ATSC 3.0
| Basic Information | |
|---|---|
| Release Year | May 2017 |
| Product Type | Television transmission protocol |
| In Production | Yes |
| Official Website | https://www.watchnextgentv.com/ |
ATSC 3.0, also known as NextGen TV, is a television protocol for terrestrial (over the air) broadcasting.[1] It promises to deliver 4K resolution broadcast television using modern standards like HEVC, HDR, Dolby AC-4 and MPEG-H 3D audio.[1]
Consumer impact summary
NextGen TV has had privacy concerns over internet based viewer metrics/analytics and targeted advertising,[1] voiced by FCC commissioner Geoffrey Starks in 2020.[2] More importantly, NextGen TV marked the introduction of Digital rights management and encryption to freely available television airwaves.[1]
The authority for encryption in ATSC 3.0 is called A3SA.[3] According to a article on Techhive,[4] restrictions that could be imposed by A3SA's DRM might include:
- Blocking or setting expiry dates on recordings
- Blocking remote access of tuners
- Always-on internet being required for viewing/streaming/playback
- Pairing recordings to the tuner it was recorded from
- "Blessing" devices that pass the A3SA's DRM certification and licensing program
The Techhive article also describes that implementation of DRM could increase the cost of tuners due to the required licensing and certification programs on vendors.
On certified devices, it was also discovered by Lon Seidman that tuner decryption certificates can expire after 10 to 30 years.[5]
Incidents
Many major US ATSC 3.0 pilot stations started encrypting their broadcasts in 2023,[4][6] locking out users of all pre-certification ATSC 3.0 tuners without decryption support. This has led to some resource websites like rabbitears.info to become concerned about their future providing information on channels due to encryption becoming more widespread. They warn the site may be unable to operate as the tools for analysis of channels become inoperable on encrypted channels.[7]
In cases where encrypted channels were able to be decrypted using certified tuners, it has been reported an active internet connection is required to tune or switch between encrypted channels.[8]
LG has also encountered patent issues trying to incorporate tuners into their TVs, which resulted in a dispute with Constellation Design Inc. that ended ATSC 3.0 tuner support in new LG televisions as of September 2023.[1][9]
See also
rabbitears.info page on ATSC 3.0, listing encrypted channels.
Lon Seidman Blogpost on the FCC response to ATSC DRM
References
- ↑ Jump up to: 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ATSC_3.0
- ↑ https://www.tvtechnology.com/atsc3/starks-warns-of-potential-privacy-data-issues-with-atsc-3-0
- ↑ https://a3sa.com/
- ↑ Jump up to: 4.0 4.1 https://www.techhive.com/article/2009693/nextgen-tv-drm-puts-future-of-the-over-the-air-dvr-in-doubt.html
- ↑ https://blog.lon.tv/2024/01/30/atsc-3-tv-tuners-have-an-expiration-date-slow-progress-on-gateway-devices-and-more/
- ↑ https://blog.lon.tv/2023/05/15/broadcasters-roll-out-restrictive-drm-encryption-on-atsc-3-0-broadcasts/
- ↑ https://www.rabbitears.info/static.php?name=atsc3_encryption
- ↑ https://blog.lon.tv/2023/09/03/the-adth-nextgen-tv-box-shows-us-just-how-bad-atsc-3-0-encrpytion-will-be/
- ↑ https://blog.lon.tv/2023/09/26/new-lg-televisions-will-not-have-atsc-3-tuners-due-to-patent-dispute/