Ridgefield Park, N.J., September 29, 2015 – On September 28, the Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC) approved the ATSC 3.0 physical layer Candidate Standard, which includes many cutting-edge technologies proposed by Samsung Electronics and ONE Media. After a four-week ballot by ATSC member companies, the standard-setting organization elevated the specification to become the “A/322 Physical Layer Candidate Standard.” The Candidate Standard will undergo prototype testing through April 4, 2016, at which time it can be considered for adoption as a full standard.
ATSC 3.0 is the next-generation terrestrial television broadcasting system, which will be the world’s first all-Internet Protocol broadcast TV system. It is intended for use in the United States, South Korea, Canada, Mexico, and any other countries that choose to adopt it. It is being developed in multiple parts. The newly approved physical layer contains essential components, such as modulation and forward error correction (FEC). Two important components that Samsung proposed are low-density parity-check (LDPC), a cutting-edge FEC technology which makes it possible to reduce the amount of redundancy bits, thus increasing the system’s spectral efficiency; and non-uniform constellation (NUC), a key component for generating the modulated symbols and optimizing the transmission capacity for all reception conditions. Both LDPC and NUC will strengthen ATSC 3.0’s ability to deliver Ultra High Definition (UHD) and High Dynamic Range (HDR) programming as well as other new broadcast services.
This success follows upon Samsung’s and ONE Media’s leadership in developing the first component of ATSC 3.0 to be elevated to candidate standard – A/321 (the so-called “Bootstrap” system) to enable flexibility and evolution of ATSC 3.0, which was approved in May 2015. Samsung has been closely cooperating on ATSC 3.0-related activities with a significant number of local broadcasters, including ONE Media’s joint venture partner, Sinclair Broadcast Group, and Pearl TV, a consortium of nine of the largest television groups in the country. Samsung, Pearl TV and Sinclair are parties to a unique memorandum of understanding signed in July, 2015, to exploit the promises of the next generation broadcast platform. With the new physical layer Candidate Standard approval, the organizations are planning to strengthen their cooperation on technical initiatives as well as pre-commercial market development initiatives.
In fact, Samsung closely worked with ONE Media, Sinclair, and Pearl on the technical elements of the new physical layer candidate standard, in particular the orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) frame architecture. This collaboration greatly contributed to and hastened the completion of the candidate standard.
ChangYeong Kim, Executive Vice President of the Samsung Digital Media & Communications Research & Development Center, said, “This approval is a big step for ATSC 3.0-related industries. Samsung, as the leading global television manufacturer, is moving next generation broadcasting services forward, not only in the U.S. but also in the Korean market, with our partners.”
Anne Schelle, Managing Director of Pearl, said, “ATSC 3.0 becomes the first TV broadcast standard in the world to deploy Internet Protocol technology as an essential ingredient. A terrestrial IP network matched with improved transmission capabilities will enhance the television experience at home with stunning UHD broadcasting, vivid high dynamic range, tailored programming and new services, and robust mobility for on-the-go viewers. We fully support the move to ATSC 3.0 that begins with the adoption of the physical layer as a Candidate Standard.”
Mark Aitken, Vice President of Advanced Technology for Sinclair Broadcast Group, said, “ATSC 3.0’s adoption of OFDM and cutting-edge enhancements in the physical layer such as NUC, combined with the flexibility and extensibility afforded by the previously approved Bootstrap system, means broadcasters are at the forefront of delivering local content, advertising, and other services that our viewers and partners demand.”
Kevin Gage, ONE Media’s Executive Vice President for Strategic Development and CTO, added, “Samsung’s leadership and vision enables broadcasters in Korea and the U.S. to look forward to a game changing next generation broadcast platform for decades to come.”
About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. inspires the world and shapes the future with transformative ideas and technologies, redefining the worlds of TVs, smartphones, wearable devices, tablets, cameras, digital appliances, printers, medical equipment, network systems, and semiconductor and LED solutions. We are also leading in the Internet of Things space through, among others, our Smart Home and Digital Health initiatives. We employ 307,000 people across 84 countries with annual sales of US $196 billion. To discover more, please visit our official website at www.samsung.com and our official blog at global.samsungtomorrow.com
Pearl Mobile DTV Company, LLC
Pearl TV is a partnership 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. Its membership, comprising 170 network-affiliated TV stations, consists of nine of the largest broadcast companies in America including: Cox Media Group, the E.W. Scripps Company, TEGNA Inc., Graham Media Group, Hearst Television Inc., Media General Inc., Meredith Local Media Group, Schurz Communications and Raycom Media. Together, the Pearl TV companies reach 111 million households representing 63% of the U.S. population and serve 43 of the top 50 U.S. markets. Pearl TV is directly involved in the process to adopt and implement the next generation broadcast television transmission standard in the U.S. Please visit www.pearltv.com.
Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc.
Sinclair is the largest and one of the most diversified television broadcasting companies in the country with 164 television stations in 79 markets, and with affiliations with all major networks. Sinclair is a leading advocate for the adoption of the Next Generation Broadcast Television transmission standard in the United States and is working with its joint venture partner, ONE Media, and broadcasters to define cutting-edge broadcast technologies. Sinclair is headquartered in Hunt Valley, Maryland. Sinclair regularly uses its website as a key source of company information which can be accessed at www.sbgi.net.
ONE Media, LLC
ONE Media was established as a joint investment between Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: SBGI) and Coherent Logix with a vision to build the “Next Generation Broadcast Platform,” enabling broadcasting to be competitive across all platforms. To learn more about ONE Media and the developments occurring in the development of the Next Generation Broadcast Platform go to www.onemediallc.com.
Media Contacts:
Samsung: Megan Pollock m.pollock@sea.samsung.com, (202) 379-6802
Pearl TV: Dave Arland, dave@arlandcom.com, (317) 701-0084
Sinclair Broadcast Group: Mark Aitken, maitken@sbgtv.com, (410) 568-1535
ONE Media: Jerald Fritz, jnfritz@onemediallc.com, (703) 236-9229