Sinclair Broadcast signed a memo of understanding with Hyundai Mobis to develop and implement ATSC 3.0-enabled automotive business models in Korea and the U.S. The collaboration expands Sinclair’s coordination with the Korean market and the commitment to bring mobile services to the U.S., they said. Joint efforts will include geotargeting capabilities, enhanced GPS, software updates, in-vehicle entertainment, real-time emergency information and other public services, the companies said. Separately, Sinclair will demonstrate in the coming months an integrated automotive entertainment platform including music, talk radio and local television at a local Hyundai dealership in Baltimore, delivered through ATSC 3.0-enabled spectrum from local broadcast station WNUV-TV, it said.

Six Honolulu TV stations began broadcasting with NextGen TV, said Nexstar and BitPath Tuesday. KHII-TV, owned by Nexstar, converted to ATSC 3.0 transmissions and is broadcasting its own programming in NextGen TV, plus that of the other participating stations: KITV (ABC), KGMB (CBS), KHON-TV (Fox), KHNL (NBC) and KIKU (Independent), they said.

Seven TV stations in Kansas' Wichita-Hutchinson market began broadcasting with NextGen TV this week, they said Wednesday. KAKE Wichita (ABC), KWCH-DT Hutchinson (CBS), KSAS-TV Wichita (Fox), KSNW Wichita (NBC), KPTS Hutchinson (PBS), KSCW-DT Wichita (CW) and KMTW Hutchinson (DABL) launched following a decade of development and months of planning by the local stations, they said. KSCW-DT, owned by Gray Television, and KMTW, owned by Mercury Broadcasting, have converted to ATSC 3.0 transmissions and are broadcasting their own programming, plus that of the other participating stations.

As the broadcast industry moves toward widespread ATSC 3.0 deployment, broadcasters need to ensure consumers unable to afford new TV sets aren't left behind, FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks said Wednesday at the University of Pennsylvania Center for Technology, Innovation and Competition, per prepared remarks. "Are there low-cost converters or dongles that the consumer electronics industry can develop? Can they be distributed at community events that broadcasters frequently host or participate in?" he asked. The transition has gone on without the widespread government involvement that characterized the digital transition, "which is to be applauded," Starks said, but there might be a role for the FCC as it had in developing a congressionally mandated digital transition equipment subsidy program "or using our role as the regulator of television equipment." He said the collection of data about individual viewers that ATSC 3.0 would enable, while it's promising in the way it would better help broadcasters compete for advertising dollars, also raises privacy concerns. He said more clarity is needed about what data broadcasters plan to collect and how they will use it. Broadcasters just want "a level playing field" and privacy rules no different from other industries, said Pearl TV Managing Director Anne Schelle during a panel at the NAB Show in New York. ATSC 3.0 broadcasters will use tracking data to provide public services such as enhanced emergency information, said E.W. Scripps Vice President-Strategy and Business Development Kerry Oslund. "Some people who talk about that same data may also think about it from an advertising perspective," Oslund said. Scripps is built on "140 years of trust, and we're not going to throw it away by abusing that trust by reaching too far into the data quagmire," Oslund said.

Pearl TV developed the FastTrack program to accelerate development and retail availability of low-cost upgrade accessory receivers for NextGen TV, it said at NAB Show New York Tuesday. The goal is to create a “diverse market of accessories” that will help bring NextGen TV features to 91% of households, Pearl TV said. Noting the ATSC standard “is not backward compatible,” Pearl TV Managing Director Anne Schelle said, “This program helps solve that." The streamlined process enabled by the FastTrack program will allow for lower accessory price points, “making it more affordable and easier" for consumers to experience NextGen TV "even without an enabled television,” Schelle said. Some viewers with TVs bought before 2020 “have yet to enjoy the rich features of the standard,” said Rob Folliard, senior vice president-government relations and distribution, Grey Television. "Device makers can now address this issue with full support and guidance to manufacture and market compatible products that consumers need and want to enjoy over-the-air television service for free,” Folliard said. The program supports manufacturers interested in making devices that support the full NextGen TV feature set, including enhanced video, audio and interactive features, Pearl said. Device requirements will be updated continuously to help manufacturers as NextGen TV evolves, it said. NextGen TV is broadcasting in more than 50 markets, reaching 55% of U.S. households. It's expected to reach 75% of households by the end of 2023; by 2024, Pearl expects over 75% of all TVs sold to be dual HDTV/NextGen TV models. Having an affordable alternative to buying a new NextGen TV receiver without a built-in display "is essential to meet the portion of the potential viewing audience that does not have television sets that support the standard," Pearl said.

Broadcasters need flexibility in hosting arrangements for their ATSC 1.0 multicast channels to preserve service during the ATSC 3.0 transition, said NAB, Fox, NBCUniversal and Paramount in a call with FCC Media Bureau staff Thursday, according to an ex parte filing posted in docket 16-142 Tuesday. The broadcasters and content companies emphasized the need for the agency to allow “lateral hosting,” where a station broadcasting in 1.0 hosts some multicast channels on another 1.0 station in the market during a transition to 3.0. An FCC proposal to clarify 3.0 multicasting rules didn’t include provisions for lateral hosting, but such arrangements would be vital for launching the new standard in the New York market, the filing said. “While such arrangements are unlikely to be any broadcaster’s first choice, broadcasters engaged in channel mapping and planning for market launches have emphasized that lateral hosting will likely be essential in some markets,” the filing said. Permitting lateral hosting won’t make things more difficult for viewers, and broadcasters would use the arrangement sparingly because of its complexity, the filing said. “Absent a specific and concrete reason to believe there is an urgent countervailing public interest consideration, the Commission’s approach with respect to the ATSC 3.0 transition should be to provide broadcasters with as much flexibility as possible,” the filing said.

LG is using this week’s CEDIA Expo in Dallas to unveil new additions to its OLED TV lineup, including the world’s largest OLED set, a 97-inch model called the G2 OLED evo Gallery Edition TV, said the company Thursday. LG believes the product to be the world’s largest TV with an embedded ATSC 3.0 tuner, it said. It’s available now at LG.com and at select authorized retailers for a suggested list of $24,999.

Xperi launched Vewd OpX for Android TV Operator Tier at IBC Friday, saying Evoca deployed the tech for the delivery of its NextGenTV service, becoming the first Android TV Operator Tier launcher on an ATSC 3.0 platform. Vewd OpX, a cloud-managed operator-grade set-top box that integrates Pay-TV services with over-the-top video content, continues to be available for global operators and hybrid TV applications using European broadcast standards such as HbbTV, Xperi said. Evoca can offer fully managed NextGen TV, including ATSC 3.0 broadcast and broadband channels, OTT services and apps, VOD content and cloud recording services, Xperi said; it can also use Xperi tools to remotely configure its STBs in the field and deliver software updates to deployed devices. Vewd OpX fulfills Google’s requirements for the Android TV Operator Tier, enabling “easy content discovery and consumption across broadcast and OTT channels, apps, games and more” using Evoca’s new Pilot receiver, said Mitch Weinraub, Evoca’s vice president-product management. Vewd OpX is based on a set of user modules including Home Screen, Live TV, Guide, First Time Installation, and Settings, Xperi said. Operators can tailor the Vewd OpX framework to create a specific experience, including branding, configuration, custom views and special integrations.

The FCC should continue to monitor licensing and patent issues around ATSC 3.0 “to ensure patentees’ adherence to the requirement that patentees make declared essential patents licensable and available" on reasonable and nondiscriminatory terms said the Alliance for Automotive Innovation in comments posted Thursday in docket 16-142. “These terms should include licensing such patents to all interested implementers, regardless of location in the supply chain, at a royalty based on the value of the smallest saleable unit and without the threat of injunctive relief,” the filing said. The FCC should consider issuing requests for information on licensing practices to the MPEG LA patent pool on 3.0 and individual 3.0 patent holders, the filing said. Several commenters in the 3.0 proceeding urged the commission to steer clear of regulating 3.0 patent issues, with a few expressing doubt that the FCC has the regulatory authority to do so.

Rohde & Schwartz endorses Qualcomm’s proposal that the FCC seek comment in the same proceeding as ATSC 3.0 for deploying the 5G Broadcast standard for over-the-air TV content delivery to mobile devices (see 2208080065), said the broadcast equipment vendor in reply comments Tuesday in docket 16-142. Adding 5G Broadcast support to “existing and upcoming” smartphones and tablets “is just a matter of software and middleware adjustment and upgrades,” said R&S. “In other terms, there will be no need for additional silicon or any hardware changes within the same mobile devices,” it said. “Based on its flexible design, 5G Broadcast can be implemented hand-in-hand with ATSC 3.0 within the same 6 MHz channel.”