The new solution offers a collaborative toolset for digital-first news production and distribution across every platform, with a 360 storytelling experience.

NextGen TV, the evolution of broadcast TV powered by the ATSC 3.0 standard, will have wide-ranging impacts on how TV is delivered and viewed by consumers, but according to John Lawson, executive director of the AWARN Alliance, perhaps no broadcast element has a bigger upside with NextGen TV than weather.

Pearl TV and its Phoenix Model Market Partners are rolling out a multimillion dollar, multimarket consumer awareness campaign with local broadcasters who are now transmitting in NextGen TV.

New jobs posted to TVNewsCheck’s Media Job Center include openings for an implementation specialist for TV to work remotely for vCreative, which specializes in production workflow software for radio and TV.

New jobs posted to TVNewsCheck’s Media Job Center include openings for a Senior Director of Sales, a Product Marketing Manager, and a Tech Writer to work remotely for innovative software provider Bitcentral.

A little over a year ago, TiVo, one of the bigger technology brands in the video business, announced plans to separate its products business from its more litigious intellectual property operation. But very suddenly, former CEO Dan Shull pivoted, leading the company into a $3 billion merger with Xperi, a technology better known for things like car audio. Jon Kirchner, the executive leading the combined company talks about the synergies and the plan behind the corporate marriage.

Leaders from ABC News, Hearst and Tegna will explore how 2020’s onslaught of crucial stories has tested their agility and impacted the technology and workflows they use at TVNewsCheck’s virtual NewsTECHForum event in December. Register here.

In largely prerecorded sessions, SMPTE’s annual conference this week has drawn about 1,300 attendees and had a focus on esports. Using the cloud for everyday production was another emphasis. Above, the Virtual Tour of Flanders esports event, produced by race organizer Flanders Classics, cycling simulator firm Bkool, cloud production vendor Kiswe and VRT’s sports channel Sporza, featured 13 professional riders racing a simulated course on stationary “roller” setups at home.

TVNewsCheck’s annual news and technology conference, presented virtually this year, will feature sessions exploring pivoting the newsroom to crisis and remote production’s rapid evolution and will spotlight extraordinary work in news storytelling and social media engagement. Register here.

CBS Sports’ production team took home the Sports Emmy for Outstanding Live Sports Special for last year’s coverage of the Masters golf tournament. This weekend, the team will get a chance for a repeat with what is typically the first major of the season but was rescheduled due to the coronavirus pandemic. “To coin a phrase,” says CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus, “this is going to be a Masters unlike any other. The course is going to look different. It’s going to feel different. And there are going to be no patrons, so it gives us an opportunity maybe for some new and different camera angles. We’re excited about that.”

Signaling another level of consolidation for the cable industry, its two biggest engineering trade groups are on the path to merging. SCTE-ISBE and CableLabs have signed a letter of intent and appear well on the way to combining forces by Dec. 10.

A pair of TV station GMs will join the head of news services for Gray Media Group and two technology experts to examine how local TV news organizations are contending with growing demand for local news in an increasingly competitive media ecosystem. Set for Dec. 3 at 1 p.m. ET, the webinar will feature speakers (clockwise from left): Bob Ellis, VP-GM, WJXT-WCWJ Jacksonville, Fla.; Lew Leone, SVP-GM, WNYW-WWOR New York; James Finch, director of news services at Gray Television; Craig Wilson, product evangelist for broadcast and media enterprise at Avid; moderator Glen Dickson, contributing editor, TVNewsCheck; and Paul Adrian, CEO and co-founder of Latakoo. Register here. 

Apple has unwrapped a new MacBook Air, 13-inch MacBook Pro and Mac mini, its first products using the M1, the computer makers’ first chip designed specifically for the Mac. With Tuesday’s news, some in the production community were encouraged by the potential of the new tech for many content creators.

NBC Nightly News returned home Monday, Nov. 9, after more than six months of anchoring remotely and from alternate setups — and introduced new on-set video wall graphics and a new approach to blocking the show that follows its Decision 2020 editions from Studio 1A.

Slingbox has reached its endpoint, with Sling Media announcing that all Slingbox products and services were discontinued on Nov. 9, and will permanently be taken offline on Nov. 9, 2022. Sling Media, a subsidiary of Dish, said the decision is being made to “make room for new innovative products so that we can continue to serve our customers in the best way possible.” This will not include any new Slingbox products.

A 35-year broadcast industry veteran, Mack has taken on roles of increasing responsibility over his 30 years at Harris Corp. and GatesAir. In his new role, he will oversee all global sales activity.