ATLANTA—Gray Media has announced that it will be using NextGen TV broadcasts to offer enhancements to its coverage of the Super Bowl. As part of the effort, Gray Media will broadcast Super Bowl on Feb. 9 using High Dynamic Range (HDR) at all their Fox affiliates who have launched NextGen TV/ATSC 3.0 broadcast, allowing viewers in eight markets to watch the biggest game of the year with improved contrast between the brightest and darkest colors on the screen.
In addition, Gray added GameLoop, a new NextGen TV free gaming channel, in two markets this week.
Gray has previously described its plans to use NextGen TV broadcasts to offer HDR feeds to TV Tech.
For the Super Bowl, WVUE, Gray’s Fox affiliate in this year’s Super Bowl host market of New Orleans, recently launched both Dolby Vision and HDR10+ formats, along with four other Gray Fox affiliates: WHNS in Greenville-Spartanburg, SC and Asheville, NC, WBRC in Birmingham, Alabama, KPTV in Portland, Oregon, and WALA in Mobile, Alabama.
Gray previously launched HDR enhancements at three other Gray Fox affiliates: KVVU in Las Vegas, Nevada, WXIX in Cincinnati, Ohio, and WFLX in West Palm Beach, Florida.
“Live sports events are the perfect venue to experience the vivid imagery and immersive audio of NextGen TV,” Gray’s Chief Operating Officer Sandy Breland said. “With these upgrades, millions of fans in our markets can enjoy the highest quality in picture and sound, over-the-air and for free this weekend.”
In addition, Gray added GameLoop, a new NextGen TV free gaming channel, in two markets this week. GameLoop allows users to play iconic games like Pac-Man, Tetris, and Doodle Jump on select NextGen TVs simply using their remote or mobile phone. The slate of games also includes Planet Crossword, the first collaborative crossword experience designed for television.
GameLoop is available now over-the-air for free via WANF, Gray’s CBS affiliate in Atlanta, on channel 46.20 and on WVUE in New Orleans on channel 8.20. Gray plans to launch GameLoop in additional markets soon.
“NextGen TV enables countless advanced features to boost viewer experience,” said Rob Folliard, Gray’s senior vice president and currently the chairperson of NextGen TV consortium PearlTV. “We are excited to offer this new interactive option and will continue to increase NextGen TV offerings and value to our audience.”
