MPEG LA offers licence for ATSC 3.0

MPEG LA has announced the availability of the ATSC 3.0 Patent Portfolio Licence.

The licence provides access to patents essential to the next generation broadcast standard developed by the Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC) which is already available in markets such as the US and South Korea.

The format promises to improve the television viewing experience with higher audio and video quality, improved compression efficiency, robust transmission for reception on fixed digital televisions and converter boxes as well as mobile devices, and enhanced accessibility, personalisation, interactivity, and advanced emergency alert service capability.

Initial patent owners to MPEG LA’s ATSC 3.0 Licence include: CableTelevision Laboratories, Inc.; Cerinet USA Inc.; Communications Research Centre Canada (CRC), part of Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada; Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation; Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Foerderung der angewandten Forschung e.V.; Koninklijke KPN N.V.; Koninklijke Philips N.V.; NEC Corporation; Nippon Hoso Kyokai; ONE Media, LLC; Panasonic Corporation; Shanghai National Engineering Research Center of Digital Television Co., Ltd (NERC-DTV); and Sun Patent Trust.

Larry Horn, MPEG LA president and CEO, said: “MPEG LA is proud to continue its role in support of the broadcast industry’s next generation terrestrial broadcast system that began with our licences for the ATSC 1.0 standard and the MPEG-2 video compression standard used in ATSC 1.0. As a convenience to ATSC 3.0 implementers and the potential that ATSC 3.0 brings to market, our ATSC 3.0 Licence will continue MPEG LA’s rich and reliable tradition of addressing the market’s need for transactional efficiency and predictability in accessing necessary intellectual property rights owned by many different organisations under a single licence. 

“We are especially proud to be joined in this effort by leading ATSC 3.0 developers from all over the world.”