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Four of the nation’s largest independent local broadcasting groups have come together to form EdgeBeam Wireless, a joint venture created to provide robust wireless data services to a wide range of businesses and industries across the country.
The E.W. Scripps Co., Gray Media, Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair launched the new company ahead of meetings this week at CES in Las Vegas.
Leveraging broadcasters’ uniquely efficient network architecture and the ATSC 3.0 transmission standard, EdgeBeam Wireless “will provide expansive, reliable, and secure data delivery services. Using the broadcasters’ existing ATSC 3.0 facilities to deliver data has immediate applications for industries that need to send data to multiple customers, often in real time. This approach delivers a notably cost-effective solution that complements and enhances current wireless solutions,” the companies said.
Among EdgeBeam’s potential applications:
Automotive connectivity — including software updates, infotainment, precision navigation, and safety enhancements. The total addressable market for automotive connectivity services is as much as $3.7 billion per year, according to internal estimates. Content delivery networks — EdgeBeam can help provide a significantly improved viewer experience for streaming services, without buffering or lag, particularly during high-profile events with large audiences, such as live sports. The total addressable market for CDN services is estimated to be as much as $3.65 billion per year. Enhanced GPS — ATSC 3.0 can be used to improve the accuracy of GPS location information to mere centimeters as opposed to meters today. The total addressable market for enhanced GPS services is estimated to be as much as $220