NEXTGEN TV broadcasting begins in Little Rock, AR

Major Broadcasters Launch NEXTGEN TV on Five Local Television Stations in Little Rock, AR

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Five leading local television stations in Little Rock, AR, including KATV (ABC), KTHV (CBS), KARK-TV (NBC), KLRT-TV (FOX), and KARZ-TV (MyNet), today became among the first in the nation to begin broadcasting with NEXTGEN TV, a revolutionary new digital broadcast technology.

Based on the same fundamental technology as the Internet, digital applications, and other web services, NEXTGEN TV can support a wide range of features that are currently in development. In addition to providing a new, improved way for broadcasters to reach viewers with advanced emergency alerting, NEXTGEN TV allows a viewer to be immersed in stunning video with brilliant color, sharper images and deeper contrast that will make viewers feel like they’re really there. NEXTGEN TV adds a whole new dimension to TV viewing, with vibrant video and new Voice+ dialogue enhancement, to bring voices to the foreground. Viewers will feel the power of movie theater-quality sound that enables a viewer to hear every voice clearly and offers consistent volume across channels. NEXTGEN TV is also enhanced with Internet content to get the most out of live sports, live news, live events and more, in real time.

Powered by ATSC 3.0, NEXTGEN TV is the most significant broadcast technology upgrade ever. Today’s launch in Little Rock follows a decade of development of the new technology and months of planning and preparation by the local stations. BitPath, which is developing new data broadcasting services, led the planning process and coordinated efforts across the five television stations. KATV, KARK-TV, and KARZ-TV will be charter members of the BitPath data broadcast network, launching later this year.

From Massachusetts to Arizona, and from Washington to Florida, NEXTGEN TV service is already on the air in more than 25 cities across the country. Little Rock joins the early adopters in rolling out the new third-generation digital TV broadcast technology that has the potential to revolutionize how TV viewers interact with their home screens.

NEXTGEN TV is designed to be upgradable so a viewer’s television advances with the latest technology. Features available on NEXTGEN TV will vary by device and by broadcaster as commercial service becomes available in local markets. With NEXTGEN TV, viewers can get:

• Stunning 4K, High Dynamic Range video
• Movie theater quality sound
• Added voice clarity with Voice +
• Consistent volume across channels
• Enhanced Internet content on demand
• Advanced Emergency Alerting functions to keep viewers better informed

Antenna viewers can simply rescan their TV sets to ensure full service.