[opendtv] Re: Cost of "good" vs. "bad" receivers
- From: Bob Miller <bob@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Wed, 19 Oct 2005 14:59:31 -0400
Manfredi, Albert E wrote:
>Mark Aitken wrote:
>
>
>
>>Has anyone got public data that would quantify the
>>cost difference between a "good" (H)DTV receiver
>>versus a "bad" one? Our government representatives
>>are being told that it is simply too expensive to
>>expect that a well performing receiver will be in
>>the hands of Americans anytime soon. More to the
>>point, we should not expect that well performing
>>receivers will be the norm in the population of FCC
>>"mandated" receivers.
>>
>>What specifics are out there related to cost
>>differentials?
>>
>>
>
>I'm confused. Didn't LG and others just attend a
>congressional hearing in which they demoed 5th gen
>STBs and announce they could be manufactured for $50?
>And didn't Radio Shack just sell a bunch of Accurian
>STBs for $90?
>
>Or is the problem that the Accurian box was on a
>closeout sale and that it wasn't clear whether those
>boxes demoed to Congress were really any good? I
>suppose it's possible that the boxes demoed to
>Congress were bad news. We still don't know why LG
>had to use the window placement for the antenna. They
>could have been demoing 2nd gen STBs, I suppose. But
>I find that non-believable.
>
>From what I've seen advertized and reported, the $90
>Accurian, which originally listed for $250 I believe,
>beats out last year's $300 Motorola, right? Cliff has
>both.
>
>Cost and performance do not seem to be directly
>related. Cost is more a function of integration than
>anything else.
>
>Bert
>
>
I think the Accurian sale was a "lets get rid of this turkey, no one
seems to be buying it" clearance. If they do restock with a new receiver
in some quantity at a similar price then that would be different. I
suspect that RS will not do so.
LG's demo to Congress could be no more than covering their ass since
they have been the lead on 8-VSB since 2000. In the meantime they still
continue to sell COFDM HDTV receivers in OZ, a market 1/16th the size of
the US and where they have to pay royalties for each such DVB-T receiver
while not selling 8-VSB STB's in the US where they don't have to pay IP
royalties. That is the LG reality today.
Why don't they just start making the damn things, converters, now at
some price. Let's get real now just for once then I would start taking
their posturing before Congress more seriously.
I think allowing COFDM as an alternative in the US would be a good idea
right now. Then we would have a flood of "good" receivers at very
reasonable prices very soon and Congress would see some real interest on
the part of manufacturers to make and distribute "converter" boxes.
Bob Miller
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