WASHINGTON—The Advanced Warning and Response Network (AWARN) Alliance told the Federal Communications Commission this week in reply comments on a docket to amend Emergency Alert System rules that enabling broadcasters to use the “full capabilities” of the ATSC 3.0 standard will strengthen their connection with the public-safety community and give citizens new tools to protect lives and property during emergencies.
To advance the voluntary transition to ATSC 3.0, broadcasters are channel-sharing, which enables them to put NextGen TV on air while maintaining their ATSC 1.0 service. However, this approach limits how many digital bits they can devote to enhanced broadcast services, such as the Advanced Emergency Information capabilities of 3.0.
“T]he standard… [is] best implemented once ATSC 3.0 broadcast signals are available in markets throughout the country,” the AWARN Alliance comments said. “This will allow broadcasters to enhance connections with the public safety community and deliver new voluntary alerting tools and capabilities that will save lives and property during emergencies.”
The alliance recommended the FCC consider five points in its proceeding, including that:
- EAS already provides blanket coverage to potentially reach millions at once with key emergency messages.
- Modernization of the National Weather Service alert system is urgently needed.
- Standardized and tested symbology could enhance WEA and EAS alerting.
- Local broadcasters are key to effective alerting.
- Voluntary Advanced Emergency Information (AEI) could supplement and expand general EAS alerts.
Blanket coverage is an underlying strength of broadcast EAS alerts that distribute “basic warning broadly and rapidly to listeners and viewers throughout a broadcaster’s services area,” it said. ATSC 3.0 transmitted AEI can amplify those alerts by delivering context, graphics, maps, symbology and multilingual information.
Regarding the National Weather Service modernization, the alliance recommended the FCC launch a collaborative effort to fold the government’s investment in weather warning fully into the IPAWs CAP environment to speed warnings and “ensure security of public alerts and warnings,” it said.
“The Weather Service itself understands the shortcomings, noting in its comments that it would like to work toward the goal of digitally signed messages ‘in the next few years’ and that a collaborative effort is needed,” the alliance said.
Agreeing with comments from Digital Alert Systems, the alliance noted that the “EDX approach” could provide a practical means to carry the data needed and persistent message IDs and cryptographic authentication to conventional EAS transmission.
The alliance also pointed out that the voluntary transmission of standardized hazard alert symbology by broadcasters and wireless carriers would benefit the public. “For television broadcasting, standardized symbology may be an especially natural fit with the Advanced Emergency Information capabilities of ATSC 3.0. Rather than being limited to the traditional EAS text crawl and audio interruption, AEI can support supplemental graphical and multimedia information accompanying an emergency message,” the alliance said.
Agreeing with joint filings from state attorneys general, the alliance recommended the FCC require symbol testing in WEA and EAS among those with disabilities and limited English-language skills to ensure those symbols do not cause confusion. The alliance also agreed with comments from International Deaf Emergency calling for plain-language instructions to accompany symbols.
“These accessibility objectives also illustrate the value of preserving flexibility for advanced broadcast platforms,” it said. “ATSC 3.0, for example, supports multiple audio presentations and languages as well as supplemental emergency information that can provide additional means of communicating with audiences having different language and accessibility needs.”
Regarding the key role broadcasters play in delivering effective emergency alerts to the public, the alliance reminded the FCC that local stations are “best equipped to share local information,” including messages targeting specific geographic areas—a capability consistent with the FCC’s interest in “enhancing alerts with more geo-targeted capabilities.”
“At the same time, ATSC 3.0 provides broadcasters with capabilities that can materially expand the usefulness and accessibility of emergency information beyond the basic EAS message. Advanced Emergency Information can support geographically relevant information and supplemental text, maps, graphics, audio, and other content, while the ATSC 3.0 audio system supports multiple audio presentations and languages that can provide additional flexibility for multilingual and accessible emergency communications,” it said.
The alliance reminded the commission that cable operators do not have equipment that can geotarget alerting, which means it is “essential”the FCC “continue to recognize that local broadcasters remain the dominant source of information during emergencies.”
The AWARN Alliance also explicitly drew the distinction for the FCC between EAS and AEI and the roles each play in emergency alerting. Agreeing with comments from Sinclair, the alliance quoted the station group: “EAS / WEA tells a user that something has happened. AEI can tell the user what happened, where, where to go, where not to go, where the evacuation routes are, where the shelters are, and continue to update users as conditions change.”
While ATSC 3.0 can enable broadcasters to deliver geotargeted alerts, the alliance noted, this should remain a “voluntary capability for TV broadcasters.”
“The AWARN Alliance agrees with Digital Alert Systems that ‘the Commission should recognize this capability without requiring every ATSC 3.0 broadcaster to implement AEI on a common timetable,’” it said.
