[opendtv] Re: Marketing HD

Craig,

At my previous employer, an ABC affiliate, our management decided to use the 
SAP channel to run the National Weather Service audio.  How many calls do 
you think we fielded every day for the next 6 months?  We ended up with 
quite a comprehensive "cheat sheet" of television makes and models and how 
to turn off the SAP function.

They still do this practice, fourteen years later, and they still field a 
couple of calls a week for "weather" audio in the program.

If the government hands out ATSC receivers, there will also be some sort of 
support line set up.  What happens if the STB is DOA out of the box?  What 
happens if lightning strikes and zaps the STB?  What happens if the box 
suffers some other infant mortality?  Who is responsible for repairs?

I predict that what will ultimately happen, if there is any STB giveaway at 
all it will be funded and administered by a consortium of spectrum users 
that want the channels freed up.  Just like now where every 2GHz ENG radio 
is being replaced by Nextel in a market-by-market basis.  The government 
isn't giving away 2 gig radios, Nextel is allowing each station to replace 
their gear then reimburse them for the costs.  Ditto with this STB 
"giveaway."  Somebody will fund a stack of coupons good for one STB, but 
each viewer will have to go out to Best Buy or whoever to exchange the 
coupons for boxes.  Then the warranty and customer service problems belong 
to the store where the coupon was redeemed.

John Shutt

----- Original Message ----- 

> Now flash forward a bit to whatever date that NTSC is turned off and
> the Government starts handing out ATSC receivers. How may of these
> service calls can you support per day? Five, Ten?


 
 
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