In recent years, during the move to IP in broadcast production, broadcasters have predominately focused on video transport due to it requiring so much bandwidth. However, audio also presents challenges. Compared to video, not only does audio involve a substantially greater number of flows, but it also uses a diverse number of standards in production.

Stations and broadcast networks alike are heavily turning to IP contribution to cover the presidential primaries this year as past contention problems have largely dissipated and cellular networks greatly improved. For some, however, dedicated fiber and satellite trucks will still play a key role.

Nexstar CEO and President Perry Sook says leagues like the NBA may turn to broadcasters for their over-the-air advantage amid underperforming cable ratings, and that NextGen TV is the greatest tool a TV group can use “to control its destiny.” And he’s bullish about Nexstar’s biggest competitive advantage — its local news and sales forces.

The AV-over-IP stack is a growing function of broadcast technology that can’t be overlooked or ignored when it comes to management, observability, quality of signals and security.

The standard has been approved, testing is ongoing and new TV sets with support for NextGen TV (aka ATSC 3.0) debuted at CES2020 earlier this month. Now comes the hard part — marketing it. That was among the chief topics at SMPTE’s NextGen TV Summit hosted by WETA Washington last week.

Chandar Muthukrishnan: From small-time studios to international broadcasters, everyone in the Media & Entertainment industry is rethinking their technology choices and weighing their options. Here are the top five tech trends likely to have a major impact in 2020.

Last month, NBCUniversal Owned Television Stations unveiled a complete revamp of its digital platforms with a home-grown new CMS and a fresh UX for all screens. As its architects explain, the results dramatically streamline workflow for newsrooms and give consumers and advertisers a richer experience.

New jobs posted to TVNewsCheck’s Media Job Center include a local sales manager opening for KWES in Odessa-Midland, Texas (DMA 145), and a chief engineer for KIMT, the CBS affiliate in Rochester, Minn. (DMA 150).

When CBS Sports closes out its NFL season with Sunday’s Tennessee Titans–Kansas City Chiefs AFC Championship matchup, it will mark the conclusion of one the network’s most technologically innovative campaigns. From the addition of Field Eye (Line-to-Gain camera technology) to an increase in high-speed cameras to more live aerial shots, the CBS Sports team has significantly boosted its NFL production complement this year and will lift equipment levels even higher for its largest production of the year on Sunday in Kansas City.

News crews are always in a hurry, trying to be the first with a liveshot from the latest breaking story. Two critical pieces of gear that facilitate speed of deployment are tripods and battery packs and manufacturers are making pods and power supplies that offer new, innovative tools for news shooters.

Broadcasters must deal with a host of complexities in delivering consistent video quality to their OTT viewers. Vendors are trying to help — and cut monitoring costs — with a range of technologies including monitoring by exception, real-time distribution alerts and using machine learning.

Trends that will shape the industry include the ratcheting up of OTT streaming services, shuffled alliances between content companies, downsizing and consolidation among technology vendors, and ongoing adoption of IP, AI, advanced advertising and NextGen TV.

An incident response simulation focused on a period of heightened risk will open TVNewsCheck’s Cybersecurity for Broadcasters Retreat on Feb. 12 in Orlando.

The FCC announced that Scripps Broadcasting has agreed to a $1.13 million settlement to resolve violations of tower lighting monitoring rules. What makes this case especially interesting is that the party who is paying the fine and instituting a years-long compliance plan wasn’t even the party responsible for the wrongdoing.

Yvette Kanouff, a pioneer in video and digital services, will receive the NATAS Lifetime Achievement Award. The awards will be presented at a gala as part of the 2020 NAB Show.

Antennas Direct said it acquired Mohu to become the largest antenna company in the U.S. at a time when more consumers are cutting the cable TV cord.

The new Cast.era joint venture plans to provide NextGen TV solutions for the television industry rollout, starting with Sinclair stations this year. It will focus on three main business areas: cloud infrastructure for broadcasting, ultra-low latency OTT broadcasting and personalized advertising.