Who's Holding Back Digital TV? Well, Everyone, For Starters...
from the moving-forward... dept
The move to digital TV is a big deal, but it's just not happening in the US. The reason? Where do you start? Basically, the simplest answer is that everyone is to blame. Right now everyone is pointing fingers, and to some extent they're all right. No one really sees the benefits -- and there don't seem to be any one to explain them. It's a huge chicken and egg problem. Consumers don't see why they should go digital because they already get the content they want. Also, it seems likely that many consumers are confused about digital TV and HDTV and whether or not they're different. Broadcasters don't see why they should upgrade to go digital when viewers aren't going digital and so everyone sits around going nowhere. Of course, maybe this means the whole broadcast flag thing will get denied before everyone's forced to move to digital TV and your TiVo stops working.
Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
Reader Comments
Subscribe: RSS
View by: Time | Thread
The past 2002
I clicked on the " Tivo stop working " link in this article ...
It was GREAT to see that it posted back in 2002.
3 years later & my parentals tivo is still working fine ...
Glad to see digital TV isn't going anywhere
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Yeah I don't Get It Either
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Yeah I don't Get It Either
The issue with moving to digital TV is actually a VERY big deal, because it will free up a TON of wasted spectrum that the broadcasters hold onto that can be put to much better use by other industries. It's a real waste right now.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Yeah I don't Get It Either
If it's freeing up so much stuff for these broadcasters let them frickin' pay for it.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
No Subject Given
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Oh come on
Consumers of Over-The-Air TV will be motivated when periodic commercials and/or crawls tell them the date they will no longer be able to receive with virtually all existing TVs. So long as the date keeps getting moved back, who is going to buy a new TV or a box?
Digital quality is somewhat better yes, but since digital video is compressed to save bandwidth, snow and hiss are traded for pixelation and fast-motion artifacts. HDTV that isn't compressed too aggressively looks great though, and as prices on those sets fall, much more content is really offered in HDTV, and my 5-10 year old TVs show signs of giving out, I'll jump on digital HDTV. But as a cable customer, until then I'll ignore DTV completely thank you. That isn't because I'm ignorant about DTV; it is because I'm not.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
the medium vs. the message
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: the medium vs. the message
[ link to this | view in thread ]
No Subject Given
Let me get this straight: there's a feature that some companies (and hence some regulators and hence some politicians) want, and consumers, who would have to shell out more to gain no greater benefit aren't interested in going along?
Well knock me down with a feather, that is quite a surprise!
[ link to this | view in thread ]
No Subject Given
I simply doesnt solve a single problem for the viewer.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Yeah I don't Get It Either
[ link to this | view in thread ]
http://hdtvclips.com
[ link to this | view in thread ]