Interesting People mailing list archives
The Real Cost of Delaying Digital TV
From: David Farber <dave () farber net>
Date: Sun, 11 Jan 2009 11:54:39 -0500
) at the very least pick a better race car driver "-) djf Begin forwarded message: From: dewayne () warpspeed com (Dewayne Hendricks) Date: January 9, 2009 10:25:45 AM EST To: Dewayne-Net Technology List <xyzzy () warpspeed com> Subject: [Dewayne-Net] The Real Cost of Delaying Digital TV THE REAL COST OF DELAYING DIGITAL TVAnalysts say a prolonged delay to digital-only television broadcasting could also be bad news for the wireless service providers who plan to use the airwaves that will be freed up as a result of the change. It may also put a damper on plans by broadcasters to air popular programming once TV signals have gone digital and viewers have done away with outmoded TVs that only pick up analog signals. Mobile-phone service providers have a lot riding on the transition. Industry leaders including AT&T and Verizon Wireless have spent billions of dollars on the airwaves that will be freed up when the transition happens and intend to use that spectrum to provide advanced services, including Web surfing and mobile video. While the services aren't scheduled to go live immediately after the transition, an extended delay could prove problematic. "Every day they can't roll out the system affects when they can bring [new products] to market," says Tim Bajarin, president of industry researcher Creative Strategies. However long the delay, if it comes, Congress will have to pick a new changeover date that will cause the least disruption for viewers—for example, after the NCAA basketball tournament, which airs in March. The government also needs to do a better job educating consumers about the converter-box coupons and the changeover in general, analysts say. Many consumers are unaware of the boxes, and believe they need to buy a new TV. "There's still a lot of confusion," says Creative Strategies' Bajarin. "The real solution for this is for the government to be much more aggressive in getting the message out."
<http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/jan2009/tc2009018_712771.htm?campaign_id=rss_tech >
Courtesy of the Benton Foundation <http://www.benton.org>RSS Feed: <http://www.warpspeed.com/wordpress >
------------------------------------------- Archives: https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/247/=now RSS Feed: https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/rss/247/ Powered by Listbox: http://www.listbox.com
Current thread:
- The Real Cost of Delaying Digital TV David Farber (Jan 11)