Announcing “NextGen TV Launches in Washington, DC, in Monumental Public and Commercial Collaboration That Modernizes Broadcast Television,” Howard University announced a NextGen TV digital television broadcast infrastructure and technology collaboration with the National Association of Broadcasters, the Pearl TV broadcasters technology collaboration and a large number of product and service vendors.
Called the Howard University NextGen TV Broadcast Collaborative, the university’s public television station, WHUT, along with the four local affiliates of ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC, will begin using NextGen TV, “a revolutionary new digital broadcast technology based on the same fundamental technology as the internet and digital apps.”
Want to learn more about this launch and the ATSC 3.0 standard? Attend our upcoming webinar, scheduled for Jan. 18 at 2 p.m. ET. RSVP to The Nation’s Capital Goes NextGen.
WHUT General Manager Sean Plater said, “Just as technology changes all around us, from our phones to our cars to our homes, NextGen TV is the technological evolution of free broadcast television. By connecting the IP and broadcast television infrastructures together, we’re able to give viewers a better and more engaging content experience. Viewers across the Washington, D.C., region will be excited to not just watch, but also lean in and be more engaged with their content.”
Related Videos
Along with being the regional for the NextGen TV infrastructure hub for WHUT, WJLA (ABC), WRC (NBC), WTTG (Fox) and WUSA (CBS) there will also be a technology research lab component at the university.
NextGen TV boosters point to its features such as 4K High Dynamic Range (HDR) video, advanced voice reproduction technologies and overall sound improvement, new forms of programming enabled and an open-ended technology development window.
NextGen TV is the technological evolution of free broadcast television.
WHUT GM Sean Plater
The announcement event featuring Howard University President Dr. Wayne Frederick, NAB President and CEO Gordon H. Smith and FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks can be viewed here:
Others in support of the Howard University NextGen TV Broadcast Collaborative include equipment makers and technology developers Dolby, GatesAir, Harmonic, IBM, LG Electronics, LTN, Samsung, Sony, Synamedia and Triveni Digital, along with equipment dealer Heartland Video Systems and the station association group America’s Public Television Stations.
NextGen TV is being rolled out market-by-market and is currently available in 37 markets reaching 45% of U.S. households, according to Pearl TV, a broadcast company consortium consisting of Cox Media Group, E.W. Scripps, Graham Media Group, Gray Television, Hearst Television, Nexstar Media Group, Sinclair Broadcast group and Tegna.