Nexstar Media Group and Mission Broadcasting said today that WPIX-TV in New York went live with NextGen TV, the third over-the-air television station to get ATSC 3.0 this week after the El Paso, Texas, and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, launches.
The launch in New York City is the 51st Nexstar-owned or partner market to start broadcasting with ATSC 3.0, the latest evolution of over-the-air broadcasting, which will eventually replace ATSC 1.0 entirely. It’s the second station to turn on ATSC 3.0 after WNET made its upgrade in October.
The announcement comes just days after Nexstar transitioned its local television stations in El Paso and Baton Rouge, including a partner station in Baton Rouge owned by White Knight Broadcasting. This increases the number of Top 100 television markets on the air with NextGen TV signals.
The expansion marks 58 million U.S. households that can receive a NextGen signal from a Nexstar-owned station or one of its partners. Mission Broadcasting owns WPIX-TV, and Nexstar provides services to the station.
Stations are keen to make the upgrade because of the business opportunity that comes from the new broadcasting standard. A study by BIA suggests ATSC 3.0 services could generate up to $15 billion in additional broadcast revenue by 2030, said Brett Jenkins, Nexstar’s executive vice president and chief technology and digital officer.
“When it comes to the deployment of ATSC 3.0, we think scale is critically important to fostering consumer demand for NextGen TV sets and developing new businesses and services,” said Jenkins. “Nexstar is extremely well-positioned to deliver broad-based data services to a wide range of businesses and industries.”
Deemed a “revolutionary new digital broadcast technology,” this signal broadcasts video with rich color, sharper images, and a deeper contract to create a more life-like presentation of programs. Households can also access internet content to watch sports, news, and other live events in real time.
This year, Nexstar deployed ATSC 3.0 in seven markets across the country: New York City, Dallas, San Francisco/Oakland/San Jose, Des Moines, Rochester, El Paso, and Baton Rouge. In 2024, Nexstar plans to transition the Chicago and San Diego markets.