NEXTGEN TV Ecosystem Meets Principal Milestones with Commercial Availability of MediaTek and iWedia's Reference Platform and Key Market Transitions Enabling Service to 75% of American Viewers in 2023

News provided by

Dec 15, 2022, 08:00 ET

MediaTek and iWedia, partners in the 'FastTrack to NEXTGEN TV' program, will release first products in Q1 2023
NEXTGEN TV launches in New Orleans and Dayton in December, next month in Boston and Miami, further increasing market penetration
RUN3TV web platform adoption by broadcasters grows 33% since April 2022 with availability on majority of TV models

WASHINGTON, Dec. 15, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Pearl TV, the coalition of U.S. broadcast companies transitioning to NEXTGEN TV, today announced major milestones in the rollout of NEXTGEN TV to U.S. households and the broader ecosystem of partners that enable the deployment of devices and the broadcaster application platform, RUN3TV. These latest developments focus on consumer and innovation options for electronics manufacturers and further underscore NEXTGEN TV's trajectory to universal availability.

"NEXTGEN TV has enabled television to shed its traditional linear viewing experience so that viewers can lean into the news and entertainment with better engagement. Pearl TV's growing FastTrack program is generating results that will boost household penetration even further, expanding into the low-cost and accessory device market to reach even more viewers," said Pearl TV managing director Anne Schelle.

MediaTek, a partner in the "FastTrack to NEXTGEN TV,'" a program that accelerates and streamlines the path for adoption of NEXTGEN TV technology by consumer electronic makers producing smart TVs and related devices at volume, has moved into commercial production of its TV System on Chip (SoC) ATSC3 demodulators.

A second partner, software maker iWedia, joined the MediaTek and Pearl TV partnership, creating a product that includes MediaTek's latest SoC and iWedia's leading-edge NEXTGEN TV software stack. It will be pre-certified for compliance with the Consumer Technology Association's (CTA) NEXTGEN TV logo requirements, A3SA Security and the RUN3TV Application platform.

Available in Q1 2023, MediaTek and iWedia's total solutions will help to expedite scale among its customers for high-volume, low-cost televisions.

"We are very enthusiastic about the promise of NEXTGEN TV for our customers and being able to help them with an easier, faster and more cost-effective process to introduce NEXTGEN TV-compatible products," said Alfred Chan, vice president, TV Business Unit in the Smart Home Group at MediaTek. "Importantly, consumer electronics manufacturers can feel confident that they are meeting the highest standards around authenticity and security as our platform is certified compliant with the Consumer Technology Association's (CTA) NEXTGEN TV logo requirements."

NEXTGEN TV's U.S. robust market rollout reached key milestone transitions with today's launch in Dayton, and recent expansions into Champaign-Springfield-Decatur, Illinois, Birmingham and Albuquerque. Soon to follow this month is New Orleans, and in January 2023 are additional launches planned in Boston and Miami, all culminating in a 5% NEXTGEN TV market penetration increase by the end of next month. Further, more than a dozen additional markets are in the planning stages to begin their transition to NEXTGEN TV services later in 2023.

NEXTGEN TV, a free, over-the-air (OTA) service, is the first major overhaul to the Advanced Television Systems Committee's standard for receiving OTA signals in 25 years. Consumers can find NEXTGEN TV-enabled televisions from Hisense, Sony, LG Electronics and Samsung at local and national retailers, starting at $599. While features available on NEXTGEN TV will vary by device and broadcaster as commercial service launches in local markets, it is designed to be upgraded, enabling a viewers' television set to advance seamlessly with the latest technology, in addition to sophisticated day-one video and audio features.

NEXTGEN TV delivers:

Stunning 4K, High Dynamic Range (HDR) video
Consistent volume across channels
Added voice clarity with Dolby's Voice +
Movie theater-quality sound
Enhanced internet content on demand
Advanced emergency alerts and information
Expanded and hyperlocal news
Dual language capabilities

Associated with NEXTGEN TV is the RUN3TV web platform that brings interactive experiences and streaming content to over-the-air viewers. Built by broadcasters for broadcasters, RUN3TV's web-based platform architecture enables stations to easily develop, innovate, and differentiate at the application services layer, allowing a consistent viewer experience across all NEXTGEN TV devices. Broadcasters have quickly gravitated to the platform; 40 stations across 21 markets are now using RUN3TV—a 33% increase since April—and have created unique applications, including three PBS stations.

NEXTGEN TV at CES 2023
NEXTGEN TV will be on full display as part of the ATSC booth located at Booth # 17783, Tech East in Central Hall. NEXTGEN TV will showcase its features, including Dolby's audio and accessibility features, Fast Track platform development partner MediaTek and iWedia's solution, upgrade accessory devices and antenna options for consumers and RUN3TV's latest platform innovations. Pearl TV Managing Director Anne Schelle will take the stage as panelist in "NEXTGEN TV Scales to New Heights," on Jan.7 at 10:00 a.m. PT located at LVCC N258. For more details about CES, visit the event program. Media and analysts interested in experiencing NEXTGEN TV may contact [email protected] to reserve a briefing.

Follow NEXTGEN TV CES 2023 highlights on Twitter @WatchNEXTGENTV.

Broadcasters can learn more about RUN3TV at www.run3tv.org.

Consumers can learn more about NEXTGEN TV by visiting www.watchnextgentv.com, which offers a guide to cities already on the air, where signals will soon be rolling out, available television models for research and purchase, and an informative video of the "Johnson Family."

About Pearl TV:
Pearl TV is a business organization of U.S. broadcast companies with a shared interest in exploring forward-looking broadcasting opportunities, including innovative ways of promoting local broadcast TV content and developing digital media and wireless platforms for the broadcast industry. Pearl's membership, comprising more than 820 TV stations, includes eight of the largest broadcast companies in America: Cox Media Group, Graham Media Group, Gray Television, Hearst Television Inc., Nexstar Media Group, Sinclair Broadcast Group, the E.W. Scripps Company, and TEGNA Inc.

SOURCE Pearl TV