[opendtv] Re: Sony U.S execs: Expect a robust holiday season
- From: "Manfredi, Albert E" <albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 16 Nov 2005 11:31:12 -0500
Craig Birkmaier wrote:
> First, there are some good reasons that PVRs are
> primarily being deployed by broadcast competitors:
>
> 1. They already need a STB to deliver digital
> services, so the PVR is a small incremental cost
> with a significant upside in terms of the revenues
> that this feature generates;
Craig, I don't disagree that competitors might have
their own interests at heart when they pay to deploy
their own PVRs. But the market for NTSC recording
devices, DVDRs and PVRs, apparently still exists.
That's practically all you see on store shelves that
an OTA user can buy. All I'm asking is why aren't the
ATSC versions of EXACTLY these same products
appearing? Or better yet, combined ATSC/digital cable
versions of these products. This wouldn't cost OTA
broadcasters anything. They don't need to invest in
the consumer's equipment, as their competitors do.
> 2, These systems offer a solid EPG to drive the PVR
> capabilities. There is no equivalent with OTA DTV
> broadcasts. For OTA the STB must access every
> channel and pull out the PSIP data...
That's simply a matter of clever vs brain-dead
software design, Craig.
First off, of course, TV program listings that are
not electronic still do exist, in spite of TV Guide's
efforts.
But more importantly, an ATSC PVR can certainly scan
TV channels in the background, e.g. when in idle mode,
to acquire and store a complete OTA broadcast EPG.
This is hardly rocket science. Of course, companies
like TiVo would not get their infinite revenue stream
if they sold such a product. Then again, their CE
competition would have something to sell that people
might actually want. That's how competition is
supposed to work. So where is it?
> I suspect that the real reason you are not seeing
> ATSC receivers with integrated PVRs is due to the
> following:
>
> 1. There is virtually no market for stand alone
> ATSC receivers, and little demand for integrated
> ATSC receivers in HD capable displays.
If there's a market for NTSC recording devices, and
there must be because they are on store shelves, and
if viewership drops by 35 percent or more when analog
stations shut down suddenly, clearly an OTA clintele
does exist. That OTA viewership needs to be migrated
to ATSC, but of course they need to be informed and
products need to be made available.
Price shouldn't be a problem. If an ATSC DVDR or PVR
can be sold for $50 more than its NTSC counterpart,
which the CE manufacturers have claimed they can do,
no one would even flinch. DVDRs sold when they cost
hundreds more than a VCR. Consumers don't mind
spending a little more for what they perceive to be a
better product.
ATSC doesn't have to mean *only* HD.
Bert
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