BOULDER, COLO.—Public media stations are looking to jump on to the ATSC 3.0 bandwagon, as Public Media Company has announced the formation of the Public Media Venture Group. This new group is a coalition of public media television stations collaborating on next-generation TV.
The goal of the Public Media Venture Group will be to develop a plan for conversion to ATSC 3.0, build and expand next-gen TV operating models to expand local public service, and boost station revenue to support the expanded service. The efforts will focus on educational services, emergency communications, increased program streams, local content and interactive television. There are also plans to coordinate activities with other commercial and public companies in relation to next-gen TV, including the establishment of single frequency network facilities and maintenance of ATSC 1.0 service.
Marc Hand, CEO of Public Media Company, will serve as the leader of the Public Media Venture Group. He said in the official announcement: “The new system [next-gen TV] offers public television stations the opportunity to create innovative and exciting new public services, to improve operations, save costs, generate new revenue, and invest more money in content and services that will better serve local communities.”
To date, there are 18 public stations that are a part of the Public Media Venture Group: Alabama Public Television; Iowa Public Television; KCET, California; KVIE, California; Mississippi Public Broadcasting; Nebraska Network; Nine Network of Public Media; Missouri; Rocky Mountain PBS, Colorado; UNC-TV, North Carolina; Utah Education Network; Vegas PBS, Nevada; WCTE, Tennessee; WFYI, Indiana; WGBH, Massachusetts; WJCT, Florida; WNET, New York; WOSU, Ohio; and WTTW, Illinois.
For a comprehensive list of TV Technology’s ATSC 3.0 coverage, see our ATSC3 silo.
