FCC Proposes Rules For 3.0 Adoption

With some reservations, mostly from Commissioner Mignon Clyburn, the FCC today proposed rules that would authorize broadcasters to use the Next Gen TV standard — actually a second-generation digital standard also known as ATSC 3.0 — that many believe will enable them to offer TV with better pictures and sound enhancement and new services like datacasting and targeted advertising.

The rulemaking was prompted by a petition last April from the NAB, America’s Public Television Stations and the Communications Technology Association.

The proposed rules would make use of the standard voluntary and would not mandate that TV sets or mobile phones be able to receive the new signals.

Because of its light regulatory touch, most believe that the rulemaking will proceed smoothly through a round of comments this year and that that FCC will vote to authorize the standard by year’s end.

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai already declared himself a supporter of Next Gen TV in Congressional testimony last year and when he released the draft of the rulemaking last month.

“In the digital age, television broadcasting is capable of doing more, so much more,” Pai said at today’s meeting.

“Indeed, the ATSC 3.0 standard appears to have enormous potential. It’s the first transmission standard to marry the advantages of broadcasting with the internet and it’s based on internet protocol…that will permit seamless integration with other IP services and platforms.”

Clyburn declared herself “excited by the prospects” of the new standard and said that she was aware of its promise, particularly its ability to deliver more channels. It could help, she said, “to fulfill our goal of greater viewpoint diversity.”

However, she expressed concerns about the possible negative impact on MVPDs as well as broadcasters who choose not to adopt the standard and consumers.

Unlike the broadcasters’ transition from analog and digital in 2009, she said, the government will not subsidize the upgrade of TV sets to receive the Next Gen TV signals.

“This means complete assurances must be in place, so that consumers will not be burdened with unwanted, unexpected costs…. Consumer education simply has to be a critical component of this transition.”

The rulemaking proposes that Next Gen broadcasters continue to air programming on a separate channel in the current digital ATSC 1.0 format for consumers who choose not to buy Next Gen sets.

Will they be able to watch in high definition? Clyburn asked. And what about all the diginets that stations have begun airing over the past several years. “Will they continue to be simulcast in 1.0? I also have concerns about the possibility of the assessment of fees, on a service that is accessed, through the use of the public airwaves. Will consumers without Internet access be at a disadvantage when it comes to this technology?”

The petitioners for the rulemaking were, of course, pleased with the FCC action.

“With support from television manufacturers, public TV stations and the public safety community, NAB looks forward to Next Gen TV’s giant leap into broadcasting’s bright future,” said NAB spokesman Dennis Wharton.

Patrick Butler, president of APTS, commended Pai for making the standard a priority. “We look forward to working with the Commissioners and staff to complete this process as quickly as possible and begin writing an exciting new chapter in the history of broadcasting.”

Jerry Fritz, EVP of One Media, one of the developers of the ATSC 3.0 technology and one of the companies that hopes to exploit its capabilities, said he was delighted by the action. “The opportunities opened are immense, and we’d like to begin providing these enhanced services to our viewers as quickly as possible. The convergence of Next Gen deployment and the broadcast station repack marks both a practical and strategic relaunch of the broadcast business model.”