AWARN Demos ATSC 3.0 Alerting for FCC Media Bureau

The AWARN Alliance and One Media demonstrated how ATSC 3.0 will enhance emergency alerting, for FCC Media Bureau acting Chief Michelle Carey and staff, said an ex parte filing posted in docket 16-142 Tuesday. Officials from NAB, Monroe Electronics and Sinclair attended, the filing said. “These demonstrations showed how the Next Gen standard moves far beyond simple text messages on receive devices to display photos of missing children, kidnapping suspects, vehicle identity and location maps.” The “limited technical proceeding” on ATSC 3.0 “should not be the vehicle to expand programming obligations or other rules not directly tied to the optional, voluntary use of the new standard,” said the alliance, which along with CTA, NAB and others petitioned the FCC to OK 3.0. In its own ex parte filing on the Monday meeting, One Media said the simulcasting proposed in the ATSC 3.0 NPRM is "adaptable on a market-specific basis without government involvement and protects both viewers and MVPDs by continuing to offer the existing programming without change."