LAS VEGAS–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: SBGI) and its subsidiary, ONE Media 3.0, announced the companies will demonstrate key enhancements to the NextGen Broadcast standard (ATSC 3.0) at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). Those elements will serve as the baseline for Sinclair/ONE Media 3.0’s vision of a “mobile-first” offering of video and data services, delivery of significant picture quality improvements and a more efficient merger of broadcast and broadband capabilities.
“The beauty of the NextGen Broadcast standard is its ability to both enhance the content we deliver and do it as flexibly as possible. The hybrid nature of television today means we must make it as easy as possible for viewers to take advantage of our offerings.”
An industry leader in NextGen Broadcast deployment, Sinclair/ONE Media 3.0 is also a vanguard in setting the industry’s standards for innovative services. These demonstrations signal a firm direction for Sinclair and offer the industry a common approach for delivering enhanced services.
Hybrid TV – Broadcast App
Shown at CES will be the latest version of Sinclair’s Broadcast App. Viewers today are agnostic on how they receive TV programs so long as the quality is equivalent between providers. Understanding that broadcast and broadband services can be merged to provide the best of over-the-air and Internet delivered content is a key factor in the new delivery ecosystem. The means to merge over-the-air and over-the-top content on a single device requires a Broadcast App.
Available both over-the-air and via broadband, that menuing technology allows viewers to choose content regardless of how it gets to their screens. Sinclair will demonstrate for the first time the ability to launch the Broadcast App not only from over-the-air NextGen Broadcast (ATSC 3.0) and existing digital TV (ATSC 1.0) transmissions, but also via cable, telco or satellite services through legacy set-top boxes. Now, every consumer who has a NextGen TV can experience the benefits of the Broadcast App regardless of how the broadcast signal is received.
Mark Aitken, President of ONE Media 3.0 said, “The beauty of the NextGen Broadcast standard is its ability to both enhance the content we deliver and do it as flexibly as possible. The hybrid nature of television today means we must make it as easy as possible for viewers to take advantage of our offerings.”
New Mobile Audio Delivery
Also being shown at CES is a fully mobile audio ‘Infotainment’ service that is being readied for consumer trials by several auto dealerships in the Baltimore, MD region. Drive testing is underway and is yet another NextGen Broadcast use case demonstrating the flexible use of broadcast spectrum. A single mobile receiver brings a variety of new services into the age of Connected Vehicles. Those include enhanced GPS, over-the-air software updates, Infotainment (audio, video and others) and a number of vehicle-to-everything (V2X) and cellular vehicle-to-everything (C-V2X) services. A recent series of webinars hosted by Sinclair focused on the automotive sector and the value an ATSC 3.0 receiver brings into mobile vehicles. See: https://www.atsc3advocate.com/.
As Sinclair, working with its valued partners, builds out a new Broadcast Core Network and the internetworking components that make up a first ever Broadcast Data Distribution Platform (a wireless data highway), Broadcasters will find new economics that bring value beyond simple TV.
USSI – Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging
Validating the promise of datacasting as a commercial service for broadcasters, USSI Global is working with Sinclair/ONE Media 3.0 to combine its digital signage and managed services expertise with Sinclair’s NextGen Broadcast capabilities to provide this first-of-its-kind datacasting offering. The USSI Global/Sinclair pilot program will confirm the ability to support EV charging systems with dedicated content in select markets, refine the system design, optimize presentation of content, collect audience data, validate financial assumptions, and uncover unknowns.
A prototype EV charging kiosk will be on display at CES. This datacasting application supports multi-tenant advertising and real-time updates of local content, providing a unique personal experience. This user experience combines local content and advertising with data file distribution to all USSI Global kiosks in a given DMA. Feedback to Sinclair will include audience measurement and impression-based analytics captured through USSI Global.
This datacasting use case will also demonstrate the potential for significant scalability as a growing business. The US Department of Transportation has set a goal of 500,000 EV Charging stations nationwide by 2030. When fully implemented, the goal is for EV owners to be able to find at least one charging port within 50 miles anywhere in the 50 states.
Chris Ripley, Sinclair’s President and CEO, said, “Data Delivery as a Service is the inevitable next step in the evolution of broadcasting, where we can continue to provide exceptional and enhanced video programming and, at the same time, repurpose the remaining capacity of our channels to meet the needs of data users nationwide on market-disrupting terms. Our partnership with USSI Global opens wide the door to an enticing array of new services that enhance the choices for businesses and individuals alike.”
All demonstrations will be available in the Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC) booth at #17783 in the Central Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center.
