ATSC 3.0 Offers ‘Significant Advances’ in Broadcast Audio, Video, Dolby Tells FCC
Dolby Labs has been a “major participant” in the work of the ATSC and backs the petition for rulemaking asking the FCC to authorize ATSC 3.0's physical layer and allow broadcasters to begin using the new broadcast standard (see 1604130065), the company commented Thursday in commission docket 16-142. Through Friday’s midday postings, no CE companies were among the three dozen parties to file comments, most of which were highly supportive of the petition. The exceptions were comments from pay TV, consumer groups and low-power TV interests saying the petition doesn’t take their concerns fully into account (see 1605270054).
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Consumers and broadcasters in North America “will benefit from the significant advances” that Dolby AC-4 will provide in ATSC 3.0's audio codec, said Dolby in comments signed by Chief Technology Officer Craig Todd. ATSC “likely” will recommend adoption of AC-4 as ATSC 3.0's audio codec for North America, but that recommendation won’t be baked into the ATSC 3.0 standard until year-end, ATSC President Mark Richer told us at the NAB Show (see 1604180080).
AC-4 has the ability to deliver “immersive” audio that “can surround the listener, not only in the horizontal plane but also overhead,” Todd told the commission. “This amazing sound experience can even be enjoyed on a single ‘soundbar’ placed only in front of the viewer underneath the television screen; such products are already in market.” AC-4 also enables broadcasters “to leverage simultaneous use of both the broadcast and broadband transmission paths” available under ATSC 3.0 “to combine or replace audio program components for further efficiency gains when targeting a specific portion of their audience and/or where offering consumers more choice is desired,” Todd said. He offered the example of “broadband delivery of additional languages, descriptions and/or live sports announcers.”
Compared with the existing ATSC 1.0 standard, specs for which were based on now-outdated CRT displays, ATSC 3.0 video “represents another substantial advance in video technology,” Todd told the commission. Though specs on the subject aren't finalized, “we anticipate ATSC 3.0 will offer a video signal with capability to provide substantially higher dynamic range and a wider range of colors, compared to current technology,” he said.
HDR “will allow the creation and reproduction of pictures with generally brighter objects (especially in outdoor scenes), with highlights (specular reflections and emissive light sources) nearly 100 times brighter,” Todd said. HDR also will enable “deeper and more consistent black levels, along with improved detail in the dark portions of the image,” he said. “More lifelike and engaging pictures are now possible.” Industry and consumer reaction to HDR “has been overwhelmingly positive and this feature of ATSC 3.0 should help drive rapid adoption by consumers,” he said. Todd didn’t specifically mention Dolby Vision, one of six HDR proposals under consideration at ATSC’s S34-1 ad hoc group on ATSC 3.0 video (see 1605200031). S34-1 said it expects to pick an HDR winner by July 31, when the candidate standard period on ATSC 3.0 video is scheduled to expire (see 1605100047).