South Korean privately owned broadcasting company SBS, aired its first broadcast in the ATSC 3.0 UHD standard in December 2016. A world cup short track speed skating race was terrestrially broadcast from the transmitter station on Kwanak Mountain, using a Rohde & Schwarz installed liquid-cooled R&S THU9 transmitter system.

It was the first transmitter to go on air using the ATSC 3.0 standard. The countrywide network will be expanded by adding stations on Namsan, Yongmoon and Gwanggyo Mountains. SBS plans to use Rohde & Schwarz technology to set up a terrestrial TV network and broadcast the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang in UHD.

In August 2016, SBS decided to build a SFN-based transmitter network that employs a 1+1 passive standby configuration with ATSC 3.0. During the evaluation phase, SBS used Rohde & Schwarz transmitters to conduct SFN trials with the new ATSC 3.0 standard. SBS chose Rohde & Schwarz because of the company's technical expertise and long-standing professional support with T-DMB, ATSC 1.0 and FM transmitters.

In Doherty mode, the R&S THU9 attains efficiency values of up to 42 % for UHF including the cooling system, to maximize energy and CO2 savings. In Doherty operation, users can save up to 50% of energy costs compared with conventional transmitters.

The transmitter offers unparalleled flexibility and scalability in an extremely compact design. The transmitter family portfolios range from single transmitters with built-in pump unit and bandpass filter to multi-transmitter systems and N+1 configurations in a single rack. The new operating concept is based on an ergonomic operating unit, straightforward, easy-to-use menus and a convenient configuration guide.

From cinema and post production, live encoding, multiplexing and broadcasting to T&M solutions for signal monitoring and quality control, Rohde & Schwarz offers a complete line of products and solutions to help the broadcast industry roll out the high-resolution 4K standard. Specifically for ATSC 3.0, the company offers a simple and effective solution for updating existing transmitters.