Too true, and well said. :-) TV stations just don't have the business structure to be a CE support/distribution/sales facility. There is no profit in all the infrastructure required to sell a couple boxes to your own subscribers, while competing with Best Buys etc. Branding that little STB even if it is some text or a sticker on the frontpanel or an insert with the documentation does not come cheap. And what is the benefit of selling a couple branded STBs? Not like viewers do not know your name already... As a sidenote WRAL actually did try selling datacasting cards (the old Teralogics). They spun that group off real fast to a separate business entity. Cheers Kon On 1/24/07, Mark Schubin <tvmark@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Don Moore wrote: > I'm surprised that any one of the major ownership groups has gone out > and branded a Set-Top Box for general public distribution. I'm not. Ignore any financial issues for a moment, and assume no reception problems whatsoever. Someone takes home a box and gets no pictures. Maybe it's not tuned to any channel. Maybe it's not turned on. Maybe it's not connected to an antenna. Maybe it's not connected to the TV. Maybe it's not plugged into the wall. If it's your box, it's your responsibility.