A shift toward the emerging ATSC 3.0 standard could have significant positive revenue impacts for broadcasters if projections from the Pearl TV consortium are on target.
According to TV Newscheck, Pearl says a full implementation of ATSC 3.0 could help the broadcast TV industry generate another $20 billion per year. Even if broadcasters don’t implement the new standard with single frequency network technology (SFN), it would still come out to an additional $12 billion per year.
The majority of that additional revenue influx would stem from targeted TV advertising with additional money coming from the “over-the-air viewership upside,” datacasting, D2 channels, and radio, according to the report.
The study was conducted by FTI Consulting and based on stations in the top 75 markets reaching 83 percent of the United States.
Pearl’s study comes after the group earlier this year announced plans to work closely with Samsung and the Sinclair Group to accelerate development and integration of ATSC 3.0.
ATSC 3.0 is an IP standard that includes a physical layer for error correction and modulation formats, and a management and protocols layer. The new standard is intended to add flexibility in terms of parameters for transmission and the number and types of program formats including mobile and handheld, Ultra HD, and immersive audio.