[opendtv] Re: --FCC OKs WiFi between TV channels
- From: "Manfredi, Albert E" <albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 28 May 2004 16:13:52 -0400
Dale Kelly wrote:
> That's a good question and I certainly don't have the answer.
> Unique HDTV
> programming of sufficient quality and quantity, together with
> reliable DTV
> reception, might be a surrogate for turning around the decline of FOTA
> broadcasting.
>
> However, the DBS/Cable companies may never be motivated to carry local
> station HDTV programming due to the fact that they have co opted that
> business as their own and are charging for this service by way of HDTV
> packages. CBS has already broken ranks and have made non broadcast
> arrangements for HDTV carriage. Will other networks follow their lead?
>
> Should Broadcasters actually obtain increased viewing by way
> of their OTA
> HDTV offerings then I assume the cable carriage issue will
> resolve itself
> thru increased subscriber demand.
Constantly shifting tides.
The way I see it, FTA broadcasting of primarly NTSC has stabilized as
the sole TV access pipe for about 15 percent of US households.
If multichannel providers do not include network HD channels in their
proprietary spectrum allocations, then FTA broadcasting will be used
increasingly as an adjunct to multichannel services. This type of use
will not figure in the 15 percent number, but it would be nice to
follow that total FTA usage figure as receivers improve and as more
people buy HD sets. (And BTW, it's no extra hassle for a DBS customer
to have the OTA antenna installed by the same guy who installs the
rest of the DBS system.)
Another likely shift in tides is that as DTT reception improves and
as DTT broadcasters define and advertize their multicasting plans,
and NTSC shutoff could also play a major role here, possibly the
fraction of households relying entirely on DTT could increase some.
Innovative applications over DTT would also help here.
On the other hand, if multichannel service providers find a way to
include network HD programs in their proprietary spectrum
allocations, they will be less likely to offer packages which
integrate ATSC content, and total OTA usage would fall somewhat.
So I'd suggest it's hard to predict where FTA will be in the future,
but I would be quite optimistic overall. Seems to me that there are
more paths that lead to increased use than to decreased use. All
contingent on receivers getting more reliable, as they certainly
seem to be doing, and on broadcasters getting excited about their
OTA spectrum as more than just a means to get cable carriage.
Bert
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