Across 2022, “lighthouse” television stations in market after market have converted to ATSC 3.0, the new digital broadcast standard for the U.S. that promises brighter pictures, bolder sound and new revenue opportunities for the TV station owner that range from programmatic personalization of advertising to Broadcast Internet.
Yet, despite all the hubbub over ATSC 3.0 and NEXTGEN TV, consumer awareness is arguably scant. Major markets have yet to see NEXTGEN TV’s arrival, with its rollout bringing it to Wichita and Winston-Salem before New Orleans or even New York.
Once every U.S. market gets NEXTGEN TV, could it be too late? While that’s perhaps an outlandish question to some in broadcast television, news from the U.K. that all TV output will be available exclusively online within the next 10 years or so is a startling reminder that 6G discussions are already underway in Washington, D.C. — and that the next iteration of wireless technology could hurry the obsolesce of broadcast signals.
