At the NAB Show in Las Vegas, Pearl TV, the coalition of U.S. broadcast companies transitioning to NEXTGEN TV (also referred to as ATSC 3.0) and its network partners, has announced that it will present a series of NEXTGEN TV features and capabilities demonstrations with partners, including Comcast, NBC, Universal, Samsung and LG Electronics.

“In less than four years, NEXTGEN TV has grown to reach more than 60% of U.S. television viewers. Moreover, through our partnerships with major television manufacturers, we are thrilled that the retail market will boast more than 120 receiver models for consumers to choose from,” says Robert Folliard, senior vice president of Gray Television and chairman of Pearl TV.

“Essential to the continued growth and adoption of NEXTGEN TV are the innovative collaborations that we’ll highlight at the show, and the continued rollout of new services and affordable upgrade devices for consumers. We’re also extremely pleased to welcome Zinwell to the NEXTGEN TV ecosystem, as it enters the NEXTGEN TV CTA certification program for its upgrade accessory device that consumers will be able to buy later this year.” 

NEXTGEN TV Adoption Continues to Grow

Now broadcasting with network television service in 60 markets, NEXTGEN TV is reaching 60% of U.S. viewers. According to the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), NEXTGEN TV unit sales were 3.2 million in 2022. CTA is projecting 2023 NEXTGEN TV sales of 5 million units, as TV makers Hisense, LG, Samsung and Sony expand their product lines to provide a greater range of NEXTGEN TV televisions. In 2023, there will be more than 120 television models at retail starting at $599. 

“Broadcasters who leaned into the standard’s innovative capabilities early on, have already started to benefit from enhanced viewer engagement and near-term monetization opportunities,” comments Anne Schelle, managing director of Pearl TV.

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“At the NAB Show, with our partners, we will preview an exciting glimpse at what the NEXTGEN TV future holds—dynamic ad replacement, accessibility features, and more—that broadcasters and digital tech and media companies can harness for their own network and station businesses, and consumers.”  

Some of the ATSC 3.0 interactive TV technologies to be demonstrated at NAB 2023 include:

Audio Accessibility Features: A two-screen demonstration will feature an NBC Sports NEXTGEN TV broadcast from the Las Vegas Sinclair station that will simultaneously be distributed via a Comcast Xfinity set-top box (STB). Enhanced accessibility features highlighted will include full Dolby Atmos immersive sound in English and Spanish with audio description and Voice+ dialogue enhancement to increase the intelligibility of the foreground announcers’ voices over the program content. This demonstration is enabled by Ateme, the first to fully develop the support for these audio features. 

RUN3TV and Addressable Dynamic Ad Replacement: Pearl TV explains that NEXTGEN TV gives broadcasters the ability to directly engage with their viewers via their broadcaster applications supported by the RUN3TV Web TV Platform. Pearl TV and Gray Television are partnering with Yotta Media, Sony, Triveni and Ateme to show early implementation of the ability to replace ads in a live broadcast, which will be standardized later this year. This collaboration will show how the RUN3TV ecosystem is developing new revenue streams that benefit content creators, innovators and viewers alike. 

Samsung HDR 10+: Samsung Electronics is demonstrating a workflow, supported by FOX Sports and Ateme that provides viewers with the video enhancement of High Dynamic Range (HDR) with Dynamic Metadata (HDR 10+). This is possible even when the original content is not produced in HDR. Using real-time video encoding technology, the demonstration shows that high-quality HDR video content can be broadcast without impact to current workflows or required bandwidth.  

LG Broadcast IP Channel: LG Electronics and South Florida PBS are spotlighting their collaboration that launched the first full-time broadcast-IP channel in the U.S. This virtual channel includes channels that are fully featured as over-the-air channels, and it enables broad, early participation by interested stations where market spectrum capacity is challenged.  

E.W. Scripps Company and Sony Electronics: KNTV Las Vegas, an E.W. Scripps Company station, is demonstrating its NEXTGEN TV broadcaster application built on the latest release of the RUN3TV platform on a Sony NEXTGEN TV. The application provides enhanced localized news and information with an easy-to-navigate user interface. This advancement follows other stations across the U.S. that have deployed 50 applications using the platform. The two companies have also created a unique partnership through The Free TV Project, offering discounts on Antennas Direct antennas to consumers who have a Sony NEXTGEN TV. 

Pearl TV adds that NEXTGEN TV’s U.S. market rollout reached key milestone transitions with Boston and Miami in launched in January 2023. As NEXTGEN TV has entered these major metropolitan areas, broadcasters are moving to leverage features such as dual language, advanced emergency alerts, and the ability to expand coverage of hyperlocal news.  

To date this year, five new markets were launched, bringing household reach to 60%, and soon to follow are Philadelphia, Minneapolis, South Bend and Reno. As more markets are being advanced, market penetration of households will reach 75% by year end. 

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