Pearl TV Makes Major Progress Toward Affordable NEXTGEN TV Converter Boxes

Pearl TV has made significant progress in its industry-wide initiative to make NEXTGEN TV converter boxes more affordable and accessible to consumers, marking an important step in preparing consumers and the television industry for an easier transition to NEXTGEN TV broadcasting powered by the ATSC 3.0 standard.

The announcement, made just ahead of NAB Show New York, includes new pricing from patent owners, technology licensors, testing and security providers for affordable NEXTGEN TV converter boxes, enabling technology to support advanced emergency information, and ongoing work with consumer technology manufacturers.

A successful transition to NEXTGEN TV requires more than advanced broadcast technology. It requires affordable products that enable all consumers to continue enjoying free over-the-air television, says Anne Schelle, managing director of Pearl TV. Our work with technology licensors, manufacturers, testing organizations and the consumer technology industry is focused on reducing costs for consumers and establishing a clear market path for NEXTGEN TV converter boxes to advance the ATSC 1.0 to ATSC 3.0 transition.

NEXTGEN TV is now on the air in 78 U.S. markets, reaching more than 75 percent of television households. More than 19 million certified and security-verified NEXTGEN TV sets have shipped to retailers since deployment began. Affordable converter boxes will enable all consumers to access this content without buying a new television.

Pearl also highlighted the expansion of NEXTGEN TV viewer features. High Dynamic Range (HDR) services are available today over-the-air to more than 80 million NEXTGEN TV viewers, with native HDR for sports and entertainment programming rolling out later this year. The industry's first 4K Ultra-HD over-the-air NEXTGEN TV broadcasts are expected in 2027.

Industry Collaboration Advances Affordable Converter Boxes

The Converter Box Program brings together organizations from across the broadcast ecosystem to support the development of affordable devices. Participating patent owners through the Avanci Broadcast licensing platform, along with Dolby and Advanced HDR by Technicolor, are supporting the initiative through licensing arrangements tailored to qualifying converter boxes. Discussions are also continuing with additional intellectual property licensors and component manufacturers.

Testing provider Resillion and the ATSC 3.0 Security Authority have also established special pricing for the program, lowering the cost of both certifying and securing qualifying products.

This is what industry collaboration looks like, adds Schelle. Patent owners, technology licensors, testing and security providers, and manufacturers are all contributing to a shared goal of making affordable NEXTGEN TV converter boxes a reality. Together, we're making meaningful progress toward affordable devices that connect to existing televisions through an HDMI connection, so that consumers can receive NEXTGEN TV without needing to buy a new TV set. Millions of these receivers will be needed to complete the transition, and this collaboration is helping lay the groundwork.

Pearl is working with several manufacturers developing low-cost ATSC 3.0 converter boxes, with new products expected to be unveiled in early 2027. Pearl is also working with the Consumer Technology Association to help consumers easily identify qualifying products at retail.

As the transition continues apace, continues Schelle, consumers and broadcasters alike can have confidence in converter boxes using the famous NEXTGEN TV logo and meeting its testing requirements.

New Emergency Information Baseline for Converter Boxes

The Converter Box Program specifications now require qualifying converter boxes to support ATSC 3.0 Advanced Emergency Alerting recommended User Interface requirements that aim to ensure a consistent user experience in the delivery of richer, more accessible, geo-targeted emergency information delivered in the over-the-air broadcast signal.

The emergency information experience supported by the Converter Box Program is built on a user interface and user experience framework developed by Sinclair and ONE Media through the NAB NextGen TV News Technology Lab, an NAB initiative supported by a grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, says Mark Aitken, President of ONE Media and Senior VP of Advanced Technology for Sinclair Broadcast Group. The framework sets a common standard for how NEXTGEN TV emergency information looks and behaves, so viewers get the same clear, predictable experience on any channel, any device, and any screen. It was shaped by input from about 300 emergency managers and focuses on what people need most under stress what is happening, where, how urgent it is, and what to do.

Expanding High Dynamic Range Paves Way for 4K

While the industry advances its transition preparations, NEXTGEN TV viewers are already benefiting from enhanced picture quality and immersive audio capabilities. HDR-enabled NEXTGEN TV services are available today over-the-air to more than 80 million viewers, with support for HDR10, HDR10+, Dolby Vision and Advanced HDR by Technicolor. Native HDR for sports and entertainment programming will begin rolling out later this year, followed by 4K Ultra-HD broadcasts in 2027, and stations across the country are now readying their facilities for both.

Gray is readying many of its NEXTGEN TV stations for native HDR this year and 4K Ultra-HD in 2027, says Robert Folliard, Senior Vice President, Government Relations and Distribution for Gray Media. Sports and entertainment at the highest picture quality, for free and over-the-air, gives viewers a powerful reason to make the move to NEXTGEN TV.

Native, network-delivered HDR programming will be an important step beyond locally-generated HDR enhancements, bringing

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