Presidents Memo: Year End and New Beginnings

Posted on December 10, 2024 in ATSC News

The arrival of winter means an end to another year, but also the promise of a new beginning in a few weeks. ATSC is deep into the planning process for upcoming 2025 events, and we just announced 2025 board elections.

With very high voter turnout, ATSC members have selected three new Board of Directors members. Monroe Electronics’ Ed Czarnecki, North Carolina broadcaster Fred Engel, and Nebraska Public Media’s Ling Ling Sun are newly elected to serve three-year terms on the ATSC Board (with Fred Engel elected for a second term.) I’m grateful to have such varied and valuable experience on our Board of Directors, and we are excited to welcome each of them to this leadership role. Thanks also go to Paolo Ceccherini, Ken Rubin, and Javier Ruano, who brought their ideas and energy to this process. The election was very competitive, and we are deeply appreciative of their commitment to ATSC and the broadcast industry as a whole. We also thank Jim DeChant and Brett Jenkins whose terms conclude at the end of this year for their service and insightful contributions.

I’m delighted to announce that Anh Ngo, with 27 years of international broadcast industry experience, has joined the ATSC team as the organization’s new Manager of Communications and Member Engagement. She is already making her mark by digging in with our Communications Committee and is learning more about ATSC’s plans for upcoming events in the new year – starting with CES in January, followed by April’s NAB Show, and then our NextGen Broadcast Conference activities in June.

Since our last newsletter, it’s been a busy travel season. In November, I joined ATSC members Aldo Cugnini and Louis Libin in Geneva, Switzerland, for ITU-R Study Group 6 meetings. This work has a major impact on global policy decisions pertaining to spectrum allocation and television services and it was an opportunity to meet top leadership in ITU, including Secretary-General Doreen Bogdan-Martin, who shared her vision of ITU’s important role in bridging the digital divide. The ITU brings together 194 member countries, and we were able to network with our colleagues from Brazil, South Korea, and many others. ATSC also supported ETRI to stage an ATSC 3.0 over-the-air demo featuring Layered Division Multiplexing over ATSC 3.0. The system was fully wireless and showed delivery of 5 services across the enhancement and core layers to two receivers, including an in-car hotspot receiver.

In late November, I was invited to deliver a keynote presentation to the Parks Associates “Future of Video” event. The full program lineup includes experts from across the industry, interspersed with presentations of key metrics from Parks Associates research. ATSC member Jason Patton of Verance spoke on a panel about the place of next-generation TV in the overall landscape.

Looking ahead to 2025, there is anticipation in the air as we mount another exhibition at the annual CES in January. More than 50 ATSC member companies linked arms to sponsor our Central Hall exhibit that will focus on new product announcements and technology demonstrations. Planning for the April 2025 NAB Show is already underway as well.

Details are below, but we just inked plans for the June 2025 NextGen Broadcast Conference that will again be staged in Washington, D.C., an especially appropriate locale considering the new U.S. Administration, new Congress and new FCC at a pivotal time in the U.S. deployment of NextGen TV services.

Lastly, I’m very pleased to announce that ATSC has joined CITEL, a regional organization comprised of member states throughout the Americas. Our involvement with the Permanent Consultative Committee will focus on radiocommunications and broadcasting to address issues like spectrum management, digital broadcasting, and emerging technologies. I have accepted a request to chair that group in collaboration with vice chairs from Paraguay, Trinidad & Tobago and Brazil. This puts ATSC on the international stage in a new way, which will be helpful as we spread the word about ATSC 3.0 technologies.

In this joyous holiday season, we at ATSC are counting our blessings, especially the support, involvement and friendship of our members and the many stakeholders in the ATSC 3.0 ecosystem at home and abroad. All the best to you and yours for healthy and happy holidays. Here’s to the New Year filled with promise!

Madeleine Noland
ATSC President

Posted in ATSC News