ATSC 3.0 Task Force Starts Monday

The NAB-stewarded, FCC-involved task force intended to iron out the ATSC 3.0 transition -- The Future of TV Initiative – kicks off Monday at NAB’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. The meetings (see 2304170056) are closed to the press, and neither NAB nor the FCC would say who from the agency is participating or in what capacity, but the entities invited to attend seem optimistic, if scant on details. “I don’t think we know enough to say how it will go, but we’re cautiously intrigued,” said Kathleen Burke, task force participant and Public Knowledge policy counsel. “We are hoping that the process clears the way for the FCC to resolve any outstanding regulatory issues so that the NEXTGEN TV transition is accomplished in an expedited manner," emailed Lonna Thompson, general counsel for task force participant America’s Public Television Stations.

Monday’s meeting is a “kick-off” that will include every entity that was invited to the Future of TV Initiative, but after that the body will split into the three working groups: Backwards Compatibility, Completing the Transition and Post-Transition Regulation. The working groups will have their first meetings about two weeks from Monday, and meet monthly for the next year. The aim is to create actionable recommendations for the FCC by June of 2024, said an NAB spokesperson. NAB wouldn’t provide the specific composition of each working group, but several entities told us what groups they were invited to. Backwards Compatibility includes APTS, NCTA, Public Knowledge and CTA; Completing the Transition includes Nexstar, NCTA, Consumer Reports, CTA, APTS, Samsung, Best Buy, Paramount, One Media, Dish and ACA Connects; and Post-Transition Regulation includes ACA Connects, NCTA and APTS. NAB and the FCC will participate in all three working groups, NAB told us. There are numerous other entities involved in the task force, but all the participants are regulars in FCC’s ATSC 3.0 docket, Burke told us.

Several participants in the Initiative are regular opponents of NAB on 3.0 matters, including PK and the MVPD groups. NAB told us the goal is to operate the groups by consensus and create the recommendations the same way. “In the event we're unable to reach consensus on any particular issue, we would certainly invite any dissenting party to submit an alternate view to the FCC as well,” said NAB Associate General Counsel Patrick McFadden, who's overseeing the effort for NAB. “Beyond ensuring that the interests and welfare of smaller and mid-sized MVPDs, and their subscribers, are protected, we are largely taking a ‘wait-and-see’ approach,” said an ACA Connects spokesperson. “We hope that Monday’s kickoff meeting will provide some illumination as to NAB’s vision for this initiative, which is incumbent upon NAB as the proponent of the ATSC 3.0 transition.”

Broadcasters and the consumer technology industry agree the transition to 3.0 should be voluntary, with development and deployment driven by market forces, emailed CTA Vice President-Regulatory Affairs David Grossman. “CTA will use the Future of TV initiative to reinforce that message, and to ensure that as broadcasters make new and innovative 3.0 content available, that consumers who choose not to upgrade, will continue to have options to access free, over-the-air broadcast programming.”

ATSC 3.0 “is less controversial than people think,” said Nexstar CTO Brett Jenkins, who will represent the broadcaster on the Future of TV Initiative. MVPDs, consumer groups and the FCC have legitimate concerns that broadcasters want to address, he said. “I'm also not naive enough with rose-colored glasses to think that it's all going to be nice, and we'll all hold hands and all agree on day one,” said Jenkins. “But it just feels like to me there are more interests that are aligned than not aligned.” “We think we have a cross-sample of people who are affected by these issues,” McFadden said.

Public Knowledge is cautiously watching how the NAB’s process plays out and how transparent it is, Burke said. NAB told us there aren’t any plans to release interim progress reports or draft recommendations ahead of the final product in June 2024, and currently there are no plans for public meetings of the initiative. Since the final product will be written recommendations for submission to the FCC, it will be public, McFadden said. “We want everybody to participate,” said McFadden. “We want everybody's needs to be heard, and we’re hoping for a full and frank discussion.”