SOMEONE YOU SHOULD KNOW: Paul Hearty, Jong Kim and Pete Sockett

Posted on January 4, 2017 in ATSC News

The ATSC Board of Directors welcomes three industry experts just starting their 2017-19 terms on the board. This month’s “Someone You Should Know” column features these talented and seasoned individuals – Paul Hearty of Sony, Jong Kim of LG and Pete Sockett of Capitol Broadcasting.

Paul Hearty, Ph.D.
Vice President, Technology Standards, Sony Electronics  

“ATSC is, and must be, at the nexus of what I call Next-Generation Everything – the near simultaneous evolution of broadcast, broadband, and mobile. My goal at Sony is to try to effect maximum alignment among these delivery platforms, which I believe aligns well with ATSC’s direction and interests. On the ATSC Board, I’ll press for and support such alignment.”

Dr. Paul Hearty leads Sony’s activities in the ATSC and many other standards bodies. Actively engaged in ATSC since the 1980s, he was a key contributor to ATSC 1.0, co-developing many of its requirements and test protocols. Hearty is perhaps best known in ATSC 1.0 circles for creating and leading the Advanced Television Evaluation Laboratory, which carried out much of the testing. He served on the ATSC Executive Committee (predecessor to the ATSC Board) from 1998 to 2001. Hearty serves on the boards of ANSI and CineGrid, as well as the SCTE Engineering Committee. He also is Founding Chair of CTA’s Web Application Video Ecosystem (WAVE), which is working to align Internet delivery protocols. He also has served on the boards of the IEEE Standards Association and SMPTE. Hearty earned his Ph.D. degree from Queen’s University (Canada) and has received a number of awards, including an Emmy for work in support of ATSC 1.0.

Jong G. Kim, Ph.D.
Senior Vice President, LG Electronics Inc.
President, Zenith R&D Lab

“The world-leading IP-based ATSC 3.0 standard is the foundation for the future of television, reinventing the broadcast medium that’s served us well with ATSC 1.0 for two decades. ATSC is the technical authority supporting the wide range of transition issues on the horizon. My goals are for the ATSC to continue its major roles in ushering in Next Gen TV, both as the primary standards development organization and as the facilitator for implementing 3.0 in the United States, in South Korea and in other countries.”

Dr. Jong Kim has been Senior VP in LG’s office of the CTO since 2015, and Zenith President since 2005 after serving as Vice President, Zenith R&D, from 2000-04. Kim started his career as a research engineer at LG Electronics in 1983.  A key contributor to ATSC standards for many years, he joined Zenith Electronics in 1990, long before LG acquired Zenith in 1999. His position reflects the important role of the LG’s U.S. R&D lab that, in addition to work on next-generation broadcasting standards, includes developing groundbreaking technologies for hospitality, healthcare, digital signage and automotive electronics, among other key LG technology initiatives. Kim earned his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering at the University of Alabama and his M.S. and B.S. degrees in Electronics Engineering at Seoul National University. He has co-authored numerous papers published in leading technical journals, including the IEEE Transactions on Consumer Electronics, SMPTE Journal and IEEE Transactions on Broadcasting.

Peter Sockett
Head of Engineering and Operations, Capitol Broadcasting Company

“The broadcast industry is at a crossroads of redefining itself as a content provider of compelling products in a new wild west of technologies, while serving its traditional proven model. ATSC 3.0 is the greatest opportunity we have to solidify our future in the new world of co-existing linear and non-linear television and new digital delivery businesses! My goals for the ATSC are to help finalize the new standard, shepherd its deployment and champion it to the forefront of the technology of broadcast TV. Perhaps most important is doing all of this quickly. The time for ATSC 3.0 is now, and we must deploy as fast as we possibly can, while serving the greater goal of creating a technologically timeless standard.”

Leading technical activities for CBC’s television stations headquartered in Raleigh, N.C., Pete Sockett is responsible for steering the company’s technological needs through the fast-changing digital landscape. He has been instrumental in leading the nation’s first commercial HDTV station, WRAL, into the Internet Protocol (IP) era. Career highlights include a total rebuild of the Capitol Broadcasting HD technical plant, launching the first non-linear HD newsroom, developing workflows for IP-ENG, implementing Mobile DTV and Mobile-EAS, creating the first 4K-HDR documentary produced at a local TV station and launching the first commercial, simulcast TV station using the ATSC 3.0 standard. Sockett is active in many ATSC 3.0 TG3 specialist groups (including co-chair of S35), as well as the AWARN Alliance and the NAB’s NGBP committee. Prior to joining WRAL in 2003, he worked for CTV, CHUM and CBS. Sockett graduated from Conestoga College in Ontario, Canada, and won two technical Emmy awards and Broadcasting & Cable’s Technical Leadership Award.

Posted in ATSC News