In a slight twist of irony, the broadcast television unit of a parent company heavily invested in a MVPD industry fighting a mandatory ATSC 3.0 digital signal transition date — effectively killing ATSC 1.0 broadcasts — has joined as an investor in the ATSC 3.0 Framework Authority.
That’s the developer of the app-like Run3TV platform that is available for TV stations offering a NEXTGEN TV opportunity introduced at the 2022 NAB Show that, like ATSC 3.0, could use a little push to greater consumer use.
As NEXTGEN TV marketing unit Pearl TV sees it, “This marks another milestone in the Run3TV platform’s continued expansion, as a free-to-consumer interactive television layer built to deliver new video options, games, music, and advanced alerting capabilities.”
Yet, some 3 1/2 years after it first attracted attention as a tech marvel replicating what a TV station’s streaming app can do, but via a broadcast TV signal, Run3TV’s consumer embrace remains largely unfulfilled. At the same time, NEXTGEN TV is still largely confused with 8K UHD TV technology at a majority of the retailers frequented by RBR+TVBR over the last several years.
Now, Comcast-owned NBCUniversal is poised to aid the push for greater Run3TV acceptance, even as MVPDs challenge broadcasters to finally address their concerns about how a Run3TV-based ATSC 3.0-powered station will be offered to cable and satellite subscribers. Will retransmission consent conversations require both ATSC 1.0 and ATSC 3.0 signal agreements? Will broadcasters help offset the cost of bringing ATSC 3.0-powered signals to consumers via a cable TV set-top box or IPTV platform?
As those questions get the TV industry’s consideration, NBCUniversal joins founding broadcast investors Gray Television, Sinclair Broadcast Group, Hearst Television, Graham Media Group, TEGNA Inc., and The E.W. Scripps Company as the Run3TV application framework seeks to build scale across receivers, manufacturers, and TV markets nationwide.
NBCUniversal launched its own customized NEXTGEN TV interactive features capability using the Run3TV application last year with its NBC- and Telemundo-owned stations. The interactive experience allows viewers to restart live programs after they have already started. Interactive features also allow viewers to receive customized, hyperlocal information including news, weather forecasts and severe weather alerts, along with on-demand clips and full episodes of NBC and Telemundo programming — all of which are delivered over the internet and do not require a separate app to view.
Pearl TV says the RUN3 platform’s framework opens the door for these innovations to operate across a range of devices and operating systems. “Joining Run3TV allows us to help our local stations enhance how viewers experience weather, local news, and programming with NEXTGEN TV,” said Shawn Makhijani, Senior Vice President of Business Development at NBCUniversal Local. “We’ve been very pleased with the reaction to our own NEXTGEN TV interactive experience, which we believe is a considerable milestone for broadcast television and demonstrates the immense potential and possibilities NEXTGEN TV has for viewers, programmers, stations and advertisers.”
Pearl TV claims that upward of 15 million NEXTGEN TV sets are capable of supporting Run3TV-enabled applications, with availability expanding across all major NEXTGEN TV operating systems. It did not state if these were the number of sets on the market, or if 15 million consumers owned these devices.
“We’re thrilled to welcome NBCUniversal as we prepare the platform for broad consumer activation,” said Winston Caldwell, acting Chief Executive Officer of Run3TV. “This investment underscores a shared commitment to advancing the NEXTGEN TV experience — connecting audiences to the trusted local content they depend on, in ways that feel modern, personalized, and interactive.”
With the FCC’s upcoming Notice of Proposed Rulemaking signaling the next step in the development of NEXTGEN TV, the Run3TV ecosystem “continues preparing for scale.” And, as Pearl TV sees it, “By aligning receiver platforms, broadcasters, and measurement partners, the initiative positions the broadcast industry to bring powerful new viewing benefits to consumers as the transition progresses.”
