[opendtv] News: FCC: All Sets Must Have DTV Tuners
- From: Craig Birkmaier <craig@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: OpenDTV Mail List <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 4 Nov 2005 07:30:17 -0500
It looks like the FCC has killed another market for portable
televisions. Yesterday the commission ordered that ALL television
"receivers" must include an ATSC tuner by March 1, 2007; existing
rules only required receivers 13" and larger to include an ATSC tuner.
I guess this clears the way for cell phone video services and
portable media players. U.S. TV Broadcasters can now forget about
reaching hand held receivers, except via legacy NTSC devices.
makes one wonder if the commissioners are going to get desperate and
mandate an ATSC tuner in cell phones and other devices that can
receive bits from sources other than NTSC broadcasts?
Quite a contrast, on a day that saw the introduction of DVB-H support
via Nokia cell phones...
Regards
Craig
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6280974.html?display=Breaking+News&referral=SUPP&nid=2228
FCC: All Sets Must Have DTV Tuners
By John Eggerton -- Broadcasting & Cable, 11/3/2005 3:45:00 PM
As expected, the FCC Thursday opened a notice of proposed rulemaking
into the local franchising process for multichannel video providers,
extended the emergency alert system to digital TV stations, and
modified the DTV-tuner mandate to cover smaller sets like the
portable ones that prove lifelines in emergencies.
Essentially the FCC, in looking into the franchise process, posed a
number of questions about what constitutes reasonable or unreasonable
behavior by a local franchising authority.
It based those questions on the premise that, rather than simply
applying to the ultimate refusal to grant a franchise, "unreasonable
refusal" should be interpreted more broadly, and that it can preempt
state and local franshise regs that prove to be unreasonable barriers
to competition.
The National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisers
said it welcomed a fact-based inquiry, but also said that, "The [FCC
notice] comes as the result of large telephone and other
telecommunications companies' efforts to largely avoid the
established local franchising process, but more specifically to avoid
having to individually negotiate the statutorily protected areas of
build-out requirements, public, educational and governmental capacity
and capital support and the important public safety benefits in the
provision of institutional networks."
FCC Commissioner Michael Copps injected some warning notes into the
proceedings, saying: "The Commission needs to tread with caution and
care before it asserts any authority to interpose itself with
LFAs(local franchising authorities) to the extent Congress
specifically delegated power to local officials. We are going out on
limb already by creating a "de facto" refusal theory and tentatively
concluding that the Commission has the ability to determine whether
an LFA is "unreasonably refus[ing] to award a competitive franchise."
The FCC Thursday also decided to extend the DTV tuner mandate to all
sets, not just those 13 inches and larger. It is also moving up the
tuner mandate by four months to March 1, 2007. That is the date after
which all TV recievers sold must be able to recieve a digital signal.
"We're pleased that Chairman Martin and his colleagues have
established an even more aggressive timeline for DTV tuner compliance
in smaller television sets,"said NAB President Eddie Fritts. "This
pro-consumer action sends the unmistakable signal to set manufactures
that further delays in rolling out DTV receiving equipment are
unacceptable."
In its other action of the day, the FCC said that its emergency alert
system (EAS) rules will now apply to digital broadcast and cable TV,
satellite, digital audio, satellite radio, and direct broadcast
satellite services. All but DBS providers must be in compliance by
Dec. 31, 2006. Satellite gets an extra five months, to May 31, 2007.
FCC Chairman Kevin Martin has been pushing for a review of the
franchise process to help advance the rollout of broadband. He also
told Congress last month that the FCC needed to update its EAS system
to include new technologies.
The FCC also plans to hold an en banc hearing on franchise issues.
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