ATSC 3.0 is the latest version of the Advanced Television Systems Committee standards, which define how television signals are broadcast and interpreted in the US.
According to a report in Tech Radar, ATSC 3.0 (also known as NextGen TV) is already being broadcast to 45 percent of the US population, with that number set to grow to 75 percent by the end of the year.
Tech Radar noted that major US cities including New York, Los Angeles, Denver, Atlanta, Seattle, and Portland, Oregon are currently served by at least one station delivering ATSC 3.0, which combines existing antenna technologies with internet-powered tools,
To keep in step with the new standard, Sony, Samsung, and LG are offering a built-in ATSC 3.0 tuner on select recent 4K and 8K TVs. Hisense has also announced ATSC 3.0 support in its forthcoming 2022 models including the U9H, U8H and U7H series sets.
Most OTA TV signals in the US still use version 1.0 of the ATSC standards, which were introduced in 1996 ahead of the switch from analog to digital TV finalized in 2009.
The new standard will provide enhanced picture quality, allowing for 4K UHD broadcasts, compared to the current ATSC 1.0 standard limit of 1080i.
Audio improvements for ATSC 3.0 include Dolby Atmos and DTS:X immersive soundtracks, along with automatic volume leveling between channels and dialogue enhancement to boost the clarity of voices.
As well as the picture and audio improvements, ATSC 3.0 will also allow for viewing broadcast video on mobile devices like phones and tablets, even in cars.
Despite these advantages, the switch to the new standard is expected to take time. The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is allowing stations to broadcast in the new format on a voluntary basis and, stations that do broadcast in ATSC 3.0 must still offer ATSC 1.0 signals for at least five years after the switch, Digital Trends reported.