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A Tipping Point For NextGen TV?

Tim Hanlon

NBCUniversal

As many of our readers know, your humble scribe has been a regular fixture at the annual National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) Show over the years, the last few of which have been highlighted by leading executive tours of the conference exhibition halls at the sprawling Las Vegas Convention Center.

While most of our "tourists" arrive full of uncertainty as they (we) attempt to decipher the dizzying array of digital technologies and streaming innovations transforming the complicated TV/video production and distribution ecosystem, the most consistently quizzical looks are generated when making the obligatory stop at the ATSC 3.0/NextGen TV booth. This year was no exception.

It's been nearly a decade now since we've heard the initial siren song of what a potential second iteration (note: there is/was no ATSC "2.0") of TV's digital transmission standards might bring to consumers and the broadcasting industry - and collaborative entities like the Advanced Television Systems Committee, the Sinclair-backed ONE Media Technologies group and the Pearl TV consortium have been doggedly working on building out infrastructure, expanding distribution and shaping the narratives needed to bring concept into reality. 

At its heart, the new 3.0 standard is truly a transformative digital technology framework that combines modern broadcast TV functionality with robust IP (Internet protocol) capabilities that, in theory at least, can provide a litany of "better TV" consumer viewing benefits (e.g., 4K/HDR picture clarity, enhanced audio, content & commerce interactivity, targeted advertising, etc.); improved community & municipal services (think: more robust/accurate emergency alerting); and the promise of "post-TV" industrial applications and commercial data businesses.  

But after 10+ years of promise - and plenty of arduous work behind the scenes - many media industry watchers (and participants) remain skeptical as to when any of it might ultimately be fulfilled, especially given the velocity of other forms of media innovation over that period. As consumers have replaced legacy MVPD cords with streaming CTV services, gravitated to "in-the-moment" pro/am UGC platforms like TikTok and YouTube, adopted mobile devices as primary video consumption destinations, and embraced lean-forward Twitch-ified sports viewing - it's hard not to feel that broadcasting's NextGen TV is already behind the times.  ATSC 3.0 signals are only available in 75% of the country (roughly 75 of the US's 210 TV markets) at this point, built-in tuners are included in only the highest-end smart TV sets, consumer brand awareness of NextGen TV is generally low, and long-promised features are still largely experimental.

Yet against this backdrop, it was hard not to feel that this year's NAB Show represented a bit of a turning point for the standard, as an impressive stack of new partnerships, product launches, and viewing-facing features were announced - the sheer volume of which hints at real momentum in the months ahead.

To wit:

ROXi

  • The Pearl TV consortium announced a partnership with London-based tech firm ROXi to power local interactive news channels for group-member stations, which Sinclair live-featured at NAB via their Las Vegas KSNV-TV station.

ZapperBox

At least five new external NextGen TV receivers are now hitting the market (our favorite is the elegant, versatile newly launched ZapperBox M1) that will allow viewers to view and record both 1.0 and 3.0 signals, some also including streaming FAST channels.

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