ATSC DTV Standard. The Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC) is the organization that developed the ‘‘ATSC DTV Standard,’’ most of which we adopted as our DTV broadcast standard in the Fourth Report and Order, 62 FR 14006, March 25, 1997 (‘‘4R&O’’) in the DTV proceeding. Title 47 CFR 73.682(d) requires that broadcast DTV transmissions comply with standard ATSC Doc. A/53 dated September 9, 1995, except for its constraints on video formats. In comments, ATSC reports that, since adoption of the 4R&O, it has made several changes to the Doc. A/53 standard including removing constraints associated with the ‘‘program paradigm,’’ updating references to the underlying MPEG standards, replacing references to obsolete ATSC standards for Electronic Program Guide and System Information with a reference to a new ATSC Doc. A/65 for Program and System Information Protocol (PSIP), and requiring a signal when colorimetry other than that defined by standard SMPTE 274M is used. The PSIP specification provides for the transmission of system information and program guide data for broadcast DTV stations, enabling the identification of service channels and digital bit streams, and allowing receivers to generate electronic program guides. It also provides for selection through the program guide function of the type and language of closed captioning to be viewed and transmission of program ratings information to allow parents to use ‘‘v-chip’’ technology. ATSC also indicates that it is considering an increase in the maximum allowable audio bit rate.
