PHILADELPHIA—Comcast has expanded NOW TV Latino, its Spanish-language live TV and streaming offering, adding five more channels from Univision, ViX Premium with Ads and over 100 more streaming channels.

“As we continue to deepen our commitment to Hispanic audiences, the expanded NOW TV Latino delivers even more of the content our customers love — from blockbuster movies and hit novelas to live fútbol and trusted news — all at an unbeatable price,” said Javier Garcia, senior vice president of multicultural strategy. “With seamless access via our 4K Streaming Box and Xfinity Stream app, it’s never been easier to enjoy the best in Spanish and English-language entertainment.”

With these additions, NOW TV Latino delivers more than 200 live streaming channels and 45 Spanish-language channels to Xfinity customers, including Univision and its hit novelas, reality shows, news, sports and music programs. Plus, customers get ViX Premium with Ads (a $5.99-per-month value) and Peacock Premium (a $10.99-per-month value) included at no extra cost, Comcast reported.

Together, these leading streaming services offer thousands of hours of movies, original series, live events, and sports, including over 1,000 live soccer matches from Liga MX, UEFA, CONCACAF, the Premier League and more.

Customers can also access 20-hour DVR service and access all their favorites effortlessly with the Xumo Stream Box and voice remote, both included at no additional cost.​

Comcast said NOW TV Latino is available for $10 per month, with no contracts or hidden fees, through Nov. 11. Beginning Nov. 12, the price will increase to $15/month to reflect the expanded content and value.

Customers can also bundle NOW TV Latino with other Xfinity streaming packages—such as StreamSaver, offering more than 45% savings on top streaming apps, or NOW StreamSaver, which adds even more English-language channels and savings.

More information is available at Xfinity.com.

Remote Production as a Strategic Standard
In recent years — particularly following the pandemic — new methods of television production had to be adopted. Initially, technology would typically evolve in response to cost optimization needs or equipment obsolescence, as is common in the electronics industry.

However, during the pandemic and beyond, many of these methods rapidly evolved and became permanent fixtures. In this article, I want to focus specifically on the rise of remote broadcast productions using the REMI (Remote Integration) model.

Having worked for over 15 years in the broadcast industry for major networks in Latin America and the United States — including Fox Sports, ESPN, and now Univision — I’ve witnessed firsthand how REMI production has evolved to a point where its operational cost savings and system flexibility have made it not just viable but a continuously expanding solution. Combined with the sustained development of IP-based workflows, REMI has become a strategic standard across modern broadcasting.

Inside a Real-World Hybrid REMI Deployment
Last year, among many other productions at Univision, I had the opportunity to serve as the lead broadcast engineer from our Miami facility for Super Bowl 2024 in Las Vegas. For this event, we deployed an OB truck on-site and executed a hybrid REMI production. A full production team was sent to the venue, while the main production was carried out remotely from Univision’s control rooms in Miami.

Audio and video signals from the field were transported over IP links using dedicated encoding and decoding equipment, while intercom communications were established through trunked IP-based connections between the truck and the central facility. This REMI configuration was not initially intended to reduce costs, but rather to ensure the robustness and redundancy required for an event of such magnitude.

In contrast, during the Leagues Cup 2024 soccer tournament, we implemented a more cost-optimized and flexible REMI model aimed at supporting multiple simultaneous productions. Remote communication systems were deployed to two separate venues using rented OB units, while a third location was connected via our own mobile production truck.

All sites were integrated into our centralized infrastructure in Miami. In this architecture — which I was actively involved in designing — I built two customs “REMI Boxes” that enabled the transport of camera tally signals and full intercom connectivity, linking field crews with the centralized control room.

The system performed flawlessly, allowing a single production control room in Miami to manage back-to-back shows across three different remote locations. Return feeds for tally, comms, and audio/video were transmitted without issue.

Notably, the remote locations that used the REMI model experienced a significant reduction in operational costs, validating this modular approach as both technically and economically effective. The outcome was not only rewarding from an engineering perspective but also strategically beneficial for future deployments.

Benefits Beyond Cost
As previously mentioned, one of the key advantages of REMI productions is the ability to deploy smaller crews to remote locations compared to traditional full-scale on-site productions. This results in a significant reduction in operational costs without compromising quality or control.

Beyond cost savings, the REMI model enables back-to-back productions using the same production control room and crew, covering multiple remote locations in succession. This level of efficiency not only optimizes personnel and equipment usage, but also expands the broadcaster’s capacity to cover more events within tighter timeframes — all from a centralized facility.

Challenges
While the operational workflow is often straightforward for production crews, the engineering side demands careful planning and technical precision. Engineers must conduct latency and connectivity testing, anticipate failure points, and configure complex systems — often across hybrid IP/SDI environments.

When these elements are addressed with sufficient lead time and preparation, the results are consistently reliable and efficient. As this model becomes more widespread, the need for engineering professionals with hands-on experience in both IP-based and legacy broadcast workflows becomes increasingly critical to ensuring seamless execution.

Conclusion
In my view, the REMI model is no longer just the future of broadcast production — it is the present. What began as a response to logistical and operational challenges has now matured into a reliable, scalable, and efficient production standard. As IP-based infrastructure and cloud technologies continue to advance, REMI workflows will only become more powerful, more accessible, and more deeply integrated into the fabric of modern broadcasting.

YouTube TV has found itself in multiple carriage disputes over the past week from NBC and Univision. Last night, Google, which owns YouTube TV, announced a short-term agreement with NBCUniversal to remain on the streaming service (also known as a virtual MVPD”) while both sides negotiate a new long term agreement.

Univision, however, was not so lucky, with YouTube TV dropping the nation’s largest Spanish language broadcast network at midnight Wednesday.

“We have been working with TelevisaUnivision to reach an agreement that reflects the value of their content,” YouTube TV told its subscribers in an email. “Unfortunately their current demands aren’t supported by their performance on YouTube TV over the last four years, and despite our best efforts, we’ve been unable to reach a deal.”

Last week, Univision launched a “Do the Right Thing Google” public campaign designed to keep the network on YouTube TV, which reportedly had just under 10 million U.S. subscribers as of April 2025.

After YouTube TV announced it was dropping the network, Univision accused the streamer of “stripping millions of Hispanic viewers of the Spanish-language news, sports, and entertainment they rely on every day."

“Google’s actions are especially tone-deaf and egregious on the eve of a potential government shutdown, disregarding the appeals of government officials and Hispanic organizations who urged them to keep Univision on the main bundle,” the network added. “To add insult to injury, YouTube TV chose to take this step during Hispanic Heritage Month—an act that is deeply insensitive and offensive.”

Univision said Google’s decision is “easily reversible.”

“We are always open to finding constructive ways for Hispanics to regain access to their trusted and critical content,” the network said. “We remain steadfast in advocating for our audience and ensuring that YouTube TV subscribers know they have many options to continue watching Univision’s programming through other providers.”

YouTube’s continuing conflicts with broadcast networks drew the ire of NAB, which has consistently criticized the impact that “Big Tech” has on local broadcasters.

“The unchecked dominance of Big Tech companies like Google and its ability to dictate what millions of households can and cannot watch through its YouTube TV platform is a problem for competition and consumers,” said Alex Siciliano, spokesman for NAB. “These behemoths have the upper hand to not only lock out independent, news-leading local stations from their lineup, but also to push around companies like NBCUniversal and TelevisaUnivision. In this case, Google’s actions will have the added impact of depriving millions of Spanish-speaking viewers access to the most trusted broadcast news, sports and entertainment.”

Univision has entered into a Consent Decree with the Federal Communications Commission regarding the regulators investigation into violation of rules governing ad loads and URLs in children's programming.

The Decree will see the broadcaster make a “voluntary” payment of $300,000 and implement new procedures to avoid violating rules that govern children’s programming. As part of the settlement with FCC will renew licenses for 41 Univision stations.

In this case, FCC had been investigating violations of rules that limit the amount of commercial matter that full power and Class A television stations may air during children’s programming to no more than 10.5 minutes per hour on weekends and 12 minutes per hour on weekdays. It was also looking into violations of rules that place restrictions on the display of website addresses during children’s programming.

The FCC noted that “between May 29, 2020, and March 31, 2023, Univision filed the Renewal Applications and answered `no' in response to the certification concerning compliance with the Commercial Limits Rule. In attachments to the Renewal Applications, Univision disclosed that Stations had not complied with the Commercial Limits Rule and, in some cases, the URL Rule during the Stations’ prior license term. As a result, the Division commenced the Investigations and suspended processing the Renewal Applications.”

In the renewal applications, Univision reported that “a total of 41 stations aired the children’s program `Pokémon’ that contained commercial matter in excess of the amount permitted by the Commercial Limits.”

As part of the Consent Degree, the FCC said that “Univision agrees implement and maintain a Compliance Plan designed to ensure its future compliance with the Commercial Limits Rule and the URL Rule, and has agreed to pay a voluntary contribution in the amount of Three Hundred Thousand Dollars ($300,000) to the United States Treasury.”

The full Order and Consent Decree is available here.

NEW YORK—EDO has unveiled a report showing ads in the Spanish-language media environment outperformed those on English-language TV by 31% in the past year—a 24% increase over the previous period.

EDO measures ad effectiveness through granular TV outcomes data such as site visits and search activity—a proven predictor of future sales. The study also highlighted how brands like Walmart, Target, Chevrolet and Miller Lite engage Hispanic audiences through culturally relevant TV campaigns, EDO said.

“Effective engagement with Hispanic consumers enhances authentic, culturally relevant campaigns,” Laura Grover, senior vice president, head of client solutions at EDO, said. “Spanish-language networks are far more than a niche; they are a powerful avenue for brands to authentically connect with Hispanic audiences. By investing in Spanish-language media, advertisers can tap into the vibrancy of this growing demographic, unlocking opportunities for meaningful connections and business success.”

The researchers described the key takeaways from EDO’s “Spanish-Language TV Outcomes Report” as follows:

• Ads on Spanish-Language TV (SLTV) Are Highly Effective. Ads on Spanish-language networks have been 31% more effective than those on English-language TV over the past year. Further, ads in Spanish were 24% more likely to generate consumer engagement over the prior period.
• Brands Win by Engaging In Culture: Spanish-language TV advertisers realize massive gains in ad effectiveness when they tap into the power of Hispanic culture. Brands like Walmart, Chevrolet, Target and Miller Lite have generated outstanding results by featuring elements of Latin culture and Hispanic celebrities in their ads—sometimes outperforming the SLTV average by as much as 10 times.
• Streaming + Spanish-Language = High Engagement: Spanish-language TV's impact is even greater when combined with a highly engaging streaming environment. For example, auto brands advertising on TelevisaUnivision’s streaming service ViX were 29% more effective than their convergent TV average, and wireless brands were 18% more effective.
• In English Or Spanish, Live Sports Drive Results: As live sports are the lifeblood of English-language TV, it’s no surprise that brands have performed extremely well when advertising during events on Spanish-language TV — particularly when it comes to fútbol. The top-performing soccer games for advertisers were played in England, Spain, Mexico, and Guatemala, with a La Liga clash between Mallorca and Barcelona driving 751% greater ad effectiveness than the SLTV soccer average.

The full report is available at edo.com/SLTV.

SOUTH BEND, Ind.—Family Broadcasting Corporation (FBC) has launched Univision programming as the primary signal of WHMB TV-40 in Indianapolis, Indiana, and WHME TV-46 in South Bend, Indiana.

"This affiliation is an excellent addition to our portfolio of family-friendly networks and stations, and we're very excited about this partnership and expanding our reach to new audiences," said FBC CEO Drew Sumrall.

Along with this news, FBC named industry veteran Susan Buterbaugh as general manager of WHMB TV-40. "We are grateful to all our loyal viewers who have supported us for more than 50 years," said Buterbaugh. "Univision brings news, entertainment, sports and culture to our community, with new opportunities for our partners. I am honored to lead WHMB TV-40 into this new chapter."

As the most-watched network among U.S. Hispanics, Univision is home to the leading Spanish-language content across news, sports, music and entertainment. 

Family Broadcasting Corporation has been in operation since 1972, with multiple national networks including Family Entertainment Television (FETV), Family Movie Classics (FMC), and World Harvest Television (WHT).

HOUSTON—Univision Houston announced that Glenn L. Coleman has been promoted to president and general manager of Univision Houston. 

In the new role Coleman oversees all aspects of station operations for Univision Houston’s television, radio, digital, community, and social media properties, including advertising sales, marketing, news, and production.

The station group operations in Houston is comprised of two broadcast television stations: KXLN Univision 45 and KFTH UniMás 67; five radio stations: KLAT-AM 1010, KLTN-FM 102.9, KOVE-FM 106.5, KAMA-FM 104.9, KQBU-FM 93.3; and its related digital and social media properties.  

A television industry veteran, Coleman has significant sales management, marketing, and digital sales experience. Coleman joined Univision in 2014 as Houston’s vice president and sales director and most recently, he served as vice president and station manager for this market.

Before Univision, Coleman worked at Tribune Media as vice president and general sales manager in Washington, D.C. He started his career with the CBS Television Stations Group as a business development account executive in Atlanta and worked for the Dallas-Fort Worth stations as a senior account executive and local sales manager.

Coleman, originally from New Orleans, LA, graduated from Louisiana State University’s Manship School of Mass Communication with a degree in Broadcast Journalism and Marketing. He also graduated from the Broadcast Leadership Training program at the National Association of Broadcasters.

MIAMI—TelevisaUnivision has announced that Univision Noticias’ fact-checking program, elDetector, will partner with Meta on fact-checking by joining Meta's Third-Party Fact-Checking Program.

Univision Noticias launched elDetector in 2016 as the first fact-checking platform in Spanish in the United States. It was later relaunched, during the 2020 presidential campaign, with support from WhatsApp and coordination by the International Fact-Checking Network from the Poynter Institute, as part of the FactChat project, which brought together 12 fact-checking platforms in the United States.

“With elDetector being the first-fact checking platform available in Spanish for the United States, our partnership with Meta will expand our reach in ensuring that Hispanic audiences receive accurate and reliable information,” said Carlos Chirinos, director of elDetector.

Users can access elDetector’s services via the Univision Noticias website, to find checked information about politics, health, and general affairs, from Covid-19 and vaccines to U.S. elections and the war in Ukraine. It also clarifies fake news and conspiracy theories, which will help users clear through the clutter of disinformation and misinformation. 

Spanish speakers can also ask questions directly to the news-checking team by sending text messages via WhatsApp to the number +1(786)685-8284. 

“This partnership emphasizes Univision Noticias’ core value of ensuring that Hispanic audiences are accurately informed and can rely on a news division to enforce their equitable access to correct and trustworthy information,” added José Gonzalo, senior director and editor in chief of Univision Noticias Digital.

“We’re thrilled to welcome TelevisaUnivision into our global fact-checking program,” said Kaitlin McCulley, news integrity program manager at Meta. “We partner with more than 90 fact-checking organizations around the world who review and rate viral misinformation on our platform, and we’re excited to build on our previous partnerships with TelevisaUnivision to help connect Spanish-speaking audiences in the U.S. with reliable information.”

In addition to this partnership, elDetector has sponsorships in coordination with the International Fact-Checking Network to do climate change checks and from WhatsApp to operate the chatbot.

NEW YORK & MIAMI—FuboTV and TelevisaUnivision have both issued statements complaining about the other party’s demands in the intensifying negotiations for a new carriage agreement that would allow the virtual MVPD to carry Univision’s networks.  

FuboTV has complained that TelevisaUnivision is trying to double the rates paid under the current contract while TelevisaUnivision said that FuboTV is “not willing to pay market rates.”

The deadline for reaching a new deal is June 30, 2022. Currently FuboTV is the only live streaming service to offer all four of TelevisaUnivision’s four networks, Univision, UniMas, Galavision, and TUDN, according to FierceVideo. 

“FuboTV has told us repeatedly that they are not willing to pay market rates to deliver Univision’s networks to Hispanic viewers,” TelevisaUnivision said in a statement released on June 27. “Still, we remain committed to reaching a fair deal with FuboTV, so that viewers are not deprived of access to the most-watched Spanish-language news, sports and entertainment programming in America. If we are unable to reach an agreement, however, our loyal viewers will be able to find our programming streamed elsewhere at very competitive prices.”

Earlier this month, FuboTV released a statement saying “FuboTV is currently in negotiations with Univision to renew our long-standing content agreement. Univision’s new contract offer would cost us more than double the current rates, which are already at a premium to market. We are working diligently to resolve this issue and hope Univision reconsiders their approach in negotiating with FuboTV and will continue to offer their content in our market-leading Latino content package at a fair and reasonable price for consumers.”

MIAMI—Univision Communications has hired Michael Schwimmer as its president of global platform strategy and revenue. 

The newly created executive position complements Univision’s redesigned corporate leadership structure ahead of the close of Univision’s previously announced merger with Televisa, Univision said. 

Reporting directly to CEO Wade Davis, Schwimmer will centralize distribution of the company’s platform, content offerings and sales opportunities that drive revenue growth. He will also work closely with Pierluigi Gazzolo, president and chief transformation officer, on global app distribution for the company’s unified two-tiered streaming service, scheduled to launch in early 2022.

“Michael will complement our team by leading global distribution for the combined library of Televisa and Univision content, including all subscription and content licensing activities, and will oversee our efforts to ensure that thousands of hours of our Spanish-language content reaches valued audiences worldwide,” said Univision CEO Wade Davis. “His extensive experience leading the strategy for multicultural and AVOD offerings and his proven track record navigating corporate transformations make him the ideal addition to our team, and his expertise and passion for increasing Spanish-language representation in the media speaks to our company’s purpose.”

Schwimmer brings a wealth of experience in digital media, content distribution and the Hispanic market to the new role. 

Prior to joining Univision, Schwimmer served as group president of Sling TV and executive vice president of Dish Media, where he managed all aspects of the Sling TV business and oversaw the advertising sales business for the Dish enterprise. Prior to this role, he was executive vice president of international, business development and strategy at Sling TV, responsible for the company’s Dish TV and Sling TV multicultural and AVOD offerings. 

He also held the role of president and CEO of Fuse Media, cross-platform entertainment media brand for multicultural youth that included Fuse and FM (Fuse Music) linear channels, video-on-demand (VOD) and over-the-top (OTT) apps. 

Earlier, he led programming, marketing and media sales for Dish Network, playing a key role in launching Dish’s international programming business as well as the Dish Latino brand and services. 

Schwimmer sits on the Board of the National Association of Television Program Executives (NATPE) and is a member of the NAACP Entertainment Industry Board of Advisors.

MIAMI—As Univision moves towards the upcoming launch of its global streaming platform, the company has further expanded its streaming teams by hiring four new senior executives. 

“We continue to build the best streaming team at Univision, recruiting experts from across the globe to launch our next era of growth,” said Pierluigi Gazzolo, president and chief transformation officer at Univision. “I’m confident these new additions to the team will help strengthen our new products and services to captivate our audience. These new leaders will bring fresh perspectives, expertise, talent, and skill sets to an already stellar team of streaming executives, which were recently announced at Univision. We are fostering innovation, collaboration, inclusivity, and accountability, which are all central to our transformation.”

The newly added streaming executives include:

• Roger Sole, chief marketing officer, streaming, will lead the marketing team in the development, growth, and creative approach for the future global streaming platform, including performance marketing, partner marketing integration, advertising, and all other streaming marketing efforts across all digital platforms, Univision said. Sole is a seasoned business leader with a track record in driving rapid growth in world-class organizations and renowned brands. Importantly, Sole has a long and successful experience in the telecommunications sector, having been CMO of Sprint (now T-Mobile) for five years, where he was a key member of the leadership team during the company’s turnaround and merger process. His telecom experience adds a relevant and necessary skillset that will help make Univision’s future global streaming platform a success. He was named one of the world’s most innovative CMOs by Business Insider in 2016 and 2017, for his breakthrough “Paul Switched” campaign and the launch of “Unlimited Freedom” plans. Most recently, he was the global CMO at WeWork, where he repositioned the company as the leader in flexible space and developed innovative products like WeWork AllAccess.
• Vincenzo Gratteri, senior vice president of development, streaming, will lead development and production of original Spanish language content, Univision said. Gratteri has overseen hundreds of productions across his almost 20-year career in the industry, having started in Italy with Lux Vide, where he produced titles such as Coco Chanel, in partnership with Rai Fiction and France 2. His experience spans from Europe to Latin America and the United States, where he worked with top production houses such as W Studios, producing more than 500 hours of prime TV series like El Dragón, a co-production between Televisa and Netflix, and most recently at Onza Americas, a production company based in Miami which he founded in partnership with the Spanish producers of The Ministry of Time.
• Adam Waltuch, Senior Vice President of Streaming Partnerships, will lead placement and growth through marketing partnerships with Univision’s global app distribution partners, Univision said. He will work closely with the Distribution and Content Licensing teams to support our future global streaming partnerships with MVPDs and vMVPDs in the U.S. and Latin America. Waltuch comes to Univision from Netflix, where he led teams responsible for fueling growth through distribution and brand partnerships, managing relationships with MVPDs, telecommunications companies, operators, and several consumer brands, He was formerly at Google, where he spent time in Buenos Aires, Santiago, and Mountain View, leading teams behind products like Google Cloud and AdWords. He has 20 years of experience in marketing partnerships, strategic business development, and content production.
• Rita Chertorivski, senior vice president of business and legal affairs, streaming, will lead all partnership negotiations relating to the development and production of original content for streaming, Univision said. She will also oversee all clearance and ancillary rights issues and advise on legal issues relating to streaming. Chertorivski is a seasoned, bicultural attorney licensed in both the U.S. and Mexico, where she began her career. She has worked in the U.S. both as a corporate lawyer and a media and entertainment attorney. Before joining Univision, she served as vice president, business and legal affairs for NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises, where she led a multi-regional team in charge of all scripted productions in the U.S., Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, and Spain.

Univision also noted that in 2021 it hired hundreds people to transform its existing operations and to work in such newly created divisions as Product Design & Development, Next Generation Data & Analytics, and Engineering.

“We are thrilled to bring this level of top talent to execute our vision successfully,” continued Gazzolo.

MIAMI—Univision Communications has announced that it has reached a carriage agreement with YouTube TV that makes Univision, UniMás and Galavisión available on the subscription streaming service. 

This will also give subscribers in the top Hispanic markets, including Los Angeles, New York, Miami, Houston, Dallas and Chicago, among others, a new way to access Univision and UniMás’ highly rated local news, weather and programming, the companies said. 

Univision's network and local content became part of the subscription streaming service’s standard offering on September 15. 

“We are delighted to partner with YouTube TV to expand Univision’s robust portfolio of networks and stations to include YouTube TV,” said Hamed Nasseri, vice president, content distribution, Univision. “Amid the popularity of streaming services as well as the growing influence of our Hispanic community, this is an important step to ensure that our audience has access to our leading Spanish-language news, sports, and entertainment wherever they consume content. We are excited for today’s launch and recognize YouTube TV’s continued commitment to serving our growing and influential Hispanic audience.”

Univision, UniMás and Galavisión own a combined 55% share of Spanish-language television viewing in primetime among Adults 18-49, Univision said. 

MIAMI—In the run-up to the completion of the Televisa-Univision deal, Univision Holdings, Inc., has revamped its corporate leadership structure and announced a number of the new appointments that the company hopes will help it grow and execute on its strategies once the merger has been completed later in 2021. 

“I am delighted to share the evolution of our corporate leadership structure and to introduce the new, world-class executives that have joined to help drive the execution of our vision,” said Univision CEO Wade Davis. “We are incredibly fortunate to have a deep bench of talent at both Televisa and Univision to draw from.  Furthermore, the size of the market opportunity and our positioning to become the global leader in Spanish-language media has allowed us to attract new and diverse executives from some of the largest and most successful companies in the world.  We have the right strategy, and following the closing of the Televisa-Univision merger, we will have the assets and market-leading position for this team to execute and capture the opportunity in front of us to be the largest and most compelling Spanish-language media company across all platforms.”

The transaction between Univision and Televisa, announced on April 13, 2021, is expected to close in the second half of 2021, subject to the receipt of regulatory approvals in the United States and Mexico. 

Univision noted that the new appointments are effective immediately unless otherwise noted.

As part of the revamped leadership, Carlos Ferreiro will assume the role of chief financial officer for Univision on October 1st, 2021 and will continue with this position for the combined company following the closing of the Televisa-Univision transaction, Univision reported. Until that time, he will serve as an advisor to the senior leadership team, as it plans to integrate the two companies. 

As CFO, Ferreiro will have a critical role in integrating and designing a combined organization that can unlock enormous strategic and operational synergies of the combined company. Ferreiro has been an important contributor to the success of Televisa for the last 20 years, currently as chief financial officer and, prior to that, as chief financial officer of Sky, Cable and Iusacell for Televisa. 

Peter Lori, who has been a key member of the current Univision leadership team and at the center of all of the strategic moves of Univision, will continue as CFO of the company until October 1, 2021 and will continue in a senior executive role with the combined company to be further defined in the integration planning process.

Pilar Ramos joins as general counsel and corporate secretary for Univision and will assume the role of general counsel for Televisa-Univision once the merger is completed and subject to the transaction closing. With over two decades of global legal and government affairs experience, Ramos joins Univision from Mastercard, where she served in various leadership roles during her 18-year career.

Jose Tomas joins Univision as chief administrative officer. This newly created role will oversee strategic support areas essential to continue transforming Univision and to create centers of excellence in the future combined company. Tomás brings deep experience in corporate transformations and performance improvement. He previously led human resources and other strategic functions for some of the world’s largest companies including General Motors, Anthem, Inc. and Burger King Corporation.

Flavia Vigio joins Univision as executive vice president of communications. She will be responsible for all internal and external communications, publicity and public relations for Univision. With an extensive career in the areas of corporate communications, media relations and publicity, Vígio was most recently at WarnerMedia, where she was the head of general entertainment consumer marketing and public relations for Latin America. 

Jessica Rodriguez has been promoted to chief brand and impact officer for Univision and for the combined Televisa-Univision company once the merger is completed. In her new position, Rodriguez will play a crucial role helping Univision elevate the combined Televisa and Univision brands and cultures through focused engagement with their audiences. 

Juan Carlos Rodriguez has been promoted to president of Sports Enterprises for Univision and, following the completion of the merger, the combined Televisa-Univision company. 

MIAMI—Univision Communications has unveiled ambitious plans for a global streaming service that will unify its existing streaming services and feature the world’s largest collection of originally produced Spanish-language content. 

The service, which will have a free ad-support and a premium subscription tier, is slated to bow sometime in 2022 in the U.S. and Latin America. 

“Today’s announcement is a quantum leap in Univision’s transformation as we aggressively scale and expand our streaming capabilities to bring thousands of hours of premium, original content to the nearly 600 million Spanish speakers around the world,” said Pierluigi Gazzolo, president and chief transformation officer at Univision. 

As part of the effort, the best of the existing PrendeTV, VIX and Univision NOW services will be transitioned and unified into one global service and brand. 

The name, pricing and specific launch date for the service will be announced following the close of the Televisa-Univision merger later this year.

The two-tier streaming service will offer a differentiated product proposition, the company noted, and will be fueled by full access to Televisa’s deep content library as well as an ambitious slate of new originals produced by the leading creators in the Spanish-speaking world. 

The ad-supported tier (AVOD) will be anchored by Univision’s current free Spanish-language streaming service, PrendeTV. This free tier will feature an upgraded, broadcast quality content offering, including select originals, major studio films, premium Spanish-language titles, an expanded live sports offering and a 24/7 news service. 

In total the free tier will have over 100 linear channels and over 40,000 hours of wholly-owned and acquired content that will also be offered in VOD form, the company said. 

The new premium subscription tier (SVOD) will feature more than 6,000 hours of Spanish-language content and more than 30 original productions exclusively on the service within its first year. The original productions for the service are being developed by some of the most notable established and up-and-coming creators in Spanish-language content today, the company said, with projects from such creators as Maria Dueñas, Santiago Limon and Mario Vargas Llosa.

To develop the service, Rodrigo Mazon has joined as executive VP and general manager of SVOD, reporting directly to Pierluigi Gazzolo. 

With more than 10 years experience in streaming, Mazon joins Univision from Netflix, where he most recently served as vice president of content. Mazon will be responsible for all elements of the SVOD service, including content and programming strategy, original content production, talent relations, content acquisitions from third-party producers and subscriber growth and retention.

Mazon’s appointment follows the recent addition of Michael Cerdá as Univision’s new executive vice president of product and engineering, streaming. 

Rafael Urbina, Univision’s executive vice president and general manager, AVOD Streaming, continues to lead PrendeTV, and will lead the future free ad-supported tier both in the U.S. and internationally.

MIAMI–Univision Communications Inc., has hired Michael “MC” Cerdá to serve as executive vice president, product and engineering, streaming, a new position. He joins the company from Disney+ and will report to Pierluigi Gazzolo, Univision’s president and chief transformation officer.

Cerdá will oversee the product and technology development strategy and execution for Univision’s streaming portfolio, anchored by its free ad-supported streaming service PrendeTV.

“MC is a great addition to the Univision team; his leadership and technical expertise will help us grow and evolve PrendeTV while further accelerating the company’s broader transformation,” Gazzolo said in a press statement. “His entrepreneurial track record and deep experience in developing industry-leading technology platforms at Disney+, Facebook and Goldman Sachs are critical assets for us as we continue to evolve and differentiate our company in the streaming space.”

“I am delighted to join Univision— a trusted and iconic brand that means so much to U.S. Hispanics—and to now form a part of the first and only streaming service designed specifically for Spanish-speaking consumers. This unique opportunity allows me to leverage my deep consumer experience, technical and business background to make a significant contribution to the platform, internal teams and external partners,” said Cerdá. “I look forward to collaborating with my colleagues to continue to transform Univision and create something truly unique in the marketplace.”

Prior to joining Univision, Cerdá led product management as well as the international expansion in the U.S., Latin America, Europe, and parts of Asia Pacific for Disney+.  He also worked for Goldman Sachs as chief product officer and managing director for Marcus, the company’s digital consumer bank, and was head of media products at Facebook.

MIAMI—Univision has announced plans to begin offering a 24-hour Spanish-language streaming news service targeted to U.S. Hispanics. 

The direct-to-consumer service will mark a notable expansion of streaming news content available to Hispanics. While Hispanics tend to be more active consumers of streaming content and digital media than the general population, they have been generally underserved by streaming services. 

In 2020, NBCUniversal launched the English-language LX digital news network and brand targeted to bi-lingual and younger viewers on its owned stations and on the Peacock streaming service. 

The upcoming Univision service will launch on the PrendeTV free, premium streaming service. 

Details on the service remain skimpy, with no confirmed launch date or name. 

In a general announcement of its new programming, Univision reported that “the new channel will offer live news and breaking stories in digital-friendly formats and snackable storytelling content across platforms.”

The move is part of an ongoing investment by Univision in news content for Hispanics, who are now the largest ethnic group in the U.S. 

On May 17, Univision launched a new studio for its news operations in its Miami facility for live broadcasts of “Noticiero Univision.”

The studio is designed to offer a more compelling news cast with a variety of new technologies. Those include augmented reality interactive graphics and real-time virtual graphics; high-definition LED screens that will provide the most complete storytelling; a new anchor desk with LED accent; multiple HD cameras and more than 100 LED light fixtures. 

The studio will also be used for content that will be available on the streaming news services. 

MELVILLE, N.Y., & MIAMI—Chyron, Hego and TRACAB are working jointly with Univision's sports division TUDN and the multimedia sports brand of Univision Communications to provide real-time capture and visualization of soccer player tracking data for its broadcasts of Liga MX, the top division of Mexico's professional soccer league system.

Hego is providing operations and production services using TRACAB's tracking technology along with Chyron's PRIME, Virtual Placement and Paint solutions to create and deliver sponsored and branded data-driven graphics in real time, as well as virtual ad insertion and state-of-the-art telestration.

"With the addition of real-time capture of player tracking data, we are able to enrich the viewing experience for our fans, plus provide new opportunities for our brand partners in our Liga MX broadcasts," said Miguel Angel Garcia, senior vice president of live events, Univision. "We've been pleased with how Chyron and TRACAB's high-performance solution seamlessly integrates into our system, and with Hego's expertise in translating real-time data into compelling elements of the match narrative. We're excited to elevate the experience for our fanáticos in innovative and new ways."

Despite facing the challenges of COVID-related restrictions and working across multiple languages and countries, Hego deployed the solution and trained operations teams for four key stadiums, including Estadio Azteca, Estadio Olímpico Universitario, Estadio Nemesio Díez, and Universitario, as well as production centers in Mexico City and Miami in 10 weeks.

Hego’s end-to-end managed services extends from acquisition of tracking data through delivery of that content to broadcast. Data-driven graphics inserted into the broadcast supply key metrics, highlight player positioning and movement and use dynamic markers, lines, shading, heat maps, labels and more to give viewers an in-depth understanding of performance and strategies, the company said.

Using its new SOLO flypack solution, which incorporates TRACAB technology and Chyron graphics solutions, Hego will have the ability to use this player tracking and data-driven graphics creation model mobile for future matches played from a variety of venues, it said.

"Through Hego, TRACAB, and Chyron, we are able to offer a unique solution for bringing striking data-driven visuals to live sports broadcasts, and it's exciting to see TUDN put this solution into play," said Ariel Garcia, CEO of the three brands.

SUNNYVALE, Calif. & MIAMI—Google and Univision have announced a multi-year strategic partnership with the goal of accelerating growth across Univision’s media and content properties.

The deal will see Univision work with Google Cloud to drive its digital transformation. The Spanish-language network will also work with other Google product areas like Android, Android TV OS, YouTube, Google Play, Google Ad Manager and Google Search to enhance its capabilities and overall viewer experience, the official announcement details.

Part of the strategic partnership will have Google assist Univision with consolidating its digital distribution platforms, modernizing its production systems, creating a new customer data warehouse and migrating enterprise applications to Google Cloud. With this, Univision will be able to apply AI and machine learning across its content library to improve customer recommendations, as well as gather data insight to create stronger advertising relationships with audiences.

Univision will also work with Google on expanding its streaming offerings, including the recently launched PrendeTV. This will include expanding Univision’s global YouTube partnership and integrating with entertainment features on Google Search that help with content discovery. Google Ad Manager and Google’s Dynamic Ad Insertion are also expected to be utilized.

Univision content and services will become available on Google Play across Android phone and tablets, as well as Google TV and other Android TV OS devices.

“At Univision, we've set out to be the most important global Spanish-language media company, and our partnership with Google is a critical piece of our transformation," said Wade Davis, CEO of Univision Communications Inc. "By leveraging Google's technology platform and expertise, we will transform our infrastructure to bring our customers an enhanced media experience.”

MIAMI—PrendeTV has hit the market, with Univision announcing that the free, ad-supported streaming service for U.S. Hispanic audiences is now available.

After reports that Univision was considering a streaming service in late 2020, the network officially announced PrendeTV in January and gave an expected launch date of the first quarter for 2021. PrendeTV came in just under the wire on that deadline.

PrendeTV has the largest selection of Spanish-language programming available to U.S. audiences, Univision says, with about 10,000 hours of VOD content from Univision and Televisa’s content libraries, including international drama series, reality shows, children’s programming, telenovelas and sports programming, as well as movies from major studios.

Part of the PrendeTV plan was the acquisition of Vix, which brings Prende TV’s content library to more than 30,000 hours.

“The launch of PrendeTV signals a new transformation era for Univision as we expand our already dominant position in U.S. Hispanic broadcasting into the AVOD streaming market and build on our leadership as the largest Spanish-language content and media company in the U.S.,” said Pierluigi Gazzolo, president and chief transformation officer at Univision. 

At launch, PrendeTV is available for free on Amazon Fire TV devices, Apple (iOS and tvOS), Google (Android phones and TV devices) and via prende.tv on the internet. Univision says that the streaming service will be available on Roku in the coming weeks.

MIAMI—Univision has announced that it is joining Project OAR, which is made up of U.S. media companies and focused on establishing a common technology for dynamic, addressable TV advertising.

Project OAR tests measurement and technical specifications of the OAR (Open Addressable Ready) standard for management and delivery of addressable ads. In the second half of 2020, it launched market trials for linear and on-demand formats on smart TVs.

Univision has been tapped to serve on Project OAR’s Steering Committee, which works to create a standard by which all parties in the TV ecosystem can collaborate and unite on addressable advertising. Other Steering Committee members include AMC Networks, Comcast NBCUniversal, Disney, Discovery, Comcast’s FreeWheel, Fox, Hearst Television, E.W. Scripps, WarnerMedia, ViacomCBS, Xandar and Vizio.

“As we continue to evolve the company under new leadership, Univision is proud to join Project OAR and to work with such preeminent media companies to meet the needs of brand partners in a changing media landscape,” says Donna Speciale, president of Advertising Sales and Marketing for Univision. “Together as an industry, we are helping to advance addressable TV advertising, deliver relevant experiences for all consumer audiences and present new advertising opportunities for marketers.”

As part of Project OAR, Univision can provide new ad products across its Spanish-language TV portfolio, which includes its traditional broadcast networks, cable networks and like soon its planned streaming service, PrendeTV.

MIAMI—Univision Communications has announced that it is buying Vix Inc., a Spanish-language ad-supported streaming service, to help with its eventual launch of PrendeTV. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.

In January, Univision announced that it planned to launch PrendeTV, an ad-supported streaming service created exclusively for Hispanic audiences in the U.S. Vix operates the largest free streaming platform in Spanish, with more than 20,000 hours of content and advertising serving Latin American and Hispanic audiences. Univision will integrate the newly acquired Vix into PrendeTV to boost its offering at launch.

In addition to content, Vix already has distribution across more than 30 connected TV and mobile platforms, including Roku, Apple TV, Fire TV and Android TV.

"Vix is the next important step toward Univision's goal of creating the most comprehensive ad-supported streaming service ever produced for Latino audiences," said Pierluigi Gazzolo, president and CEO of Univision Transformation. “Vix's team, content and distribution capabilities across the Americas immediately position PrendeTV to be the leader in free and premium video streaming in Spanish among Hispanics in the United States and provides our advertisers with a new way to reach large-scale audiences through a platform specifically designed for Hispanic consumers."

Rafael Urbina, CEO of Vix, will join Univision as general manager/executive vice president of Digital Media. Many other members of Vix's leadership will make the transition to Univision, the company said.

“We created a digital streaming company with the commitment to offer cultural relevance and the best streaming capacity to Latino audiences,” said Urbina. “Now we have the opportunity to fulfill that mission with the largest content company in Spanish, and I am very excited about what we can achieve together with the size and infrastructure of Univision.”

Univision has said that it plans to launch PrendeTV in the first quarter of 2021, but no official launch date has been announced.

MIAMI—Univision is officially throwing its hat into the streaming service fray, announcing that it intends to launch PrendeTV for U.S. audiences in the first quarter of 2021. PrendeTV will be a free ad-supported streaming service catered to U.S. Hispanic audiences and featuring 100% Spanish-language programming.

Reports of Univision creating its own streaming service first popped up in December 2020.

“PrendeTV is an important, early step in Univision’s broader efforts to build the same leadership position we have in Spanish-language TV, in the emerging Spanish-language streaming space,” said Univision CEO Wade Davis. “The announcement of PrendeTV within two weeks of closing our acquisition of Univision underscores our focus and commitment to rapidly driving the transformation and growth of the company. PrendeTV is unlike anything our audience has access to today and will completely change the landscape for video streaming in Spanish-language media in the United States.”

PrendeTV will carry premium and exclusive content, including Hollywood blockbusters, global television series, novelas, comedies, classic sports, documentaries, lifestyle shows and children’s programming all in Spanish, as well as Univision and Televisa’s own content libraries.

At launch, PrendeTV is expected to have 30 channels and 10,000 hours of video-on-demand programming, with more content expected to be added. Content will be accessed through a channels-based program guide or on-demand library menu, all in Spanish. There will be no login requirements and programs will feature limited commercial breaks, per Univision.

Consumers will be able to access PrendeTV on desktop and mobile devices via Prende.TV, and via free mobile and connected TV apps. Distribution partners will be announced at a later date, Univision said.

Univision programming will continue to be available through cable, satellite and select vMVPD distributors.

No official launch date has been announced. 

More information is available at Prende.TV. 

WASHINGTON—The majority sale of Univision to investor groups Searchlight, ForgeLight and Grupo Televisa has been approved by the FCC’s Media Bureau, giving the trio majority ownership interest of the Spanish-language broadcaster and its TV and radio stations.

In addition, the FCC has granted Univision’s petition for a declaratory ruling so that the resulting company can exceed the FCC’s 25% cap on foreign ownership, so long as it is in compliance with national security and law enforcement rules set forth by the Justice Department.

As a result of the sale, Univision will be required to sell three TV stations serving Puerto Rico prior to the deal being completed. The stations are WLII-DT, WSUR-DT and WOLE-DT. Univision will be allowed to continue its operation of WFTY-TV in Smithtown, N.Y., as a satellite station of WFUT-TV in Newark, N.J.

“We find that the record presents no substantial and material question of fact as to whether the transaction serves the public interest,” the FCC Media Bureau’s ruling reads. “We next find that approval of the proposed transfer of control would be in the public interest and grant the applications—including the request for a continuing satellite exception—conditioned upon divestiture of overlap stations in Puerto Rico.”

PLUS: Univision Working on Spanishg-Language Streaming Service (Report)

Searchight and ForegLight will acquire 64% of Univision from Madison Dearborn Partners, Providence Equity Partners, TPG, Thomas H. Lee Partners and Saban Capital Group. Grupo Televisa, through Multimedia Telecom, will control the other 36% of Univision.

The FCC acknowledged that Univision does have pending license renewals, but that there are no qualifications for these pending renewals that would prevent the sale from occurring.

NEW YORK—Univision is reportedly planning to get into the streaming business, as a report from Bloomberg says that the Spanish-language broadcaster is working on a streaming service designed for its viewers.

The streaming service is said to be a top priority of Univision’s incoming CEO Wade Davis, who believes the new flurry of streaming services aren’t serving Hispanic audiences, per Bloomberg.

A Univision streaming service is expected to include advertising and rely on the library of Mexico’s Group Televisa SBA, a Univision investor and programming supplier. The hope, according to Bloomberg, is to have the streaming service ready for the first half of 2021.

The full story is available on Bloomberg. 

NEW YORK—In this heightened age of “fake news,” Univision has announced that it is partnering with Luminate and the International Fact-Checking Network to host a workshop during the seventh edition of Global Fact.

The workshop is titled “¿Qué chequear, cómo chequear y con qué herramientas lo hago?” (“What to check, how to check and what tools do I use to do so?”), and it is meant to train Hispanic journalists in the U.S. tricks for information verification in Spanish so as to not spread news that is false or manipulated.

Cristina Tardáguila, IFCN associate director, will teach the two-part workshop. Tamoa Calzadilla from Univision will serve as the moderator.

The workshop will take place on June 29 and June 30. Find out more and register online.

WASHINGTON—Chris Wood has been appointed to the NAB’s Television Board of Directors, effective immediately, as the Univision network board seat. Wood is taking over the role from Jessica Herrera-Flanigan, who recently left Univision for a position with Twitter.

Wood is the senior vice president and associate general counsel for Univision Communications. He is responsible for advising Univision business units in TV and radio on compliance with FCC, Federal Trade Commissions and Federal Election Commission regulations.

In addition to his work with Univision, Wood is chairman of the North American Broadcast Association’s Legal Committee, is a former chairman of the Federal Communications Bar Association Foundation as well as a former co-chair of FCBA’s Mass Media Practice Committee. He has also twice been a delegate of the World Intellectual Property Association’s Standing Committee on Copyrights in Geneva.

For more information, visit www.nab.org. 

MIAMI, LOS ANGELES & MEXICO CITY—After reports on Monday, Feb. 24, that Univision was nearing a sale, an official agreement was reached between Univision Holdings Inc., Searchlight Capital Partners and ForgeLight LLC that will have Searchlight and ForgeLight acquire a majority ownership stake in Univision.

Televisa, which was a previous stakeholder in Univision, has elected to retain its 36% stake in Univision amidst the deal. Televisa’s Program License Agreement with Univision will remain in effect and will not expire unless Televisa voluntarily sells down a substantial portion of its ownership stake, at which point the agreement would remain in place for an additional 7.5 years. The agreement with Televisa provides Univision with a large Spanish-language video library.

SearchLight and ForgeLight are set to purchase the remaining 64% of ownership interest in Univision. Wade Davis, founder of ForgeLight and former CFO of Viacom, will become the CEO of Univision upon close of the deal. The transaction is expected to close later in 2020.

No financial terms were disclosed.

Univision provides national and local Spanish-language news, sports and entertainment, as well as a Hispanic radio network and Latin music media platform, that is available through a multicontent platform.

“We are a re-energized and refocused company, and today marks the start of an exciting new chapter with partners that recognize the excellent position Univision is in,” said Vince Sadusky, CEO of Univision. “Both Searchlight and Wade are wholly supportive of Univision’s core mission to entertain, inform and empower Hispanic America and fully embrace the commitment and special bond we have with our audience.”

“I am honored to be partnering with Televisa and Searchlight to help steward Univision into this next phase,” added Davis. “This group of owners will be able to support the incredible team at Univision to deliver even more value to its advertisers, distributors and most importantly, its audience.”

Searchlight and ForgeLight’s acquisition of Univision will be subject to customary closing conditions, including receipt of regulatory approvals.

NEW YORK—Univision is close to being acquired by an investor group lead by former Viacom CFO Wade Davis, according to published reports.

Davis is based by Searchlight Capital Partners, according to Bloomberg, which said the transaction would value the Spanish-language media company at less than $10 billion.

Groupo Televisa, which owns about 40% of Univision, will continue to own a stake in the company, according to the report.

Univision was taken private in 2007 by a group including Saban Capital Group in a deal valued at $12.3 billion. The company turned down a $13 billion merger offer from Discovery in 2017 and a plan for an initial public offering was floated in 2018.

SAN ANTONIO—Emilio Nicolas Sr., one of the founders of Univision, passed away over the weekend at his home in San Antonio.

Nicolas began his broadcasting career at the Spanish television station KCOR-TV in San Antonio producing live shows and directing the news department. He eventually became the station’s president and general manager. When the station was purchased in 1961 and became KWEX, Nicolas helped rebuild the station and helped it become part of the Spanish International Network. In 1976, KWEX became the center for SIN, which was the first satellite interconnected television network in the U.S. and would eventually become Univision.

Other achievements during his broadcast career include lobbying Congress to mandate that all TV sets be equipped to receive both VHF and UHF channels. He also served as the chairman for the National Association of Spanish Broadcasters.

Nicolas is survived by his wife, three children and their spouses, one sister, five grandchildren and seven great grandchildren.

DALLAS—Construction and connectivity work on the ATSC 3.0 Single Frequency Network (SFN) being installed in the Dallas-Fort Worth Designated Market Area, American Tower announced in January.

The SFN, a collaboration of American Tower, Sinclair Broadcast Group, Univision Local Media, Nexstar and Spectrum Co., consists of four existing American Tower sites located around market in both metro and suburban sites to maximize signal strength across the DMA.

“The construction phase went quite smoothly,” said Ed Tiongson, Director, Product Innovation for American Tower. “With these ATSC 3.0 deployments, it’s critical to draw on expertise to synchronize SFN towers effectively, including integrating the network components, such as antennas, transmitters, and radios for optimum signal delivery.”

[Read: Dallas ATSC 3.0 SFN Buildout Nears Completion]

The towers, electrical power, fiber network and transmitter buildings at sites in Fort Worth, Denton and Garland, Texas, were upgraded for TV. A pre-fab building was also added in Garland, and a point-to-point microwave link between the Denton and Fort Worth sites was also installed, the company said.

The work included upgrades to networking, internet exchange, fiber and data center connectivity as well as three-phase power. Comark transmitters and exciters also were added at each site, the company said.

The main transmission tower site in Cedar Hill, Texas –currently the main 1.0 transmission site—received an upgrade of ATSC 3.0 transmission equipment, rounding out the four-site SFN, American Tower said.

With the 3.0 SFN infrastructure in place, validation testing of RF design and link budget will begin. Evaluating operational workflows is also on tap. “Once the RF measurements are validated, we will be able to scale for additional sites in the future as business needs dictate,” said Jim Leifer, Senior Manager, Broadcast Operations at American Tower.

March 1 is targeted as the date the SFN will light up, said Mark Aitken, Sinclair vice president of Advanced Technology and President of ONE Media LLC, in a recent Q&A with TVTechnology.

“The holdup on this one is the MVPD notification process, and the FCC is a stickler on making sure we run out the 120 days,” said Aitken.

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

NEW YORK–At NAB Show New York this week, executives from Fox Television Stations; NBC and Telemundo Owned Stations Group; Univision; TEGNA, Inc. (for Pearl TV), and Nexstar Media Group (for SpectrumCo) announced their collaborative effort and support for the introduction of ATSC 3.0 (aka Next Gen TV).

The new standard, which was approved by the FCC a year ago, combines broadcast with IP and will introduce a far more robust and flexible UHD video service designed to compete against the increasing penetration of OTT-streaming services; however, the standard is not backward-compatible with current TV sets. The announcement this week is designed to confirm stations’ commitment to collaborating on launching ATSC 3.0 in anticipation of the market introduction of ATSC 3.0-enabled sets in 2020.

It doesn’t mean every station in these groups will be deploying the standard, but instead will collaborate with each other to provide a large enough national footprint so that a majority of American consumers will be able to receive some form of ATSC 3.0 service by the time sets appear in stores by the end of 2020. Anne Schelle, director of the Pearl TV Group--which is testing the standard via the Phoenix Model Market pilot project--said the lab provides a good example of this type of collaboration, where multiple stations are using a Univision stick to transmit test signals, while maintaining the legacy ATSC 1.0 signal, referred to as the “lighthouse” approach.

“I think the Phoenix test is a great example of how stations are collaborating on a market to market basis,” she said. “In Phoenix, we’re working of a Univision stick and we are looking to enable a second stick in the market and that allows us to start to introduce these basic services across the country.”

As far as financial commitments, Schelle said it’s too early to tell, but that “the cost to upgrade to an ATSC 3.0 lighthouse is fairly small compared to the existing infrastructure that’s already in place,” she said. But “none of the companies are prepared to provide that level of detail at this point.”

This new effort is not exclusive and will include other broadcasters with interests in next-gen TV services, including both other commercial and public TV broadcasters.

CONSUMER ELECTRONICS COMPANIES ALSO COMMITTED

In addition to the station groups, consumer electronics giants LG, Samsung and Sony also expressed their commitment to the standard. All three companies have been involved in the development of the standard.

“LG looks forward to working with these and other broadcasters and stakeholders in the Next Gen TV ecosystem to help bring the benefits of ATSC 3.0 to American consumers,” said Dr. Jong Kim, senior vice president in the office of the CTO at LG Electronics as well as president of Zenith Electronics, LG’s U.S. R&D subsidiary contributing to Next Gen TV standards.

Building on its support of the Phoenix Model Market pilot project, LG plans to provide receiver technology and expertise to support various markets from coast to coast launching Next Gen TV, Dr. Kim explained. LG already has launched 4K Ultra HD TVs with ATSC 3.0 receiver chips in South Korea.

Sony Electronics will supply televisions, demodulators and application development tools for ATSC 3.0 and is collaborating with broadcasters and other industry players in testing both technical solutions and service models. Current collaborations include the Phoenix Model Market and Test Bed, as well as launches by individual broadcast groups.

Station group CEOs expressed their enthusiasm for the standard’s deployment.

“One big challenge was whether the big owners of valuable spectrum could work together, commit resources, and stick to the game plan. Done, done and done," said Jack Abernethy, Chief Executive Officer at FOX Television Stations.

“ATSC 3.0 is something that as an industry we have to do. The new standard will transform the way we deliver content to our audiences - including viewers who are consuming information in multiple languages and screens. ATSC 3.0 will also help us to better connect advertisers with the audiences they want to reach on any platform. We are pleased to be working with Pearl TV and our broadcast partners to ensure the new technology is set in place for both viewers and broadcasters when we are ready to roll-out the new standard,” said Valari Staab, President, NBCUniversal Owned Television Stations.

“Univision is excited to continue playing a leadership role in the market transition from ATSC 1.0 to ATSC 3.0. As one of the largest TV spectrum holders in the US, we are eager to bring an enhanced audio and video experience to our audience, as well as new services and capabilities to our advertising partners,” said Vince Sadusky, Chief Executive Officer at Univision.

“Pearl TV’s 300 local broadcasters, along with our network partners, are working together to deliver a national Next-Gen TV service by the end of 2020. ATSC 3.0 offers new ways for local broadcasters to tell stories, interact with viewers, make an impact in our communities and innovate across screens and devices. The new standard will allow for clear, ultra HD signals, personalized advertising and the potential for exciting new adjacencies such as smart city infrastructure and connected vehicles,” said Dave Lougee, President and CEO of TEGNA, Inc., one of the Pearl TV broadcast group members.

"SpectrumCo and Pearl TV consortium members are aligned in our commitment to the voluntary scaled adoption of the ATSC 3.0 broadcast standard across the U.S.," said Perry Sook, President & CEO of Nexstar Media Group, representing SpectrumCo. “Advancing the ATSC 3.0 standard is critical to facilitating future innovation in the local broadcast television industry. With more than 350 SpectrumCo stations participating and additional new members in the pipeline, SpectrumCo broadcasters will add immense scale and depth to the collaborative industry wide rollout of ATSC 3.0. With this new technology broadcasters will be able to bring consumers more localized programming content and a host of other innovative NextGen TV services, while creating new revenue opportunities for our respective businesses in growing areas of the digital economy."

The Phoenix Model Market pilot project launched nearly one year ago and the pilot project has offered testing for broadcast equipment implementation, new services, and technology offerings to show how the ATSC 3.0 standard could be deployed by broadcasters while maintaining existing digital service for viewers. The Phoenix DMA is home to more than 1.8 million households with more than one in five viewers relying on over-the-air reception. Participating TV groups and stations in the Phoenix Model Market include: Arizona State University's Arizona PBS (KAET) , Arizona Television’s KAZT Channel 7 (Independent), E.W. Scripps’ KNXV (ABC), Fox Television Stations' KSAZ (Fox) and KUTP (MyTV), Meredith’s KPHO (CBS) and KTVK (Independent), Nexstar Media Group’s KASW (CW); Telemundo Station Group’s KTAZ (Telemundo), TEGNA’s KPNX (NBC), and Univision’s KFPH-CD (UniMas) and KTVW (Univision).

CONSUMER INTEREST IN NEXT GEN TV IS HIGH, ACCORDING TO MAGID

Pearl TV's initial activities in Phoenix provide an open test bed and a proving ground for technology, implementations, and new services. A September 2018 consumer survey conducted by Magid for Pearl TV and the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) shows exceptionally strong consumer interest in a Next Gen TV service that will offer all the programming of live over-the-air TV (such as local news, live sports, programming from ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox and other broadcast networks) and adds improved features that can enhance the viewing experience for consumers.

In the Phoenix Model Market partners /CTA survey of more than 1,500 U.S. consumers ages 18-74, Magid registered “solid overall interest in and high likelihood to use” the next-gen ATSC 3.0 concept. The research also shows that the Next Gen TV concept is most appealing with younger consumers and those who are defined as “Early Adopters” because of their positive attitude toward technology.

Magid’s research shows 42 percent of those interested in ATSC 3.0 say they anticipate buying a new TV to enable and enjoy next-gen TV services. Overwhelmingly, 96 percent of the Core Target (those who rated the concept Very Appealing and Very Likely to use next-gen TV) said they were likely to buy a new TV set to experience Next Gen TV.

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

PHOENIX—FCC Chairman Ajit Pai described the ongoing trial of ATSC 3.0 as “really exciting” Aug. 19 after a visit to the Univision station in town for a demo of Next-Gen TV.

In a video tweeted by Pai, the chairman said Next-Gen TV marries “the best of broadcasting –that one-to-many architecture we’ve known and enjoyed for many years with the Internet.”

General managers from the Phoenix stations participating in the Pearl TV-led model market project gathered with Pai at the Univision studios to watch ATSC 3.0 in action, according to Anne Schelle, managing director of Pearl TV.

Pai was shown 1080p HDR delivered over the air to three prototype U.S. ATSC 3.0 sets –one each from LG Electronics, Samsung and Sony. The televisions were equipped with a 4K upconverter, she added.

[Read: WRAL-TV Showcases Next Gen TV’s Potential]

In his Tweet, Pai laid out some of the benefits ATSC 3.0 offers viewers, including immersive audio, highly localized information, better accessibility for those with disabilities and the ability to support a variety of viewing screens ranging from big-screen TVs in the living room to mobile devices.

“We were able to demonstrate [for Pai] many of the features and functions that we’re excited about bringing to consumers,” said Schelle.

Pai’s visit to Phoenix came while a major 3.0 development conference is going on in the city, which meant that more than 20 companies developing 3.0 technology were in town and attended the demonstration for the chairman. The vendors gathered for the 3.0 developer conference will write the guidelines for the interactive layer for the industry to use, said Schelle.

Besides showing the chairman over-the-air reception and upconversion of a 3.0 signal to 4K HDR, the Next-Gen audio capabilities of Dolby AC-4 were highlighted. An application “skin” that will be tested by the stations participating in the 3.0 model market was also on display as were the advanced advertising and audience data capabilities of the platform that support program recommendations and more content for viewers, said Schelle. Emergency alerting via AWARN and mobile reception were also part of the demo.

Beyond 3.0 features, the demo gave Pai a good sense of the level of cooperation taking place among broadcasters, vendors and other developers to make the ultimate Next-Gen TV rollout a success, she added.

“When you go in the equipment room [at the station], we have multiple vendors that are on the racks,” she said.

Schelle characterized Pai’s reaction to the 3.0 demo as upbeat. “I think he was excited and pleased to see the level of collaboration and number of companies that were present, the amount of investment going into ATSC 3.0, which is pretty tremendous, and how far we have come and how quickly.”

The visit to the test facility is part of a tour the FCC Chairman is taking of the southwest U.S.

WASHINGTON--The FCC, with an assist from a bunch of broadcasters including Sinclair and Tribune, have teamed up to tell a federal court that the groups challenging the FCC's return of the UHF discount did not have standing the bring the suit.

That came in comments to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.

After judges in oral argument suggested Free Press et. al had not provided the requisite documentation of harmed members, the group supplied testimonials to that effect.

But in a brief filed with the court Wednesday (May 16) in response to Free Press' supplement, the FCC said that the Supreme Court had long made clear that for an organization to establish standing, it must identify specific members "who had suffered cognizable, traceable, and redressable injuries," and that the court's signal that it would allow Free Press to provide that after the fact if Free Press could show that it "reasonably, but mistakenly, believed" its original filing "had sufficiently demonstrated standing."

The FCC said the petitioners had not done that. For one, it said, since petitioners did not identify any specific members, let alone what their injury might be, it "could not have reasonably thought it had demonstrated standing."

The FCC pointed out it had challenged standing, as had the broadcasters, Free Press et al. had failed to remedy that deficiency in reply briefs or oral argument.

And trying to use Free Press' supplement against it, the FCC said that its "belated submission of hundreds of pages of declarations, following a court order, demonstrates it was unreasonable for petitioners to have previously believed their standing was obvious."

As to Free Press' citation of the potential harms of a Sinclair-Tribune merger in their supplement, the FCC said that was simply "speculation about the effects of proposed broadcast acquisitions that are still awaiting Commission action." To be fair, Free Press also cited the impact of Sinclair-Bonten deal, which was approved last year.

Given that Free Press did not establish standing "at the time of the suit," or so the FCC argues, the court should dismiss the petition to review and reverse the UHF discount decision on the basis of lack of standing.

In their brief, Sinclair, Tribune, Fox, Univision, Trinity, ION and Nexstar, second-chaired the FCC's argument, summing it up this way:

"The Supreme Court and this Court long ago held that parties relying on the associational-standing doctrine must 'establis[h] that at least one identified member' has standing. It is likewise well-established that petitioners 'must produce actual evidence, not mere allegations, of facts that support [their] standing.' Petitioners failed to meet these clear requirements and had no reasonable basis for believing that the requirements did not apply."

They also agreed that the Sinclair-Tribune deal is "insufficiently certain or imminent to establish standing."

The insufficiently imminent point is because the FCC has yet to even restart its shot clock on the deal, after which it will put the latest deal out for several weeks of public comment before rendering a decision.

They also point out that the Bonten deal was not opposed by Free Press et al. "Petitioners cannot establish standing based on a transaction they did not oppose and cannot seek to undo because any alleged harm to Petitioners would be traceable to that transaction, not the FCC’s separate Reconsideration Order," they said. "Additionally, the FCC had not approved the Sinclair-Bonten transaction when Petitioners instituted this action, the “critical time for Article III standing analysis.” 

PHOENIX--While broadcasters have been absorbing the latest ATSC 3.0 developments at the 2018 NAB Show in Las Vegas, the real action has been taking place in Phoenix, where pioneering broadcasters launched some of the industry’s first ATSC 3.0 over-the-air broadcasts.

KFPH’s UNIMAS NOW BROADCASTING ATSC 3.0

The first to step up to the plate—in what is known as the Phoenix Model Market—is KFPH-CD Channel 35, a local Univision-owned station, in Phoenix, now airing UniMás network programming in ATSC 3.0. Pearl TV Managing Director Anne Schelle made the announcement at the show.

Pearl TV touts the Phoenix Model Market as the first collaborative, single-market effort to promote a real-world ATSC 3.0 implementation. A business alliance of Cox Media Group, Pearl TV includes: E.W. Scripps Company, Graham Media Group, Hearst Television Inc., Meredith Local Media Group, Nexstar Media Group, Raycom Media, and TEGNA Inc.

[Read: Phoenix To Serve As ‘Model Market’ For ATSC 3.0]

ARIZONA PBS’ KIDS NOW IN ATSC 3.0

Pearl TV is also working with Arizona PBS—a PBS member station reaching 1.9 million households—to place its Arizona PBS KIDS channel (8.4) on the new ATSC 3 tower. According to Lonna Thompson, Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel of America’s Public Television Stations (APTS), this will enable the delivery of interactive, personalized learning and educational content as a richer viewer experience.

“This groundbreaking partnership is the first step in the implementation of ATSC 3.0, which holds significant improvements in store for public television’s public service missions of education, public safety and civic leadership,” Thompson said, adding that Phoenix viewers are about to be amazed by ATSC 3.0’s revolutionary picture and sound quality.

VENDORS JOIN PHOENIX PROJECT

In related news, several prominent consumer electronics manufacturers, including LG Electronics, Sony Electronics, Samsung, and Channel Master, have joined the Phoenix Model Project.

They join Dielectric, Enensys, GatesAir, Harmonic and Triveni Digital, as well as broadcasters E.W. Scripps Company, Fox Television Stations, Meredith Local Media Group, Nexstar Media Group, TEGNA Inc., Telemundo Station Group, Univision Communications, and Arizona PBS, which are already cooperating to launch ATSC 3.0 programming, while employing the “lighthouse” concept of keeping legacy DTV available for all viewers while ATSC 3.0 services are launched.

[Read: Major Broadcast Suppliers Sign On To Assist In Phoenix ATSC 3.0 Model Market]

Other companies contributing to this open test-bed environment are: Dolby Laboratories, TitanTV, and UniSoft, as well as signaling and technical experts BitRouter, Yotta Media Labs, and Meintel, Sgrignoli & Wallace (MSW).

The Phoenix Model Market has several objectives, including confirming basic TV service parameters and performance, determining the appeal of next-generation high dynamic range video and immersive audio content to consumers, testing interactive and addressable advertising functionality, and testing cable integration.

ROAD TO ATSC 3.0 AT NAB SHOW

During the 2018 NAB Show, the “Road to ATSC 3.0” exhibit in the Grand Lobby of the Las Vegas Convention Center features a Phoenix Model Market kiosk where Sony will demonstrate ATSC 3.0’s interactive capabilities. These include adaptive ad insertion and messaging displayed with real-time object delivery over unidirectional transport, as well as dynamic adaptive streaming over HyperText Transfer Protocol, known as "ROUTE" and "DASH."

Using an ATSC 3.0 receiver provided by LG Electronics, Yotta Media Labs will also demonstrate a prototype application that ATSC 3.0 broadcasters can use to allow local viewers to access and discover content through a modern TV guide embedded in the broadcaster's channel. 

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

PHOENIX — Five broadcast technology vendors, including Dielectric, Enensys, GatesAir, Harmonic and Triveni Digital, will help television broadcasters in Phoenix make the Pearl TV-led ATSC 3.0 Model Market Initiative a reality.

Stations owned by E.W. Scripps Co., Fox Television Stations, Meredith Local Media Group, Nexstar Media Group, Tegna, Telemundo Station Group and Univision are taking part in the initiative, which will test advanced business models made possible by Next Gen TV.

The initiative also will demonstrate that it is possible to transition to Next-Gen TV while maintaining legacy ATSC 1.0 DTV service.

“We are delighted to announce the first group of technology suppliers who will help make the Phoenix model market a reality,” said Pearl TV Managing Director Anne Schelle in a press release announcing the participation of the companies. “This is just [the] first round of key broadcast equipment vendors who are now at work to create an over-the-air ATSC 3.0 deployment.”

[Read: 2018 NAB Show Marks Next Gen TV’s Arrival]

The Phoenix model market will provide an open test bed for all of the stakeholders in the TV ecosystem, according to a press announcement. Several objectives are planned for the initiative, including: confirmation of basic TV service parameters and performance; determining the appeal of HDR and immersive audio to consumers; assessing TV application features and implementation requirements; testing interactive and addressable ad functionality; and determining consumer device and service appeal, the announcement said.

The initial technology deployment supporting the initiative includes:

• Dielectric UT8D7F-3K filter, a 3 kW low-loss, high-efficiency, eight-pole, UHF bandpass filter;
• Enensys ATSCheduler, an ATSC 3.0 broadcast gateway that encapsulated MMT and ROUTE IP streams into an ATSC 3.0 multiplex, allocating data to different sub-frame and physical layer pipes and managing SFN synchronization;
• GatesAir Maxiva AXTE-3 UHF air-cooled TV transmitter for ATSC 3.0 transmission in Phoenix;
• Harmonic Electra X ATSC 3.0 encoding and statistical multiplexer media processor to deliver multiple HEVC programs over DASH;
• Triveni Digital GuideBuilder XM signaling, announcement and transport generator and StreamScope XM advanced monitor and analysis system, both part of the company’s Broadcast Services Management Platform.

All participating vendors will be exhibiting at the 2018 NAB Show, April 7–12, in Las Vegas. Dielectric will be in booth C2613; Enensys will be in booth SU6521; GatesAir will be in booth N3703; Harmonic will be in booth SU610; and Triveni Digital will be in booth N1427.

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

BALTIMORE—Two months ago, Sinclair Broadcast Group, Nexstar Media Group, Univision and American Tower announced they would work together to setup an ATSC 3.0-based single frequency network in the Dallas market. Work is progressing on the SFN, which with a bit of regulatory help from the FCC should be partially lit up before next month’s NAB Show in Las Vegas.

The SFN effort is more than simply a trial of Next-Gen television, however. It is also a test of a proposed ATSC 1-to-ATSC 3.0 transition that relies on spectrum clearing, channel sharing and what may be an unprecedented level of cooperation among competing broadcasters.

Mark Aitken, vice president of Advanced Technology at Sinclair Broadcast Group, has been at the center of the rollout of this Next-Gen SFN trial. In this interview, he discusses how work on the single frequency network is progressing and how the trial will provide Sinclair with critical data that will help it achieve its goal of deploying SFNs nationwide to usher in a new era of television.

(The following is an edited transcript.)

TVTechnology:Sinclair, Nexstar and Univision, along with American Tower Corp., announced in January the joint construction and operation of an ATSC 3.0 single frequency network in Dallas. Can you bring me up to date on where the project stands?

Mark Aitken: There are three new SFN sites that will host the Next-Gen service of five local Dallas stations. We refer to this as a multi-channel, multi-tenant SFN—obviously Next-Gen-related.

We are in the process of providing a network infrastructure that ties to all of those facilities so that we have what we refer to as a Next-Gen Broadcast Operations Center. That will be a local presence that also is capable of being run from Baltimore [the home of Sinclair’s headquarters].

On a local level, we have the issue of getting the SFN up and running. First off is the main transmission site with Next-Gen, tying that into multiple SFN sites and all of the work that goes along with that, including timing and determining the proper power overlaps.

Once that is working, we must address how to operate that as a remote site. Eventually, that operation will go back to a regional center because it is envisioned that Dallas is just one of a number of DMAs that get serviced from a regional hub.

[Dallas Getting Single Frequency Network for ATSC 3.0 Deployment]

TVT:What stations will participate?

MA: The target stations—and I say target stations because all of this is subject to FCC approval—are KSTR, a UniMas station; KTSD, an independent owned by Cunningham Broadcasting; KUVN, the Univision affiliate; KDAF, the Tribune Broadcasting CW affiliate; and a fifth station, which I cannot divulge at the moment.

Two of those stations—KSTR and KTXD—will relieve themselves from their ATSC 1 activity and be hosted by the others in a channel-sharing arrangement. This is important: this channel sharing means there will be no channels lost to over-the-air viewers. None of the core channels nor the Diginets will be lost.

All five will also broadcast all of their channels—core and Diginet—as Next-Gen service on the SFN. I think that is a total of 20 channels.

TVT:That setup must put big demands on MPEG-2 encoders for the ATSC 1 side of the operation.

MA: This is a crowded field, and we need capacity for additional channels on the 1.0 stick. What that encompasses is bringing in new software-based encoders that are being optimized for a new and different level of service.

In that regard, we have a vendor with encoders that will do one HD and depending on program content five, six or seven SDs at the same time. Or, they are capable of supporting three HDs at the same time, or supporting a whole host of combinations in between.

TVT:I’ve often heard it said that getting a group of broadcasters to agree to anything is like herding cats. This Dallas arrangement seems to fly in the face of that.

MA: My emphasis in Dallas is on learning how to get along. None of this happens without participation and cooperation.

It’s about keeping that 1.0 piece whole, not impacting the consumer. Not impacting the revenue of stations and making way to fully impact the unleashing of new, future services. Those things equate to keeping the industry alive.

TVT:What is the target launch date?

MA: We are hoping to have part of the system up and running prior to NAB. I say trying to because once you figure out who your partners are for the sharing on the 1.0 side, you’ve got notification requirements and FCC filing requirements for post licensing through the commission.

If you look at what came out of the rulemaking, a secondary license gets issued for the purposes of being allowed to carry your content on another channel [channel sharing to continue 1.0 service]. And that’s further made difficult if you have a PBS non-com in that mix because of the nature of non-com rules. On top of that, the FCC form called out [in the ATSC 3.0 rulemaking that details the 1.0 hosted environment] doesn’t even exist at the moment. So, we’re working very closely with the FCC.

TVT:You’ve mentioned in the past that Sinclair wants to rollout a nationwide network of 3.0 SFNs. Will this SFN trial help you achieve that goal, and if so, how?

MA: What Dallas allows us to do is check off the list, “OK, here’s the equipment, here are the available vendors, here is the project timeline and here is the sequence of events.”

It’s a project in its own right, and it has its own timeline impacted by deliveries and acceptance and commissioning and all of those things. When you are talking about multi-channel, multi-tenant sites for SFNs, you’re building new transmission facilities.

It is really understanding what resources are available, what capitalization is required, what the interrelated services are and how they get sequenced. It is really a soup-to-nuts approach to a somewhat complicated puzzle.

By the way, what’s gone on in front of that is the actual engineering and planning of what is the nature of a properly designed single frequency network.

How do you get the coverages lined up, how do you coordinate coverage in an SFN environment versus interference? It’s all those engineering studies. It’s all those—in our case—the use of Progira software as the planning tool for understanding the nature of what the end result is going to be.

TVT:You’ve had an ongoing SFN trial in the Washington, D.C.-Baltimore corridor. What takeaways from that trial will be helpful in Dallas?

MA: What’s helpful is we understand how to synchronize and balance the propagation characteristics in that SFN, the nature of performance we need in the network. We know the nature of the components that go into that. However, we need more than a single market to understand propagation. We do propagation studies. But do they match in the real world what we have synthesized in the environment in a software program?

TVT:How will you be conducting field strength tests and other needed tests in Dallas?

MA: ONE Media will deploy its mobile lab, which is a completely outfitted van that will do every level of testing on the move, not just from fixed sites—so automated data collection on the move in a real mobile environment.

[Putting Next Gen TV to the [Full] Test]

We have to take that data and compare that against the projected data coming out of Progira and ensure that what we think we’ll get is what we’re getting. We started that process in Baltimore, but that’s just one market.

TVT:Why Dallas? Was it the fairly flat terrain?

MA: Look, it would be foolish to start with the most difficult cases and there are plenty of those. Top of mind, you have Seattle, Pittsburgh and lots of other markets. But it wasn’t chosen specifically because it is flat. There were a whole number of considerations.

We’re looking at how we would do a connected, regional service. The plans that we have made in terms of the SFN aren’t just about the Dallas-Ft. Worth market. They extend down a whole corridor and the next in line is Waco.

It also was chosen because of the availability of partners. It was chosen because Dallas is a bit of a high–tech center. It was chosen, by the way, [because] Nexstar’s home office is in Dallas.

It was chosen for a whole number of reasons, but clearly because it is reasonably tame geographically, first things first. The mantra here is crawl, walk, run.

TVT:One theoretical SFN deployment scenario that is often described is ringing the perimeter of a market with several—maybe four—SFN sites with directional antennas pointed inwards toward the big stick. I know you’ve said there will be three SFN sites, but is this the type of approach that will be taken in Dallas?

MA: Actually, it is substantially of that nature. They are not directional antennas, but they have a degree of directionality. They’re cardioids.

If you looked at the plan, you would see there is a fourth site, but it actually overlaps into the Waco market, and that’s best suited to be served by the channel structure in Waco as opposed to Dallas.

So, we know we need that in the lower side of Dallas. We’ve focused on the high population densities—the northern sort of growth patterns of that market—to light that up first.

TVT:What transmitters will be used at the SFN site and what will the ERP be?

MA: We will be using 5kW Comark solid state transmitters. The ERP will be 100kW.

TVT:Is there a target average signal strength you are trying to achieve for the market?

MA: The target signal strength is 60µv/square meter at 1.5 meters off the ground, or the typical distance off the ground a person would be holding a portable device. That’s based on a 95 percent probability service factor.

TVT:What are your plans for synchronizing the transmitters on the network?

MA: It is a matter of going out in the field, looking at the impulse response of merged transmission systems. We’ll be flexing some of the tools like TxID [ATSC 3.0’s transmitter identification signal] that allow us to identify the nature of the multiple signals being received.

We know on a map where the mating point is, if you will, of converging emissions from towers. We will go out in the field and set those up. And we’ve got GPS lock and distribution of common timing across the network. It’s actually a pretty easy process.

  [WRAL-TV Showcases Next Gen TV's Potential]  

TVT:If the GPS satellite signal were lost, is there a backup?

MA: The GPS assumes we have a running Rubidium-based clock synced. That way, you can lose satellite coverage and still have a stable clock.

It really is the case that GPS is bigger than a single SFN. You need a stable clock source that ties all of these entities together. But there are multiple ways of doing that and we will be testing other methods as well.

All the other industries that surround us do this on a day-in-day-out basis, whether it’s LTE Broadcast, DVB-T2, DTMB, go down the alphabet soup list. That’s not the difficult piece of the equation.

TVT:What about STLs? Microwave or fiber?

MA: While we have fiber to all sites, we are purposely dropping microwave into the middle of that to dissuade any concerns people may have about a mixed environment.

TVT:How important is sharing to the success of your SFN strategy?

MA: It is really important, because it is a cost share. It is also about efficiency of resource use.

The fact of the matter is I want to build an SFN and you want to build an SFN. Well, does it really make sense to deploy two different tower crews and do it sequentially? So, there are cost savings and resource savings and I would say that in the planning of that there is a level of redundancy and resiliency that gets built in by the nature of the quality of service desired.

TVT:You said ONE Media will be in the market with a specially built van taking measurements. Are there other plans for reception besides the engineering side of things—perhaps seeding the market with ATSC 3.0 receivers?

MA: Absolutely. We’ve got a number of parallel paths underway to bring to market the devices that are going to ultimately support the business. So, gateway type devices. We’ve got activities underway with a couple of proposals. A couple of the participants are actually building prototype receivers and prototype gateway devices.

We are in the process of lining up the type of launch services, but a lot of that is in the hands of Spectrum Co and John Hane [newly named president of Spectrum Co].

TVT:How much will this SFN deployment cost —or is that proprietary information?

MA: We will make public the cost when we tally it up. There won’t be any secrets here. What I will say is it is running substantially below the budget we projected. That budget was in line with projections many people have made over the last couple of years with respect to the cost of building out shared SFN sites.

TVT:Dallas is the model. But each market where you ultimately will deploy SFNs will be different. The big sticks in one case might be co-located on an antenna farm and in others they will be spread out throughout the market. So how much can you walk away with from this SFN trial that will be applicable to other markets as you deploy a nationwide network?

MA: I think the framework is 100 percent applicable. The variables inside that framework may be different. Is it three, four, five or a half dozen transmitters? That changes it. The nature of the work that has to be done on site is another variable. Is the existing tower fine, or does it need to be reinforced?

But we know these variables because all of these variables are in play in Dallas. While the specifics won’t be exactly the same, we are defining a framework of decisions that will have to be made. So, we will have a well-defined decision engine that we hope will help us deploy in virtually any market.

TVT:Is there anything else?

MA: I think the industry wishes us success and we wish great success to others in the industry that are doing their own Next-Gen implementations.

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

BOSTON & BALTIMORE—The Dallas Designated Market Area is taking its first step toward Next Gen TV with the construction of single frequency network sites to broadcast ATSC 3.0 signals via a partnership between Sinclair Broadcast Group, Nexstar Media Group, Univision Local Media and American Tower Corporation.

The agreement between the broadcasters and American Tower will create a SFN for the testing, validation and deployment of ATSC 3.0. The goal is to develop a roadmap for broadcasters and increase the speed in which Next Gen TV services can be provided to consumers. Some of the services that ATSC 3.0 is expected to bring to consumers includes improved over-the-air reception, immersive audio, deep-indoor reception, mobile reception, zoned programming/advertising, automotive services and advanced emergency alerting.

The FCC gave its approval for broadcasters to voluntarily start rolling out ATSC 3.0 in November 2017 and other cities have begun to plan deployments to test the standard, most notably Phoenix.

“With the FCC’s approval of the ATSC 3.0 standard, broadcasters are eager and ready to demonstrate its many capabilities, business opportunities and consumer benefits,” said Chris Ripley, president and CEO of Sinclair.

Speaking on the Dallas partnership, American Tower’s Steven Marshall said: “The combination of our broadcast and wireless assets, industry expertise, coupled with these three television broadcaster leaders will help to make ATSC 3.0 a reality for broadcasters.”

No timetable for the construction of these single frequency networks was given.

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

IRVING, TEXAS & BALTIMORE—Nextstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcast Group are welcoming the newest member to their consortium that seeks to promote broadcast spectrum aggregation, innovation and monetization, Univision Local Media.

The consortium was initially launched in March. It works on innovation, develops and explores products and services associated with ATSC 3.0 and monetization opportunities such as spectrum utilization, virtual MVPD platforms, multicast channels, automotive applications, single frequency networks and wireless data applications.

Both Nextstar and Sinclair praised Univision’s reach to the Spanish-American community for their goal of sharing ATSC 3.0 information with the public.

“We are encouraged by the leadership that Nextstar and Sinclair have shown in advancing the new ATSC 3.0 standard for our industry,” said John Eck, EVP and chief local media officer for Univision. “We look forward to partnering with them to identify new content and distribution opportunities that maximize the value of our broadcast spectrum and provide meaningful benefit to consumers and advertisers.”

The consortium has agreed to collaborate on a non-exclusive basis and will continue to look for other broadcasters to join, per the official press release.

NEW YORK—Nielsen and Univision Communications Inc. have announced a deal that will provide Nielsen’s national and local digital in TV ratings services to Univision and UniMás networks, as well as local affiliate stations. Through the deal, Univision will receive audience estimates of linear television content viewing on mobile and computer devices, as well as audience contributions from digital devices.

According to the announcement, this will make Univision and UniMás the first Spanish-language broadcast networks to include Nielsen’s digital audience measurement in its TV ratings. This is an expansion of the previous data services that Nielsen provided Univision.

In addition, Univision Now, a direct to consumer, subscription service available on iOS, Android and web, has been certified for Nielsen’s Digital in TV Ratings measurement. Digital in TV Ratings measurement integrates Nielsen’s software development kit technology into Univision Now app and online video player to measure live viewing of its two networks, local stations and programs. The technology allows Univision to capture and measure audience viewing data through a single platform.