SK Telecom and the US broadcasting company Sinclair Broadcasting Group (SBG), forge a joint venture to curb the next-generation broadcasting market.
In Las Vegas on the 7th (KST), the Korean telecom tech company and television broadcasting company, which holds 40% view ratings, struck an agreement for a partnership. Both companies invest a total of $33M USD ($16.5M each) into the joint venture, which will launch in the first quarter.
Last year, the U.S. set up a new standard for digital TV broadcasting (ATSC 3.0) and SK Telecom and SBG are planning to dominate the next-generation broadcasting market.
ATSC 3.0 combines broadcasting and LTE frequencies. Because broadcasting frequencies have a longer reach than telecom frequencies with lower operating costs, they are desirable for new media services.
SKT and SBG are going to develop ATSC 3.0 broadcasting solutions and equipment for commercialization. SK Telecom is predicting that all 1,000 U.S. broadcasting stations will introduce ATSC 3.0 solutions and equipment within 10 years.
ATSC 3.0 allows new services such as, personalized advertisements, terrestrial tv broadcasting in vehicles, and two-way services (recognize personal IPs as a frequency). It is estimated that markets for next-generation broadcasting solutions in the U.S. are worth $12.8B USD (20 trillion KRW).
“We are planning to grab the upper hand in the U.S. market for next-generation broadcasting solutions by working with SBG.”
President Park Jung-ho of SK Telecom
