In an era where the boundary between traditional broadcast television and digital streaming has all but vanished, the technical foundations of how we hear media are undergoing a seismic shift. On July 15, 2026, the Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC) announced the completion of a major revision to its seminal document, A/85 Recommended Practice: Techniques for Establishing and Maintaining Audio Loudness for Digital Television.
This update marks the first comprehensive overhaul of the standard since 2013, representing over a decade of technological evolution. As audiences increasingly migrate from linear cable to over-the-top (OTT) platforms and mobile devices, the need for a unified, cross-platform approach to audio consistency has never been more urgent.
I. Main Facts: A Comprehensive Modernization
The 2026 revision of A/85 is not merely a collection of minor tweaks; it is a fundamental restructuring designed to align audio production and delivery with the realities of the 21st-century media landscape. The ATSC has addressed the growing complexity of the "hybrid" world—where a single piece of content might be viewed on a 7.1.4 Dolby Atmos home theater system one moment and on a pair of smartphone earbuds the next.
Key Enhancements in the 2026 Revision:
- Streaming Integration: For the first time, the Recommended Practice (RP) provides explicit guidance for streaming media services. This includes protocols for both metadata-based audio codecs (where the device adjusts loudness based on instructions in the file) and non-metadata-based codecs (where the audio must be "baked in" at a specific level).
- The "Quick Reference" Annex: Recognizing that engineers on the front lines need immediate, actionable data, the ATSC has introduced a new "Loudness and True Peak Quick Reference." This annex is designed to simplify implementation for content providers, reducing the likelihood of human error during the final stages of post-production.
- Expanded Scope: The document now covers the entire content chain—from initial measurement and monitoring in the recording studio to metadata management and dynamic-range control during transmission.
- Technical Clarifications: A decade of feedback from broadcasters and equipment manufacturers has been distilled into refined definitions of "Target Loudness" and "True Peak" levels, ensuring that there is no ambiguity in how measurements are calculated.
II. Chronology: The Evolution of the "Loudness Wars"
To understand the significance of the 2026 update, one must look back at the chaotic history of television audio.
The Early 2000s: The Wild West of Audio
Before the mid-2000s, television audio was largely governed by "peak" levels. However, peak levels do not reflect how humans actually perceive loudness. This led to the "Loudness Wars," where commercials were intentionally compressed to sound much louder than the programs they interrupted, leading to constant viewer frustration and "remote control fatigue."
2009–2011: The Birth of A/85 and the CALM Act
In 2009, the ATSC released the initial version of A/85, basing it on the International Telecommunication Union’s ITU-R BS.1770 standard. This shifted the industry from measuring peak voltage to measuring "Loudness K-weighted Full Scale" (LKFS).
The impact of A/85 became law in the United States via the Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation (CALM) Act, which was signed in 2010 and went into effect in late 2011. The CALM Act mandated that television stations and cable providers follow the A/85 standards, effectively ending the era of blaring commercials on traditional TV.
2013: The Last Major Revision
In 2013, A/85 was updated to reflect improvements in the ITU-R BS.1770-3 measurement algorithm, which introduced "gating." Gating ensured that silent passages in a program didn’t artificially lower the average loudness reading, providing an even more accurate representation of the viewer’s experience.
2014–2025: The Streaming Explosion
Following the 2013 update, the industry underwent a massive transformation. The rise of Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, and YouTube created a new problem: while broadcast TV was regulated by the CALM Act, streaming services were not. This led to "platform hopping" issues, where a viewer might have to adjust their volume significantly when switching from a cable news channel to a streaming app. The 2026 revision is the direct response to this decade of unregulated digital growth.
III. Supporting Data: The Science of Sound Consistency
The effectiveness of the A/85 Recommended Practice relies on sophisticated mathematical models of human hearing. The 2026 revision continues to lean heavily on the ITU-R BS.1770 standard, but expands its application.
The Core Metrics
- Target Loudness: For North American broadcast, the target remains -24 LKFS (or LUFS). The new revision provides data on how to maintain this target when content is transcoded for different streaming bitrates.
- True Peak (dBTP): While average loudness is the focus, "True Peak" measurements prevent digital clipping. The standard generally recommends a maximum True Peak of -2 dBTP to allow for the inaccuracies of consumer-grade digital-to-analog converters.
- Loudness Range (LRA): This metric describes the statistical distribution of loudness within a program. The 2026 update provides data on managing LRA for "mobile-first" delivery, where high dynamic range can make dialogue unintelligible in noisy environments.
The Metadata Factor
A significant portion of the new data in A/85 concerns AC-4 and MPEG-H, the next-generation audio codecs used in ATSC 3.0 (NextGen TV). These codecs allow for "Personalized Audio," where a viewer can boost the dialogue relative to the background music. The revised A/85 provides the technical framework for how metadata should carry "Dialnorm" (Dialogue Normalization) values to ensure that these personalized adjustments don’t break the overall loudness consistency.
IV. Official Responses: Industry Leadership Speaks
The release of the revised A/85 has been met with widespread support from technical bodies and industry stakeholders.
In a statement following the release, the ATSC emphasized that the document is the result of collaborative efforts between hundreds of experts. "The goal has always been to provide a seamless experience for the consumer," an ATSC spokesperson noted. "By incorporating lessons learned from more than a decade of implementation, as well as addressing emerging streaming workflows, the document helps ensure consistent audio presentation regardless of how viewers access content."
Engineers from major television networks have also lauded the update. A lead audio architect from a major US network stated: "The new Quick Reference annex is a game-changer. In the high-pressure environment of live sports and news, having a simplified set of parameters for True Peak and Loudness helps us maintain compliance without slowing down our workflow."
Equipment manufacturers, including companies like Telos Alliance, Dolby, and Fraunhofer, have signaled their intent to update their hardware and software measurement tools to align with the new A/85 guidelines by the end of the 2026 fiscal year.
V. Implications: What This Means for the Future of Media
The implications of the A/85 revision extend far beyond the engineering room. This update sets the stage for a more harmonious global media ecosystem.
1. The End of "App-to-App" Volume Disparity
As streaming services adopt the A/85 guidelines, the jarring volume jumps between different streaming apps—and between streaming and linear TV—should begin to diminish. This creates a "level playing field" for content, where the quality of the sound, rather than its sheer volume, becomes the focus.
2. Operational Efficiency for Content Creators
Previously, production houses often had to create multiple "masters" of a single show: one for broadcast (compliant with A/85), one for theatrical release, and several different versions for various streaming platforms. The 2026 revision provides a path toward a "Single Master" workflow, where metadata handles the adjustments for different platforms, significantly reducing post-production costs.
3. Support for ATSC 3.0 (NextGen TV)
As broadcasters continue the transition to ATSC 3.0, the revised A/85 acts as the audio "rulebook" for the new standard. ATSC 3.0 supports immersive audio (like Dolby Atmos) and interactive features. Without the rigorous loudness controls established in A/85, these advanced features could lead to a chaotic and unpleasant user experience.
4. Regulatory Pressure on Streaming
While the CALM Act currently focuses on traditional "MVPDs" (Multichannel Video Programming Distributors), the existence of a modernized ATSC A/85 that explicitly includes streaming may provide the technical framework for future legislation. If the government decides to extend loudness regulations to OTT providers, A/85 is the ready-made standard they will likely adopt.
5. Enhanced Accessibility
Consistency in loudness is a major accessibility issue. For viewers with hearing impairments, sudden spikes in background music or sound effects can drown out dialogue. By providing stricter guidance on dialogue-centric loudness and dynamic range control, the 2026 revision makes television more inclusive for all audiences.
Conclusion
The ATSC A/85 Recommended Practice has long been the silent guardian of the television viewing experience. With the 2026 revision, the ATSC has successfully brought this essential standard into the modern age. By bridging the gap between the broadcast tower and the cloud server, the committee has ensured that as the way we watch television changes, the quality of what we hear remains constant. For broadcasters, manufacturers, and—most importantly—viewers, the new A/85 represents a significant step forward in the quest for the perfect sonic experience.
