[opendtv] Re: Freeview realities

  • From: "Barry Wilkins" <barry.barrywilkins@xxxxxxxxx>
  • To: opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
  • Date: Thu, 16 Nov 2006 21:22:39 +1300

I have listened and commented from time to time on this fascinating COFDM
versus 8 VSB debate and so it is apparent to me that there is a lot of deep
feeling about the issue, the evidence being there still IS a debate after
all this time (I've been reading this list for at least 5 years and I'm not
involved in broadcasting).

If, as you say Bob, "the reality in the US is virtually no one is even
interested in
OTA. Retailers, consumers and broadcasters are all showing little to no
interest in OTA." then what is the point of this discussion? Who IS
interested?

Aren't the broadcasters happy to piggyback off the cable companies?. Are the
consumers unhappy?

If the debate is concentrated to the purely technical it is quite clear the
issue has been well and truely decided and not in favour of ATSC.

That leaves all the political and commercial influence coupled with the
inability of the general public to know, let alone comment on, what is good
for them. So the public gets a system that may not be on further
consideration the best technical choice. Those who do not agree with this
point argue against the technical and commercial opinion of practically all
of the rest of the world's countries.

Of course this is all regrettable from the view of informed consumers in
many countries because had the USA embraced a very attractive technology
from a global perspective, it would have benefited us all in economies of
scale, the USA included.

It is interesting to speculate if this debate will still be rageing in
another 5 years time.

Barry Wilkins

On 11/16/06, Bob Miller <robmxa@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:


It is not just that we don't have many STBs for sale here. You can say
that most people want an integrated set.

No

In many other countries OTA is very much alive and GROWING.

Bob Miller

On 11/15/06, John Shutt <shuttj@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Manfredi, Albert E" <albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx>
> To: <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Wednesday, November 15, 2006 1:17 PM
> Subject: [opendtv] Re: Freeview realities
>
>
> > John Shutt wrote:
> >
> >> Choice of modulation is what allows Australia, a country of
> >> 20 million people, to have "80 models of STBs for sale" while
> >> we have almost none in ATSC.
> >
> > The funny thing is, in spite of all the evidence of global decoder
> > chipsets, global tuners, and easily integrated 8-VSB demods, is that
you
> > and Bob continue to believe that the reason for this is the modulation
> > standard.
> >
> > How about, just for example, if the difference were that in Australia,
> > the retailers are willing to market these boxes, while in the US, the
> > retailers are encouraged to hide them? That's just a conspiracy theory
> > example, but it illustrates that JUST MAYBE, it has nothing to do with
> > modulation?
> >
> > Or just maybe, US consumers are truly unwilling to use OTA TV, whereas
> > consumers in Australia know it exists?
>
> Bert, Occam's razor.  Australia has a ton of boxes.  They're a DVB
country.
> Italy has tons of boxes.  They're a DVB country.  The UK has tons of
boxes,
> too.  They are a DVB country.  The United States has very few
boxes.  They
> are an ATSC country.
>
> John
>
>
>
>
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