Report at the end of the month. The fall 2020 report will showcase the new developments in the ATSC 3.0 marketplace. For example, at CES 2020, consumer technology companies announced 20 television models among Sony, Samsung and LG. This trio has not only delivered on that promise, but exceeded it, and there are now over two dozen NEXTGEN TVs available at retail. Watch for the ATSC 3.0 Progress Report: Fall 2020 coming on October 26 for all the news.

October is shaping up to be a very eventful month. We urge everyone to take advantage of the rich slate of virtual conferences and look forward to “seeing” you at NAB Show NY Virtual and the ATSC Next Gen Broadcast Conference.

Madeleine Noland, ATSC President

Posted in ATSC News