Pearl TV taps Synamedia for Phoenix Next-Gen TV project

US broadcast group Pearl TV has signed up Synamedia as a technology partner for the Phoenix Model Market Initiative, one of the testbeds for ATSC 3.0-based advanced TV services in the country.

Synamedia is providing encoding expertise and services, both developed internally with its video processing experts and through strategic partnerships with Triveni Digital and Dolby Laboratories, for the project. It will also build future ATSC 3.0 applications based on market needs.

Phoenix is one of five cities in which ATSC 3.0 services have been tested ahead of a wider rollout, alongside Dallas, Baltimore, East Lansing, Raleigh, and Santa Barbara.

The Phoenix trial involved 12 Phoenix TV stations, including all Pearl stations in the area, and encompassed elements such as integration with cable distributors, content protection, data-gathering and commercialisation opportunities such as addressable advertising and automotive distribution.

Last year, a coalition of US broadcast television station groups, including both network owned-and-operated stations and affiliates, as well as public broadcasters, unveiled plans to deploy Next-Gen TV – meaning TV based on the ATSC 3.0 specifications – in the 40 largest U.S. TV markets by the end of 2020.

“Synamedia has more than 30 years of industry experience delivering true end-to-end solutions, inclusive of and beyond encoding and transmissions. Not only does this make our portfolio unique, it also highlights the vast expertise and support our team can bring to game-changing initiatives like the Phoenix Model Market. Our commitment to our customers and the industry as a whole is to create value, enable great customer experiences, and simplify complexity, all while reducing costs. This aligns nicely with the vision of what Pearl TV is driving in Phoenix.  We are honoured to join the group bringing it to market,” said Dave Longaker, SVP and general manager of the Americas, Synamedia.

“The success of our test bed in Phoenix will be as successful as the commitment and expertise of the partners in our ecosystem. Synamedia’s expertise is distinctive in our industry due to their decades-long track record of enabling and securing TV.  Examples of this is their relationships with MVPDs or even the millions of IRDs they have in the market. Their participation in Phoenix will certainly prove helpful to the larger goal of the Iniatitive. We’re thrilled to have them on board,” said Anne Schelle, managing director, Pearl TV.