The ATSC 3.0 suite of standards will have “future extensibility” to support an upgrade to 8K resolution, ATSC President Mark Richer emailed us Tuesday through a spokesman. ATSC 3.0's H.265 video codec “can be extended to support delivery of 8K video,” Richer said. ATSC 3.0 also “incorporates a number of other mechanisms for future extensibility, including the “flexible boot strap signal” in the standard’s physical layer and the internet protocol layer, he said. “These and other features of 3.0 could be used to signal the presence and parameters of the 8K transmission to new receivers.” ATSC 3.0's framers for years have positioned 8K as “within the realm” of where the standard ultimately would “evolve to” (see 1404080061). As an issue, 8K jumped in importance at CES with the multitude of 8K TV prototypes showcased on the main show floor and analyst projections that 8K product would make it to market soon (see 1701090053).
LAS VEGAS -- Fiber is critical as the IoT emerges and traditional broadband doesn’t offer a big enough pipe, said Magellan Advisors CEO John Honker at the CES broadband conference Wednesday. Honker, whose company advises cities and businesses building out fiber, spoke during a panel organized by the Fiber-to-the-Home Council.
The American TV Alliance, AT&T and Dish Network have “either misunderstood or ignored the very clear message” in the broadcast petition asking the FCC to approve the transition to ATSC 3.0, Sinclair told Media Bureau Chief Bill Lake in a meeting Friday, said an FCC ex parte filing posted Wednesday in docket 16-142. The petition didn't ask the FCC to require multichannel video programming distributors to carry any ATSC 3.0 signals, said Sinclair. Pay-TV transmission equipment and set-top boxes are incapable of carrying ATSC 3.0 signals, it said. “Broadcasters have no interest in delaying implementation of Next Generation TV until MVPDs are technically capable of carrying it,” said Sinclair. “Therefore, broadcasters are prepared to deliver their program streams to MVPDs in the current standard (ATSC 1.0), so as to maintain the operational status quo.” Because FCC approval wouldn't change what MVPDs are carrying, “there should be no change to the underlying carriage arrangement, be it must carry or retransmission consent,” the company said. It isn't in broadcasters' interest to demand carriage of programming streams that MVPDs can't carry, the broadcaster said. “In light of this, we can only conclude that ATVA, AT&T and DISH persist in their ruse to delay implementation of Next Generation TV because they see it as a competitive threat to their service offerings.” The FCC should not “broaden this very narrow, technical rulemaking into a comprehensive inquiry on competitive industry business relationships,” Sinclair said. “Rather, the FCC should limit the NPRM to questions about Next Generation TV technology and its broadcast implementation plan.” ATVA and AT&T didn't comment Wednesday. AT&T and Dish "appear to be seeking to further their own interests by asking the Commission to dictate terms and conditions of future retransmission consent agreements" in the guise of airing their concerns about ATSC 3.0, NAB said in a separate letter. "AT&T is a company with a market capitalization of more than $250 billion. The notion that any local broadcaster could force AT&T to do anything is comical." The pay-TV concern over ATSC 3.0 is "nothing more than an effort to accomplish in this proceeding what they could not accomplish in the Commission’s good faith negotiation proceeding earlier this year," NAB said. "They are asking the Commission to intervene in retransmission consent negotiations for their narrow, self-interested benefit."
NAB for the first time in recent memory published advice on how members can best navigate CES. The Las Vegas show "has a well-deserved reputation as the place to see new technology and engage with those creating that technology,” said a Tuesday blog post from NAB Pilot, the former NAB Labs. Broadcasters’ content is “reaching our audience on an increasing number and variety of devices,” it said. “It is ever more important to witness for ourselves the changes occurring in the consumer technology marketplace.” For “newcomers” to the show, “CES can be completely overwhelming, but advance planning can moderate the madness,” it said. “The best bet is to do some research in advance of the show.” The blog advised against “just diving in and wandering” the show floor, “unless you have vast amounts of time to match the vast amount of floor space covered by the exhibits, as well as the stamina and shoes appropriate for walking on concrete for long distances.” CTA is “excited to welcome NAB executives and their members to CES and appreciate that they have long attended and participated in our show, as we have in the NAB show,” Karen Chupka, senior vice president-CES and corporate business strategy, emailed us Wednesday. “Broadcast and consumer technology executives hold numerous meetings at both shows, and no doubt ATSC 3.0 will be one of the hot topics.” CTA and NAB “have partnered in many areas, celebrating the symbiotic relationship between televised content and receiving devices, jointly promoting digital television, HD radio and more, as well as collaborating to develop key industry standards,” she said. “A number of former CTA employees are now at NAB, and we employ former NAB staff. We’ve enjoyed a close relationship with NAB for a long time, and certainly look forward to continuing this successful partnership.”
BMC Software hires Peter Leav, ex-Polycom, which was bought by Siris Capital (see 1609270041), as president-CEO, succeeding Bob Beauchamp, who remains chairman ... Sinclair promotes John Solomon to chief operating officer-Circa, its newer brand that's mobile-friendly and has video news and entertainment ... Marvell Technology hires Thomas Lagatta, ex-Numecent and onetime Broadcom, as executive vice president-worldwide sales and marketing ... Cubic hires as vice presidents at Cubic Mission Solutions: Jerry Madigan, ex-Aerojet Rocketdyn, for secure communications, and Robert Peabody, ex-Northrop Grumman, systems strategy. ... Petra Industries elevates Jim Loden to vice president of e-commerce sales ... Quantcast sales hires include Brian Murphy, ex-Unified, as vice president-sales/head-East and Central regions ... Newly named to ATSC board for 2017: Paul Hearty, Sony Electronics; Jong Kim, LG Electronics; Peter Sockett, Capitol Broadcasting; Yiyan Wu, Communications Research Centre.
The American Television Alliance isn’t trying to stop ATSC 3.0, the pay-TV group said in a blog post Monday responding to recent criticisms from NAB (see 1612090031). “We have to take the Ronald Reagan approach in this case: ‘Trust but verify.’” ATVA “is working with the FCC to weigh all of the significant factors, because that’s exactly what Americans deserve,” ATVA said. The new standard could lead to fees for consumers for buying new equipment, and “ATSC 3.0 carriage could be leveraged by broadcasters to extract yet even more retrans fees that could be passed on to consumers,” the post said. “Those concerns and the others impacting access and consumer cost burdens should all give us pause,” ATVA said. “We welcome a conversation with the NAB and federal regulators to address the concerns for consumers.”
Much of the recent talk about immersive, object-based audio for next-generation DTV systems like ATSC 3.0 has dwelled on enhanced surround sound to complement pristine Ultra HD pictures. But a somewhat overlooked benefit of immersive broadcast audio will be the opportunity for radio listeners and TV viewers to balance the level of speech against background audio to suit personal taste, the BBC’s technology point man told a London meeting last month of the International Moving Image Society.
The American Television Alliance is trying to make up for failures on the retransmission consent front by attempting to slow down broadcaster efforts (see 1612050048) to get ATSC 3.0 approved, said NAB Associate General Counsel Patrick McFadden in a blog post Friday. ATSC 3.0 will allow broadcasters to offer 4K TV for free, so ATVA's pay-TV members want to keep the FCC from approving the new broadcast standard, McFadden said. “Want to take advantage of your new 4K television? If ATVA can stall approval of Next Gen TV, you won’t have a free over-the-air option for ultra-high-definition programming,” McFadden said. “ATVA’s members will be the only game in town. That ought to keep the checks rolling in!” ATVA's requests for the FCC to issue a notice of inquiry instead of an NPRM are “transparently, embarrassingly anti-consumer,” NAB said. ATVA and ATSC didn't comment.
Efforts by pay-TV group American Television Alliance to get the FCC to commission a study or issue a notice of inquiry on ATSC 3.0 (see 1612050048) are attempts to delay the new standard “as long as possible,” NAB said in docket 16-142 Thursday. “While ATVA plainly has an interest in preventing viewers from receiving a competitive service, the Commission does not.” ATVA's arguments the FCC shouldn't allow broadcasters to use retransmission consent negotiations to encourage adoption of ATSC 3.0 don't raise any “legitimate” concerns, NAB said. If the FCC shares those concerns, they can be addressed through an NPRM rather than an NOI, NAB said. “Despite ATVA’s wishes, there is no reason for the Commission to delay any further.”
E.W. Scripps expects the FCC to “advance” an ATSC 3.0 NPRM in Q1, “setting the stage for early investment and development” of ATSC 3.0 products and services “starting early next year,” Brian Lawlor, senior vice president-broadcast, told a UBS investor conference Tuesday. That Scripps thinks the FCC will issue its ATSC 3.0 NPRM not by year-end but in early 2017 is consistent with a recent forecast from NAB Chief Technology Officer Sam Matheny at the NAB Show New York (see 1611100032). Scripps “remains probably one of the biggest proponents of the opportunities associated with ATSC 3.0,” Lawlor said. “We believe this new standard provides the foundation of a modern consumer experience and also sets the stage for things like targeted advertising and several other new business opportunities.” Lawlor thinks the industry is “in the third or fourth inning” in the progress it’s making on ATSC 3.0, he said in Q&A. “It will be important to watch over the next year or so, sort of, how that continues to march towards its destination of full commercial deployment.”