Appearing today before the Senate Commerce Committee, the FCC chairman spells out his agenda, with the next-gen standard high on his list. He says its ability to leverage the power of the internet “promises to dramatically transform broadcasting.”
Pai Tells Senate Commerce 3.0 Is A Priority
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai went to Capitol Wednesday to testify before the Senate Commerce Committee, one day after being nominated for a full term as head of the agency by President Donald Trump. He spoke to four areas he said he will emphasize, with the proposed next-gen television transmission standard, ATSC 3.0 , included among them. The four focus points are: promoting innovation; closing the digital divide; protecting consumers and public safety; and reforming the FCC’s processes.
Under his “promoting innovation” goal, Pai said he wants to create a regulatory environment in which innovation can thrive. “Under my leadership,” he said, “I want the FCC to facilitate, not frustrate, innovation. That’s why last month, for example, we started a proceeding aimed at allowing television broadcasters to innovate and fully enter the digital era. Engineers in the broadcast industry have been hard at work developing a new transmission standard that would let broadcasters merge the capabilities of over-the-air broadcasting with broadband connectivity. This Next Gen TV standard, also known as ATSC 3.0, is the first one to leverage the power of the internet, and it promises to dramatically transform broadcasting.
“With Next Gen TV, broadcasters could offer innovative technologies and services to consumers, including ultra-HD picture and immersive audio, improved over-the-air reception, and more localized content. This new standard would also enable better accessibility options for those with disabilities. It could enable advanced emergency alerting with alerts tailored to particular communities and wake up sleeping devices to warn consumers of imminent emergencies. And it could give consumers the ability to watch over-the-air programming from their mobile devices. But this new standard can’t be deployed without the approval of the FCC.
“Fortunately, last month, the commission unanimously proposed to allow broadcasters to deploy Next Gen TV on a voluntary, market-driven basis. I hope that we will be able to give final approval for the standard by the end of the year.”
Comments (1)
Ellen Samrock says:
March 8, 2017 at 1:31 pm
If they’re ever going to fit remaining broadcasters into what’s left of the TV band, make VHF usable and solve the “double-build” issue, then, yes, 3.0 is a priority. To paraphrase our president, “Make VHF great again!”