HUNT VALLEY, Md.—Sinclair Broadcast Group has announced that the company has completed a live, in-vehicle, demonstration of the practical application of NextGen Broadcast (ATSC 3.0) automotive services.

The demonstration was carried out by Sinclair/ONE Media 3.0, Hyundai Mobis, one of the world’s largest automotive parts and services companies, and CAST.ERA, a joint venture between Sinclair and SK Telecom, the largest mobile operator in Korea. It can be viewed here. 

The demo, which took place in Arlington, VA on December 22, showcased the synergy between NextGen Broadcast  and 5G and highlighted in-vehicle video entertainment with enhanced geo-targeting capabilities, including location based targeted ad insertions. 

The companies noted that the Wi-Fi gateway functionality of the Mobis product provided ‘bring your own device’ connected device capability to all seats in the vehicle so that consumers can access the services and entertainment with their own smartphones, tablets and other connected devices. 

“This achievement demonstrates Datacasting as one of the critical designed-in ‘Mobile First’ features of the NextGen Broadcast standard," explained Mark Aitken, president of ONE Media 3.0. "As we build out our national wireless IP data distribution network, it is easy to see that the use cases of the automotive sector are centrally aligned with the efficient nature of a broadcast enabled data distribution platform. This is simply the tip of the iceberg –natural synergy ripe for further development.”

The live feed was delivered directly to the vehicle, a Hyundai Palisade, through ATSC 3.0-enabled spectrum from WIAV, Sinclair’s local broadcast station in Washington, DC. and SK Telecom’s Media Edge Platform. 

SK Telecom’s Media Edge Platform enhances operational efficiency through virtualization of the broadcast air chain and enables easy application of new services like mobile streaming over 5G networks and location-based targeted ads. 

The demonstration was the first collaboration under the recently executed Memorandum of Understanding between Hyundai Mobis and Sinclair, to partner on the development and implementation of NextGen Broadcast-enabled automotive business models in both Korea and the United States. The Arlington collaboration expands Sinclair’s coordination with the Korean market and commitment to bringing enhanced mobile services to the United States.

Kevin Gage, CAST.ERA’s chief operating officer noted that “The one-to-many architecture of ATSC 3.0, paired with 5G, enables the delivery of highly efficient mobile data and entertainment services. We are excited to share a first look for the US of our work with Hyundai Mobis for hybrid ATSC 3.0 / 5G geo-targeted, in-vehicle usage, furthering our commitment to enhancing mobile services.”

“With the successful demonstration of in-vehicle ATSC 3.0 mobile broadcast, we expect to play a leading role in accelerating the digital transformation of broadcasting systems throughout the globe," added Lee Dong-kee, vice president and head of Cloud MEC Technology Office at SK Telecom.

Sinclair and others will be showing a variety of NextGen TV technologies this week at CES 2023. 

 SEOUL—The South Korean mobile carrier SK Telecom is working to develop cloud-based 5G-based convergence broadcasting services that use AI to upres HD content to 4K, UHD content, according to reporting in the Aju Business Daily. The work is being done as part of SKT's CAST.ERA joint venture with the Sinclair Broadcasting Group.

As part of that effort “artificial intelligence technology will be used to restore old low-resolution TV series and movies to high-resolution content,” Aju Business Daily reported. 

Aju reported that “South Korean broadcasters are focusing on establishing a terrestrial ultra-high-definition (UHD) broadcasting network by 2023” and that SKT issued a statement on September 16, 2021 that “it will commercialize next-generation integrated broadcasting services based on 5G Mobile Edge Computing (MEC), artificial intelligence (AI) technology and cloud virtualization technology.”

The project has been in the works for some time. In April 2021 TV Tech reported that CAST.ERA planned to introduce a technology package by year’s end that converges 5G and ATSC 3.0 to broadcast Ultra-HD (UHD) video with little to no latency to NextGen TVs and mobile devices and support personalized ad delivery for each viewer during commercial breaks via OTT.

“We plan to introduce the cloud-based, AI-driven next-generation TV broadcasting solutions into the U.S. market this year,” said CAST.ERA COO Kevin Gage in April. “These solutions will help accelerate U.S. broadcasters’ deployment of next-generation TV broadcasting services into the market.”

The new technologies were trialed at Jeju Technopark in a 5G-ATSC 3.0 testbed and were conducted in collaboration with South Korea’s Ministry of Science and ICT, Korea Communications Commission (KCC), Korea Radio Promotion Association (RAPA), Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), Jeju Special Self-Governing Province, Korean broadcasters, and select partner companies, the companies said at the time.

In April, CAST.ERA also said that it will provide the broadcast solutions to the United States and Korea, working with Sinclair and other U.S. broadcasters and Korea’s Kai Media, ATBiS, DigiCAP and Hasigancom.

The Aju Business Daily is now reporting that as part of the “commercialization of the next-generation broadcasting services involving KBS, a state broadcaster, SKT will upgrade the resolution of broadcast videos from full high-definition (FHD) to UHD using an AI-based high-definition upscaler solution and create high-quality videos in real-time. An upscaler solution uses AI technology to enhance the quality of the video. Using 5G's ultra-low-latency technology the next-gen broadcasting service will also help over-the-top service operators reduce the delay of about nine seconds when customers watch real-time TV channels through smartphone OTT apps.”

JEJU ISLAND, South Korea & ARLINGTON, Va.—CAST.ERA, a joint venture of SK Telecom and Sinclair Broadcast Group, says it will introduce a technology package by year’s end that converges 5G and ATSC 3.0 to broadcast Ultra-HD (UHD) video with little to no latency to NextGen TVs and mobile devices and support personalized ad delivery for each viewer during commercial breaks via OTT.

“We plan to introduce the cloud-based, AI-driven next-generation TV broadcasting solutions into the U.S. market this year,” said CAST.ERA COO Kevin Gage. “These solutions will help accelerate U.S. broadcasters’ deployment of next-generation TV broadcasting services into the market.”

The new technologies also will enable OTA datacasting and live TV broadcast via OTT to home viewers and those on the go with minimal lag in transmission time. The announcement comes following successful trials of CAST.ERA’s technology on Jeju Island, South Korea, the company said.

The converged 5G-ATSC 3.0 technologies include:

• AI Upscaler, which creates high-quality broadcast video in real-time, upscaling broadcast resolution, increasing frame rate and expanding color gamut via artificial intelligence.
• Virtualized Broadcasting Platform, which uses cloud and mobile edge computing to operate and remotely control broadcasters’ local transmission systems from a centralized location and enable more efficient and economical operations.
• Zero-Latency OTT, which cuts OTT streaming delay to TVs and mobile devices from nine seconds to zero. The technology also dynamically inserts personalized ads for each OTT viewer during commercial breaks.
• Datacasting, which makes it possible to distribute large amounts of data via TV broadcast signals.  

“Bringing together the technologies and expertise that these two companies possess will help unlock the huge potential that ATSC 3.0 has for delivering IP content efficiently over large geographic areas covered by our TV signal,” said Sinclair CTO Del Parks. “These technologies are a game changer. Our new abilities to provide improved viewer experience and access to new business models, like data delivery as a service (Ddaas), is one of the most exciting things to happen to our business since HDTV.”  

The new technologies were trialed at Jeju Technopark in a 5G-ATSC 3.0 testbed. The trials began with a transmission from Las Vegas to Jeju Island. 

They were conducted in collaboration with South Korea’s Ministry of Science and ICT, Korea Communications Commission (KCC), Korea Radio Promotion Association (RAPA), Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), Jeju Special Self-Governing Province, Korean broadcasters, and select partner companies, the company said.

During the trials, CAST.ERA worked with Doosan and MBC to demonstrate a location service that carries GPS correction data (MBC RTK) via a 3.0 broadcast signal to a Doosan hydrogen fuel cell drone. The correction data reduces GPS positioning errors from 3 to 6 feet to 4 inches, the company said.

CAST.ERA will provide broadcast solutions to the United States and Korea, working with Sinclair and other U.S. broadcasters and Korea’s Kai Media, ATBiS, DigiCAP and Hasigancom. SK Telecom is Korea’s largest mobile telecommunications provider and a pioneer in 5G smartphone service.

MONTREAL—SK Telecom, a Korean wireless telecommunications operator, is the newest member of the SRT Alliance, a group of companies supporting the adoption of the SRT (Secure Reliable Transport) open source protocol.

SKT is doing something unique with the SRT protocol, reportedly being the first SRT Alliance member to use the protocol for the transport of real-time low latency video over 5G networks. Through its 5G MEC-based security video system development project named Hwangsaeul, SKT has achieved 4K streaming over 5G networks with SRT. SKY is also developing an intelligent bandwidth-aware streaming technology.

In addition, SKT is working with Havision, which founded the SRT Alliance, to establish SRT as the industry standard in the IETF.

“SKT’s use of SRT over 5G networks is another big step forward for the Alliance and as an emerging standard for anyone delivering live video over public internet,” said Suso Carrillo, director of SRT Alliance for Haivision. “We are very proud to have SKT as a member of the SRT Alliance and be the first member to implement the open source SRT protocol for 5G network delivery.”

SKT joins a group of now more than 450 members making up the SRT Alliance.

For more information, visit www.srtalliance.org.  

SEOUL & BALTIMORE—Sinclair Broadcast Group and SK Telecom are heading into this new era of broadcasting as partners, announcing a joint venture agreement that will have them work on new broadcasting technology based on ATSC 3.0, aka NextGen TV.

With NextGen TV beginning to rollout to U.S. stations this year—and with Sinclair and SK Telecom’s prediction that all U.S. stations will adopt the standard in the next decade—this joint venture will be able to provide ATSC 3.0 standards-based technology for U.S. broadcast stations, as well as other global opportunities.

Some of the new technologies that NextGen TV is expected to help achieve include personalized advertisement, in-vehicle terrestrial TV broadcasting and map updates, and two-way communication between broadcasting companies and user’s smartphone/vehicle/TV by recognizing users’ personal IP addresses.

“Sinclair is excited to partner with SK Telecom, a wireless technology leader, to explore and commercialize solutions that optimize the economic value of our spectrum, our broadcast infrastructure, our programming ventures and our emerging OTT platforms,” said Chris Ripley, president and CEO of Sinclair. “Bringing these assets together in a converged broadcast/broadband platform environment will be a significant value multiplier.”

The two companies have agreed to jointly fund and manage the joint venture company within the first quarter of 2020.

For a comprehensive source of TV Technology’s ATSC 3.0 coverage, see ourATSC3 silo.

SEOUL—As esports continues to grow in global popularity, South Korea’s SK Telecom and the U.S.-based Comcast have announced they are creating an international esports company, SK Telecom CS T1, or T1 for short.

The company will be headquartered in Seoul and SK Telecom will have a 55% stake in the venture, while Comcast and U.S. hedge fund Highland Capital will invest $41 million and be the second and third largest shareholders. There will be a U.S. regional office, T1 West, in Los Angeles.

T1, in addition to managing esports teams and merchandise, will seek to capitalize on SK Telecom and Comcast’s resources of global networks, telecommunication and media technology to produce and stream esports content. There are also plans, according to reports, to sell broadcast rights.

SEOUL—SK Telecom announced that it has completed a successful test of transmitting an in-vehicle, full HD terrestrial TV broadcast using the Next Gen TV standard, ATSC 3.0. This demonstration, which took place in South Korea earlier this week, was a collaboration between SK Telecom, Sinclair Broadcast Group and Harman International Industries.

The demonstration was a combination of the ATSC 3.0 standard and 5G telecommunications technology. During the test, SK Telecom reported that the full HD live broadcast offered four times clearer screen quality than DMB’s and they were able to show different kinds of advertisements playing on each of the vehicles three screens while the car was in motion. Live traffic, road and restaurant information was also automatically delivered via ATSC 3.0 when the car entered a specific zone.

In addition, SK Telecom showcased a multiview service that allowed viewers to watch a terrestrial sports broadcast from different angles simultaneously and replay specific plays in slow-motion. The multiview display is provided by ATSC 3.0 transmitting video from the broadcast’s main camera, while 5G network streams handle additional live camera feeds.

Next steps for SK Telecom and Sinclair, according to the official release, will be to apply Mobile Edge Computing and Network-Based Media Processing solutions for 5G to the next-gen standard to produce low-latency augmented reality and virtual reality displays.

For a comprehensive source of TV Technology’s ATSC 3.0 coverage, see ourATSC3 silo.

LAS VEGAS—South Korean telecom provider SK Telecom and Sinclair Broadcast Group have signed a joint venture agreement to develop and provide ATSC 3.0-based solutions to all U.S. broadcasters and explore other opportunities for the Next-Gen TV standard around the world, the companies jointly announced in Las Vegas on the eve of the 2019 International CES.

Together, the companies will fund and manage the new joint venture company sometime during the Q1, the companies said.

“Sinclair is excited to partner with SK Telecom, a wireless technology leader, to explore and commercialize solutions that optimize the economic value of our spectrum, our broadcast infrastructure, our programming ventures and our emerging OTT platforms,” said Sinclair President and CEO Chris Ripley. “Bringing these assets together in a converged broadcast/broadband platform environment will be a significant value multiplier.”

The joint venture will create new services leveraging aspects of the 3.0 standard, such as personalized advertising and in-vehicle terrestrial television broadcasting, the companies said.

SK Telecom is the largest mobile operator in Korea in terms of subscribers and revenue. South Korean broadcasters, including KBS, MBC and SBS launched ATSC 3.0 broadcasts in 2017 and expect to provide nationwide coverage by 2021. 

The announcement comes one year after SK Telecom and Sinclair signed a memorandum of understating (MOU) at last year’s consumer electronics extravaganza to work together to develop 3.0 technology.

“SK Telecom will work closely with Sinclair Broadcast Group to gain leadership in the next-generation broadcasting solutions market in the U.S.,” said Park Jung-ho, President and CEO of SK Telecom.

For comprehensive coverage on ATSC 3.0, visit TV Technology's ATSC3 silo.

LAS VEGAS—South Korean wireless telecom company SK Telecom, Sinclair Broadcast Group and its subsidiary ONE Media this week signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) at the 2018 CES in Las Vegas to create an overarching wireless network architecture based on ATSC 3.0 and deploy a proof of concept before July.

“Working with Sinclair, SK Telecom’s media technology is now aiming to bring innovation to the global broadcast industry and create new growth engine,” Park Jung-ho, CEO and president of SK Telecom said.

Called the NG TV platform—NG for Next Generation—the network architecture will play a critical role in enabling a hybrid wireless environment that taps broadcast and wireless broadband resources to “drive richness, interactivity and total synchronicity” of content across consumer devices, said Mark Aitken, Sinclair VP of Advanced Technology.

NG TV will deliver UHD-quality content, customized IP-based interactive services, personalized and location-based advertising, fixed and mobile broadcast service and emergency alerting, according to an SK Telecom press release announcing the MoU.

While SK Telecom was attracted to Sinclair and ONE Media for the role they have played in developing the ATSC 3.0 standard and associated, new broadcast business models, Sinclair was attracted to SK Telecom because of the experience it has gained developing MPEG Media Transport (MMT) technology, said Aitken.

“We are going to tie stations together as a combined [spectrum] asset and orchestrate across them,” said Aitken. “That requires a network-based solution like MMT.” MMT can unlock the potential of next-generation television by enabling dynamic ad insertion to mobile and fixed devices, he added.

“They have deployed MMT commercially. They have built devices that consume MMT and provide a rich consumer experience,” said Aitken, adding the telecom’s experience with MMT is so sweeping that it has even developed a mobile addendum to the digital container standard.

While initially targeted for the U.S. television industry, SK Telecom envisions expanding use of the platform to India, according to the press release. SK Telecom ultimately expects to be able to help in expanding the global ecosystem for next-generation broadcasting using its mobile IPTV and media technologies, the press release said.

“The company will share its core infrastructure with global companies to come up with convergent business models that will create new business platforms,” said Park.

For a comprehensive list of TV Technology’s ATSC 3.0 coverage, see our ATSC3 silo.