Sinclair Announces Android Tablet Compatible with ATSC 3.0 for Unveiling at APCO 2025 Event
NextGen TV-Enabled Devices to Enhance Emergency Communications
At APCO 2025, Sinclair will demonstrate NextGen TV-enabled devices that are set to revolutionise emergency communications. These devices, including Android tablets and smartphones, will deliver advanced emergency alerts and information directly to consumers via ATSC 3.0 technology.
Patrick McFadden, senior vice president for global public policy and communications at Sinclair, emphasised the importance of ATSC 3.0 for public safety during emergencies. The tablet's need for ATSC 3.0 for emergency messaging is due to resiliency concerns with cell tower and Wi-Fi networks.
Sinclair has been working with multiple manufacturers to develop 3.0 mobile devices, including tablets and phones. The tablet shown next week at the gathering is not available for purchase and is described as a precommercial trial. However, Sinclair has ordered "a large number of these devices," indicating that the tablet is beyond the proof-of-concept stage.
The demonstration will take place at the Baltimore Convention Center from July 27-30. Sinclair will exhibit with the AWARN Alliance and Digital Alert Systems in booth 3065.
The consumer-facing side of emergency communications will be the focus of Sinclair's APCO 2025 demonstration. This capability represents a significant improvement over traditional emergency alerting methods, expanding the reach and immediacy of critical emergency messages through devices that combine broadcast signals with internet-like enhanced features.
NextGen TV-enabled devices can serve as vital tools for public safety by providing more detailed, location-specific, and multimedia emergency information directly to consumers’ personal devices. This improves situational awareness and response during emergencies.
ATSC 3.0 technology includes features such as the ability to wake up devices from sleep mode during an emergency (via a “wake-up bit”), synchronisation and error protection for reliable alert delivery, and combining rich media such as text, images, and possibly video within emergency communications.
Sinclair will also showcase the Mark Two 3.0-enabled smartphone at APCO 2025. Having the ability to receive an over-the-air TV signal on a tablet beyond emergency alerting and information is important to both the public and broadcasters.
In the past, broadcasters in North Carolina, including PBS North Carolina and Capitol Broadcasting's WNGT, demonstrated the ability of ATSC 3.0 digital broadcast paging to transmit emergency call data to first responders in the field a few years ago. Sinclair's Asheville station remained operational during Hurricane Helene, while many cell sites went offline, illustrating the resilience of broadcast networks compared to wireless carriers.
In summary, NextGen TV-enabled devices play a key role in enhancing emergency communications by delivering advanced emergency alert messages and information directly to consumers via ATSC 3.0 technology. These devices provide multimedia emergency information, wake devices from sleep mode for urgent alerts, expand public reach beyond traditional alert systems, and improve accessibility of emergency information wherever viewers are, including on tablets and smartphones. This consumer-centric emergency alerting capability is a major focus of Sinclair’s presentation at APCO 2025, showcasing the promise of NextGen TV technology to improve public safety communications.
- The tablet exhibited at APCO 2025 by Sinclair is not available for purchase, but a significant number of these devices have been ordered, hinting at its progress beyond the proof-of-concept stage.
- At the gathering, Sinclair will demonstrate NextGen TV-enabled devices, including Android tablets and smartphones, which are designed to revolutionise emergency communications.
- The technological features of NextGen TV-enabled devices include the ability to wake up devices from sleep mode during emergencies, as well as synchronisation and error protection for reliable alert delivery.
- In July 2025, Sinclair will showcase the Mark Two 3.0-enabled smartphone at the Baltimore Convention Center as part of the APCO 2025 demonstration.
- The consumer-facing side of emergency communications will be the primary focus of Sinclair's APCO 2025 demonstration, with the aim of expanding the reach and immediacy of critical emergency messages through devices that combine broadcast signals with internet-like enhanced features.
- The advanced emergency alerts and information provided by NextGen TV-enabled devices offer a significant improvement over traditional emergency alerting methods and can serve as vital tools for public safety during emergencies by providing more detailed, location-specific, and multimedia emergency information directly to consumers' personal devices.
- During emergencies, NextGen TV-enabled devices can enhance situational awareness and response by improving the accessibility of emergency information wherever consumers are, including on tablets, smartphones, and other Media (with Data-and-Cloud-Computing and IP technologies).
