Major Broadcasters Launch NEXTGEN TV On Five Local Television Stations In Oklahoma City, OK

OKLAHOMA CITY, Oct. 8, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Five leading local television stations in Oklahoma City, OK, including KOCO-TV (ABC), KFOR-TV (NBC), KOKH-TV (Fox), KOCB (CW) and KAUT (IND), today became among the first in the nation to begin broadcasting with NEXTGEN TV, a revolutionary new digital broadcast technology. Based on the same fundamental technology as the Internet, digital applications, and other web services, NEXTGEN TV can support a wide range of features currently in development, such as immersive audio and video (up to 4K), broadcasting to mobile devices, personalized viewing tools, and advanced emergency alerts providing rich media instead of simple text messages. NEXTGEN TV also allows full integration with 5G and other broadband-delivered Internet content.

Powered by ATSC 3.0, NEXTGEN TV is the most significant broadcast technology upgrade ever. Today's launch in Oklahoma City is one of the first in the country for NEXTGEN TV and follows a decade of development of the new technology and months of planning and preparation by the local stations. BitPath, which is developing new data broadcasting services, led the planning process and coordinated efforts across the five television stations.

The participating stations have cooperated to ensure that current programming remains available to all viewers, regardless of whether their television service is provided over-the air or by a cable or satellite company. Antenna viewers can simply rescan their TV sets to ensure full service.  Rescan instructions are available at: fcc.gov/rescan. Cable and satellite subscribers do not need to take any action.

"KOCO-TV and Hearst Television are excited to be among the first in the country to launch NEXTGEN TV, providing the viewers in Oklahoma the most innovative television viewing experience available," said Brent Hensley, KOCO-TV President and General Manager.

"Nexstar is extremely pleased to be rolling out NEXTGEN TV in yet another one of our markets," said Brett Jenkins, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer for Nexstar Media, owner of KFOR-TV and KAUT. "Today's roll-out continues the momentum established during the last several months and is a clear demonstration that the deployment process is getting more and more efficient.  We are excited to begin delivering an enhanced visual and audio experience for our viewers and to begin exploring new Internet-based products and services for our advertising and marketing clients in Oklahoma City."

Mark Aitken, Senior Vice President of Advanced Technology for Sinclair Broadcast Group, owner of KOKH-TV and KOCB, said, "Settled by courageous pioneers, Oklahoma City is rightly proud of its traditions as an innovation leader.  We are excited to usher in the latest revolution in broadcast technology to the Big Friendly, bringing our viewers an unparalleled new TV experience."

John Hane, President of BitPath, said, "Oklahoma City marks the seventh launch of ATSC 3.0 for BitPath this year and our second launch on the important I-35 corridor. We congratulate Nexstar, Sinclair and Hearst on their tireless efforts to keep the rollout of ATSC 3.0 on track in this challenging year. Four of the stations launching today - KFOR-TV, KOKH-TV, KOCB and KAUT - will be charter members of BitPath's broadcast data network. These leading stations will bring new coverage to BitPath's network and exciting new wireless data broadcasting services to Oklahoma City." 

About KOCO-TV - Hearst

KOCO 5, a Hearst Television station, is Oklahoma City's home for Live, Local, Late Breaking news and First Alert Weather coverage. In 2020, KOCO 5 First Alert Weather was independently certified as the Most Accurate Forecast by WeatheRate for the eighth year in a row.  In 2019 KOCO was honored with the Community Service Award from the Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters.  In 2018, KOCO 5 News was honored with Best In Show, Best Evening Newscast, Best Morning Newscast and Best Weathercast by the Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters and won the 2018 Emmy Award for Team Coverage. The station's web address is www.koco.com.

About KFOR-TV and KAUT – Nexstar

KFOR-TV and KAUT are leading television stations in Oklahoma City, owned and operated by Nexstar Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ: NXST).  Nexstar is the nation's largest operator of local television stations and a leading diversified media company that leverages localism to bring new services and value to consumers and advertisers through its broadcasting, digital and mobile media platforms. KFOR-TV is affiliated with the NBC network and KAUT is an Independent station.

About KOKH-TV and KOCB - Sinclair

KOKH-TV and KOCB are leading Oklahoma City television stations owned and operated by Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: SBGI), a diversified media company and leading provider of local sports and news. KOKH-TV is affiliated with the Fox network and KOCB is affiliated with the CW network. Sinclair owns and/or operates 23 regional sports network brands; owns, operates and/or provides services to 190 television stations in 88 markets; is a leading local news provider in the country; owns multiple national networks; and has TV stations affiliated with all the major broadcast networks. For more information, please visit https://okcfox.com/, http://cwokc.com/, and sbgi.net.

SOURCE BitPath