NEXTGEN TV Launches On Four Major Television Stations In Salt Lake City

SALT LAKE CITY, June 30, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Four of Salt Lake City's leading local television stations – KUTV (CBS), KTVX (ABC), KUCW (CW) and KJZZ-TV (Ind), today became among the first in the nation to begin broadcasting with NEXTGEN TV, a revolutionary new digital broadcast technology. Based on the same fundamental technology as the Internet, digital apps, and other web services, NEXTGEN TV can support a wide range of features currently in development, such as immersive audio and video (up to 4K), broadcasting to mobile devices, personalized viewing tools, and advanced emergency alerts that provide rich media rather than simple text messages. NEXTGEN TV also allows full integration with 5G and other broadband-delivered Internet content.

Powered by ATSC 3.0, NEXTGEN TV is the most significant broadcast technology upgrade ever achieved. The Salt Lake City launch is one of the first in the country for NEXTGEN TV and follows a decade of development of the new technology and a year of planning and preparation by the local stations. BitPath, which is developing new data broadcasting services that the stations expect to launch, led the planning and coordinated efforts across the four stations.

The participating stations have cooperated to ensure that current programming remains available to all Salt Lake City viewers, regardless of whether they receive their television service by antenna, cable, or satellite. Antenna viewers can simply rescan their television sets to ensure continued service. Rescan instructions are available at: kutv.com and kjzz.com. Cable and satellite subscribers do not need to take any action.

Mark Aitken, Senior Vice President of Advanced Technology for Sinclair Broadcast Group, owner of KUTV and KJZZ-TV, commented, "We're excited to bring this significant innovation to Salt Lake City, forever changing the way we use and think of broadcast television. Now that we have launched NEXTGEN TV, we are already planning future upgrades that will allow viewers to enjoy a more personalized and immersive experience, with better access to news and media than ever before."

"Bringing NEXTGEN TV to Nexstar's Salt Lake City television stations enables us to continue moving forward with the roll-out of NEXTGEN TV across our 114 markets," said Brett Jenkins, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer for Nexstar. "The faster we deploy NEXTGEN TV, the faster we can begin delivering important upgrades for our viewers and advertisers—improving the visual experience, adding interoperability with the Internet and enabling more focused targeting of consumers."

John Hane, President of BitPath, said, "These four exceptional television stations will be important links in BitPath's wireless network. Built on ATSC 3.0, BitPath's unique broadcast data system will be the first wireless network that never slows down. We look forward to bringing transformational new wireless services to Salt Lake City's businesses and consumers."

About KUTV and KJZZ-TV

KUTV and KJZZ-TV are leading Salt Lake City television stations owned and operated by Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: SBGI), a diversified media company and leading provider of local sports and news. KUTV is affiliated with the CBS Network, and KJZZ-TV operates as an independent station. Sinclair owns and/or operates 23 regional sports network brands; owns, operates and/or provides services to 191 television stations in 89 markets; is a leading local news provider in the country; owns multiple national networks; and has TV stations affiliated with all the major broadcast networks. For more information, please visit kutv.com, kjzz.com, and sbgi.net.

About KTVX and KUCW

KTVX and KUCW are leading Salt Lake City television stations owned and operated by Nexstar Broadcasting, a wholly owned subsidiary of Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ: NXST), a leading diversified media company that leverages localism to bring new services and value to consumers and advertisers through its traditional media, digital and mobile media platforms. KTVX is affiliated with the ABC Network and KUCW is affiliated with the CW Network. 

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SOURCE Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc.