CTA urges FCC to reject ATSC 3.0 tuner mandate in new filing

The Consumer Technology Association filed comments with the Federal Communications Commission on Jan. 20 opposing a potential mandate for ATSC 3.0 tuners in television receivers, arguing such a requirement would increase costs for consumers while contradicting the administration’s deregulatory priorities.

In its response to the FCC’s Fifth Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in GN Docket No. 16-142, CTA said a voluntary transition to ATSC 3.0 remains the appropriate path for both broadcasters and manufacturers. The group represents technology manufacturers and produces the annual CES trade show.

“We oppose mandates because they hurt American consumers by forcing them to buy something they don’t want,” said Gary Shapiro, CEO and executive chair at CTA, in a July 2025 LinkedIn post quoted in the filing.

The filing comes as the FCC weighs whether to require ATSC 3.0 tuners in new television sets to accelerate adoption of the NextGen TV standard.

CTA’s comments follow submissions from other stakeholders, including the National Association of Broadcasters, which has advocated for tuner requirements, and multichannel video programming distributors, which have raised concerns about implementation costs.

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Consumer impact and market data

CTA cited market research showing approximately 8% of video content viewers rely on a TV antenna as their only source of video content. According to Nielsen data referenced in the filing, just over 18% of U.S. TV households had at least one TV set capable of receiving over-the-air television.

“Therefore, if ATSC 3.0 is mandated, over 80% of households that do not use OTA television will have to bear the incremental cost associated with the tuner mandate,” the filing stated.

The group documented price differences between ATSC 1.0 and 3.0 television sets based on a March 2025 retail search. In that sample of 55-inch, 4K resolution sets, televisions with only ATSC 1.0 tuners averaged $520, while sets with ATSC 3.0 support averaged $600.

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CTA attributed cost differences to several factors including the ATSC 3.0 demodulator chip, greater processing power requirements, additional software development, certification and testing fees, patent licensing fees and potential future patent litigation costs.

Regulatory authority and implementation

The filing questioned the FCC’s statutory authority to impose a tuner mandate, noting that Congress adopted the All Channel Receiver Act in 1962 and took action twice to extend the digital TV transition in the early 2000s.

“Whatever authority the All Channel Receiver Act may afford the Commission today, the sweeping and immediate ATSC 3.0 mandate suggested by NAB is ultimately a major question for Congress to decide,” the filing stated.

If the FCC were to proceed with a mandate despite these objections, CTA said the consumer technology industry would require at least 36 months for implementation to source and incorporate ATSC 3.0 tuners across hundreds of models.

The group also opposed a separate proposal from NAB to impose requirements on device user interfaces that would provide preferential visibility for broadcast signals. CTA argued the FCC lacks statutory authority for such requirements and that mandating interface designs would interfere with product differentiation and consumer-driven innovation.

Industry activity and standards

CTA pointed to recent industry activity as evidence that the market is functioning without regulatory intervention. The filing referenced ATSC 3.0 devices showcased at CES 2026, including new converter boxes and home gateways expected to reach the market in 2026.

The group projected that millions of NextGen TV sets will ship in each of the next few years, though specific figures were not provided in the publicly available portions of the filing.

CTA was a co-founding member of ATSC and has supported the development of the ATSC 3.0 standard through its standards committee and working groups. The organization partnered with broadcasters on the NextGen TV branding and has promoted the standard at CES conferences.

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Transition measures

While opposing tuner mandates, CTA supported certain regulatory measures to facilitate the transition.

“An immediate sunset of the ATSC 1.0 transmitting requirement would be a de facto ATSC 3.0 tuner mandate for those consumers seeking access to free OTA content,” the filing stated.

CTA requested that the FCC extend the A/322 waveform requirement beyond mid-2027 and recognize the latest version of the standard, ATSC A/322:2025. The group said this standard provides stability for television manufacturing while giving broadcasters flexibility to bring new offerings to market.

The filing also opposed allowing simulcasting stations to encode multicast ATSC 1.0 streams using MPEG-4, citing risks that viewers with older equipment could lose access to service. CTA said some TV platforms do not have video decoders capable of supporting MPEG-4 for all types of ingested video.

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On digital rights management, CTA said its members report different experiences and expectations, with DRM potentially acting as an obstacle to NextGen TV implementation in some cases while serving a copyright-protection role in others.

The group recommended the FCC continue monitoring DRM issues while staying within its jurisdictional limits.

The comments were signed by J. David Grossman, vice president of policy and regulatory affairs, Brian Markwalter, senior vice president of research and standards, and Rachel Nemeth, senior director of regulatory affairs.