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Later this year, you're going to start hearing more about a new over-the-air TV standard, the first major jump in broadcast TV since the transition to all-digital signals (aka DTV) back in 2009.

Technically called ATSC 3.0, the new broadcast standard is—thankfully—being more generally billed as "Next-Gen Broadcast TV."

There are a few big differences between our current ATSC 1.0 broadcasts and the new ones we'll receive as part of ATSC 3.0. A key one is that the new standard is IP (internet protocol)-based, which means it can carry internet content alongside traditional TV broadcasts. The broadcasts can also include 4K video and high dynamic range (HDR) content—the two biggest selling points in TVs right now.

Currently, none of that is true. If you're watching TV using a broadcast antenna, you can get regular HD shows in real time, but that's it.

Why Do We Need a New Standard?

When our current over-the-air broadcast standard was developed more than two decades ago, few envisioned a world where higher-than-high-def TV signals would become commonplace, and people would expect to get the same content on smartphones and tablets that they did on a TV at home.



ATSC 3.0 is designed to bring over-the-air TV broadcasts into this future. It's being developed by the Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC), the same international group of broadcasters, TV manufacturers, and other tech companies that established the HDTV standards in force today.

A major impetus for a new over-the-air standard is to help local broadcasters offer new services, such as video on demand, as well as more targeted ad campaigns to advertisers.

But this change should also bring some clear benefits to consumers.

What's in It for You?

Let's start with 4K.

Right now, you can't get 4K video via over-the-air broadcasts. That will change with ATSC 3.0 because the new standard uses a more efficient video format, called HEVC or H.265, the same one used by streaming services such as Netflix. That will allow broadcasters to send data-heavy 4K video over the airwaves, along with other picture enhancements, such as HDR, which yields brighter images with greater contrast and highlights and richer, more saturated colors.

You'll also be able to get higher-quality "immersive" audio—so-called 3D multichannel sound—from content that supports it.

And because the new signals follow the internet protocol, they'll support movie and TV show metadata, so you can get plot summaries, poster thumbnails, and actor bios, just like you do with online streaming services.

In addition, ATSC president Mark Richer says, the ATSC 3.0 signals will be "more reliable" than current over-air broadcasts, "which were designed 25 years ago for living-room viewing with an outdoor antenna." Reception should beat what you get with the current system, even if you're using a less powerful indoor antenna.

ATSC 3.0 has been designed from the ground up to support mobile uses, so you'll be able to receive signals on smartphones, tablets, and other portable devices, even deep inside buildings, or in cars speeding along streets and highways.

And, Richer says, next-gen TV is compatible with so-called single-frequency network systems, which work like cell-phone networks. Without getting into the technical details, that means they can be used to fill in coverage in urban areas or hilly regions where interference and obstructions make traditional broadcast reception spotty.

Last, next-gen TV will enable enhanced emergency alerts, so consumers will receive more precise, localized warnings during natural disasters or fast-moving weather events.

When Will It Happen?

There's no definite timetable, says Myra Moore, president of Dallas-based market research firm Digital Tech Consulting (DTC), but she expects ATSC 3.0 to be "rolled out over the course of several years."

The move to ATSC 3.0 is voluntary for broadcasters. That wasn't the case with the DTV transition, when they were given a firm deadline for stopping analog broadcasts. This time around, each company gets to decide when to make the move—or not.

The ATSC is still finalizing some elements of the new standard. The FCC, which is overseeing the effort, has said it wants to be ready to authorize the rollout by the end of the year.

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