[opendtv] Re: --FCC OKs WiFi between TV channels
- From: "Dale Kelly" <res0xtey@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 28 May 2004 13:31:48 -0700
After again reading your and Bert's postings, it is clear to me that I
misinterpreted your intent and am in general agreement.
I can only blame this mental lapse on an attack of Verbositis (a mind
numbing effect associated with an over exposure to Verbosity - most commonly
exhibited by subscribers to openDTV forum!)
----- Original Message -----
From: "Skip Pizzi" <skippiz@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Thursday, May 27, 2004 4:26 PM
Subject: [opendtv] Re: --FCC OKs WiFi between TV channels
> Well, I *had* been lost after Dale's last post (and not being completely
> sure that Bert's earlier reply was in fact sarcasm -- although I thought
> so...), but now I'm back on track.
>
> Without getting caught up in the dogma and other deep "attitude" that
> this forum has become famous for ;-), I agree with Bert's conclusion.
> It's been my experience, that despite the vagaries, there are plenty of
> occasions where I will fiddle with my Silver Sensor to get the (older
> gen) ATSC tuner in my DirecTV HD STB to pull in a local channel rather
> than just going to the satellite. It's not just eye-candy, it's the
> content. If I really want to watch a particular program, I'd prefer it
> to be in HD, but if I can't get it that way, I'll take it in NTSC. OTOH,
> if there's nothing particular that I want to see when I sit down at the
> big screen, I'll go with my "favorite channels" EPG, which is filtered
> to show only HD sat and ATSC channels. It's kind of nostalgic, tuning
> through a repeating sequence of a dozen or so channels like I did as a
> kid. And if an ATSC channel is coming in erractically, I'll change to
> one that's steady, or to a sat channel that's running something at least
> remotely interesting to me.
>
> It's not religion, just common sense. Signal quality and content both
> matter, but the latter usually bears more weight. Often this means that
> broadcast channels still win, regardless of delivery format. The more HD
> content these channels run, however, and the more consistently they can
> be received (both of which seem to be rising, gratefully), the more they
> will continue to hold an important and generally dominant business
> position.=20
>
> Meanwhile, the more these operators explore alternative delivery
> systems, and become comfortable with the non-broadcast-traditional world
> in which they are content-only providers (while others downstream are
> service-only providers, and to which such content-providers should
> remain as agnostic as possible), the better positioned they will be for
> staying on top in the future.
>
> --SP
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: opendtv-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:opendtv-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]
> On Behalf Of Dale Kelly
> Sent: Thursday, May 27, 2004 5:49 PM
> To: opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: [opendtv] Re: --FCC OKs WiFi between TV channels
>
> You've completely lost me.
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Manfredi, Albert E" <albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx>
> To: <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Thursday, May 27, 2004 2:13 PM
> Subject: [opendtv] Re: --FCC OKs WiFi between TV channels
>
>
> > Not sure what I'm mistaken about, Dale? I thought I was
> > being sarcastic in the post below, and was certainly NOT
> > presenting you *my* views on ATSC. I was instead
> > presenting a dogma with which I think by now we are all
> > quite familiar?
> >
> > I don't think there's any question that DBS has trouble
> > fitting local into local HD programming into their
> > spectrum allocation, and that at least DirecTV and Voom
> > use ATSC to solve that problem. What I am explaining to
> > you is the response you are likely to get, to "explain"
> > how ATSC continues to be irrelevant in spite of this
> > function it provides to DBS (and never mind OTA
> > households after NTSC shutdown).
> >
> > A few years ago, it was all HD that was supposed to be
> > irrelevant. Since ATSC and HDTV were almost synonimous,
> > this was an easy way to demonize the whole thing in one
> > fell swoop.
> >
> > Faced with the realities of a changing marketplace, now
> > maybe we're forced to accept that all HD is not
> > irrelevant. But "we" must continue to insist that
> > broadcasting and ATSC are irrelevant, so we propose the
> > notion that there is zero demand for any HD transmitted
> > by broadcasters, over ATSC. Ipso facto, ATSC remains
> > irrelevant. That was easy.
> >
> > I don't doubt for a second that Skip's "spin" has
> > validity, though. Obviously, if ATSC reception is too
> > problematic, DBS users won't bother to ever exercise
> > their ATSC tuners. But as ATSC reception improves, they
> > will bother. Especially now that virtually *all* prime
> > time programming is in HD. It's really silly to believe
> > that DBS subscribers with HD facilities never watch
> > prime time TV, or would prefer to view prime time TV in
> > SD, or are only interested in prime time HD from CBS,
> > and *only* in those markets where CBS owns the
> > local OTA station. I mean, it takes real mental
> > contortions to keep up such a belief structure, no?
> >
> > Bert
> >
> >
> > > -----Original Message-----
> > > From: Dale Kelly [mailto:res0xtey@xxxxxxxxxxx]
> > >
> > > Bert, you are mistaken. Skip and I have completely opposing
> > > views on this subject.
> > > My original mail was a rebuttal of Craig's reply to John
> > > Golitis in which
> > > Graig once again railed against the relevance of broadcasting.
> > > Skip simply agreed with one of my suppositions and used that
> > > to post his "spin" on the subject.
> > >
> > > ----- Original Message -----
> > > From: "Manfredi, Albert E" <albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx>
> > >
> > > > Dale and Skip,
> > > >
> > > > In order to stick with the position that DTT and ATSC are
> > > > and will continue to be inconsequential, one must continue
> > > > to preach that no one with HD reception and display
> > > > capabilities has any interest in watching the HD content
> > > > available OTA, from the major networks. This belief is a
> > > > prerequisite.
> > > >
> > > > The fact that DirecTV integrates the DTT channels into its
> > > > system now for network HD content doesn't matter, because
> > > > no HD customer worth his salt would ever care to watch
> > > > network fare, HD or otherwise, and certainly wouldn't dare
> > > > own up to it. Don't you know. So ATSC continues not to
> > > > matter.
> > > >
> > > > Bert
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > Skip Pizzi wrote:
> > > >
> > > > > Dale is correct. At least for now, DBS provides only the=3D20
> > > NTSC channels
> > > > > for its local-into-local services. The only exception I'm
> > > > > familiar with
> > > > > is that DirecTV carries the CBS-E and CBS-W feeds in HD, and
> > > > > if you are
> > > > > market where the CBS station is an O&O, you can receive the
> > > > > national HD
> > > > > feed (E or W, as appropriate for your location). (Not=3D20
> > > sure, but Dish
> > > > > probably has the same deal.)
> > > > >
> > > > > AFAIK, all HD STBs for DBS include an ATSC tuner, and most
> (all?)
> > > > > integrate the two tuners' into a single EPG. This is not=3D20
> > > hard for the
> > > > > STBs to do, because I believe they receive all EPG data=3D20
> > > -- including
> > > > > that for the local DTV channels -- from the sat provider, not
> > > > > from PSIP.
> > > > >
> > > > > Note also that the new HD PVR from DirecTV/TiVo includes=3D20
> > > not one but
> > > > > *two* ATSC tuners (along with two sat tuners), so all PVR
> > > > > functionality
> > > > > is the same for both sat and local channels. (The=3D20
> > > original design had
> > > > > two sat tuners but only one ATSC tuner, and DirecTV elected
> > > > > to miss the
> > > > > Xmas 2003 retail window to retool the unit with a second ATSC
> > > > > tuner. It
> > > > > started shipping last month, with a price tag of around $1k.)
> > > > >
> > > > > Finally, my $.02 on the reason why some consumers might
> > > > > ignore the ATSC
> > > > > feature: 1) The sat channels are always there (except for brief
> > > > > rain-fade outages), while the terrestrial channels might=3D20
> > > come and go
> > > > > depending on your location and other variables (that
> > > > > certainly has been
> > > > > my experience, anyway); 2) The HD sat channels are ALWAYS=3D20
> > > running HD
> > > > > content (ESPN-HD is the one exception, and it's soon going to be
> > > > > "mostly" HD), while the terrestrial channels still run=3D20
> > > more SD than HD
> > > > > content. (The latter is also changing for the better as=3D20
> > > time goes on,
> > > > > but still a long ways from all-HD-all-the-time, or even
> > > > > -most-of-the-time).
> > > > >
> > > > > --SP
> > > > >=3D3D20
> > > > > Skip Pizzi=3D3D3D20
> > > > > Manager, Technical Policy
> > > > > Windows Client Strategic Relations
> > > > > Microsoft Corp.
> >
> >
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>
> =20
> =20
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