So, a TV minus ATSC tuner, but plus built-in Google Cast. Interesting! Although
they obviously miss that a lot more than 10% of US TV households use *some* OTA
TV. Still, the emphasis went to built-in streaming.
Another interesting item. According to Pete Putman, omitting ATSC would save
"roughly $10 per set." Vizio claims the omission is for ease of setup. They
also say they have a separate tuner. I guess using a separate tuner simplifies
setup, according to them.
No mention of any impending doom of ATSC 1.0 as an excuse to omit a tuner.
Assuming anyone would need an excuse. Sounds like collusion, but at least they
did make streaming from any device to the TV set straightforward. I trust
Google compensated them accordingly.
Bert
---------------------------------------
http://www.tvtechnology.com/news/0002/vizio-make-atsc-tunerfree-4ktvs/278312
Vizio Make ATSC Tuner-Free 4KTVs
But doesn't call them 'TVs'
April 4, 2016
By Deborah D. McAdams
IRVINE, CALIF.- Vizio is rolling out a new line of smart 4KTVs that aren't. The
Southern California set maker announced a new line of television sets with the
works-Ultra HD resolution, high dynamic range, integrated Google Cast streaming
technology and a 6-inch, 1080p Android tablet remote... but no ATSC
over-the-air tuners. Without tuners, Vizio's new line legally can't be referred
to as "TVs."
"They are obviously trying to get around that problem by including no tuner at
all, as opposed to including a tuner that picks up only some channels," said
one veteran media attorney based in Washington, D.C. "However, you then need to
market the device as a 'monitor' or a 'display.' Calling it a 'TV' leads to an
issue with consumer confusion. Some manufacturers produced similar sets during
the DTV transition when tuners were expensive, but they flopped with consumers."
The 1962 All Channel Receiver Act "authorized the commission to require that
all television receivers shipped in interstate commerce, or imported into the
United States, for sale or resale to the public be capable of receiving all
channels allocated to television broadcasting." The Federal Communications
Commission further amended its TV reception rules for the digital transition,
requiring all new TV receivers shipped into and within the United States to
have ATSC tuners as of May 1, 2007.
In fact, Vizio itself does not refer directly to its new TVs as "TVs" or
"televisions." The terms appear only in the boilerplate of Vizio's press
release announcing its new "Vizio SmartCast P-Series Ultra HD HDR Home Theater
Display collection." However, the P-Series falls under the category of "TV
Series" on the Vizio website.
News sites that picked up the press release connected the dots. "Vizio's newest
4K UHD HDR P-series TVs with Google Cast baked right into them," the headline
at 4K News said.
"Why Did Vizio Remove ATSC Tuners From P-Series 4K TVs?" TV Technology sister
publication TWICE said.
From The Verge: "Vizio's new P-Series reinvents the 'smart' TV with Google Cast
- and nothing else."
And TechHive: "Cord cutters should hope Vizio's new smart TVs don't spark a
trend."
"Vizio is also boasting that its SmartCast 4KTVs will be 'tuner-free," Jared
Newman wrote for TechHive. He reported that a Vizio spokesman told him that
since a minority of U.S. households rely exclusively on over-the-air TV-roughly
10 percent-that Vizio decided to leave out the tuners and simplify the set-up
process.
Reliance on over-the-air TV reception could be changing, however. A Canadian
market researcher recently said 1.13 million U.S. households dropped pay TV in
2015, up four times the 2014 cord-cutting rate, according to Multichannel News.
When asked directly why it was leaving tuners out of the P-Series and possibly
other lines, Vizio provided TV Technology with the same statement it gave to
TechHive:
"Research shows that less than 10 percent of TV viewers receive over-the-air
broadcast programs. As we continually evaluate and focus on designing products
that deliver a beautifully simple experience, we felt that removing the tuner
would simplify the overall setup and user experience for the vast majority of
customers. P-Series users can play content from nearly all content sources,
like most cable/satellite set-top boxes, game consoles, Blu-ray players and
more. If consumers use an external 'rabbit ear' antenna to watch local
over-the-air broadcast TV signals, a TV tuner can be purchased separately," it
said.
Additionally, a Vizio spokesperson said the company continued to make "TVs."
"Vizio released the D-Series TVs earlier this year that do include over-the-air
ATSC tuners. Those models range in size from 24 to 70 inches, from prices
between $149.99 and $1299.99."
Vizio is well known among TV manufacturers for making low-cost sets, but there
was no mention of saving money by omitting ATSC receiver chips. The Vizio
spokesman said the company does not share component costs. Television display
expert Pete Putman said it would save Vizio roughly $10 per set to leave out
the tuners, or about 1 percent on the low-end P-Series 50-inch display, MSRP
listed at $999.99. A 55-inch goes for $1,299.99; 65-inch for $1,999.99; and a
75-inch P-Series Ultra HD HDR display is MSRP'd at $3,799.99.
The FCC has been known to fine manufacturers for selling TV sets without
tuners. Between May of 2007 and July of 2012, a total of 17 DTV tuner
enforcement actions were taken, according to FCC records.
The commission fined Regent USA $63,650 in 2007 for non-compliant receivers.
Tempe, Ariz.-based Syntax-Brillian Corp. was fined $1,277,100 in 2008 for
importing tuner-free TVs. The most recent action was against Hanspree, a U.S.
subsidiary for Taipai-based HannStar Display Corp. Hanspree was fined $11,800
in 2012 for DTV tuner requirement violations.
The FCC's DTV tuner mandate also requires that receivers have the capability to
fix on virtual as well as actual channels, which came into question last fall
when viewers looking for WJLP-TV of Middletown Township, N.J. on Ch. 33
consistently ended up looking at WCBS-TV out of New York. CBS asked the FCC to
look into the issue. (See "CBS Alerts FCC to TV Tuning Failure.")
According to an FCC spokesman, the commission can initiate its own action
regarding tuner enforcement, or an affected party can file a complaint.
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