[opendtv] Re: Toward digital TV
- From: Mark Aitken <maitken@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 15 Dec 2005 10:45:14 -0500
Troubling is an understatement. Go to a "high end" store and ask for an
ATSC capable set-top-box. I walked into one, cash in hand (not credit),
and they WOULD NOT SELL the only ATSC capable set-top-box they had.
"Credit Only". Why? Because to authorize the unit, there must be a
billing "agent", and the OTA is only enabled AFTER an HDTV (this is a
DTH SAT capable box) tier is selected. It is getting WORSE over time.
That being said, worse on top of worse (not yet worst) equals what (or
is worst the answer?)?
Manfredi, Albert E wrote:
>Dale Kelly wrote:
>
>
>
>>>Except that the CEA doesn't see those "sign up" bonuses
>>>either, do they? If anything, the NCTA, right?
>>>
>>>
>>Your equation leaves out the retailer, who does receive
>>the Cable/Satellite kick back and who is the also the CEA
>>members sole customer.
>>
>>
>
>Yes, you have a point. Although what Mark Aitken said
>yesterday, assuming I understand it correctly, is even more
>troubling:
>
>Mark Aitken wrote:
>
>
>
>>I know that when a sale is made to Satellite, there is a
>>"pop" for the signing party. In some cases, there is a
>>continuing "residual". If you want OTA DTV anymore (with
>>just a few exceptions), you have to be a "paying member"
>>of someones.
>>
>>
>
>Does this mean that CE manufacturers are encouraged not to
>build anything for OTA use, because they can generate an
>infinite revenue stream for each sale if they can coerce
>people to get suckered into a subscription service?
>
>I'd find this so blatantly anti-competitive that I'm
>wondering why we've been debating about must-carry or the
>effect of adopting DVB-T. These other factors would fade
>into insignificance if the market were so badly skewed.
>
>By the way, my brother reports that it's easy to find DVB-T
>STBs for sale in Rome, even though DTT there is not quite
>fully deployed yet. Not all multiplexes are being
>transmitted by each translator site as of now.
>
>Here's another little tid bit. I was at Myer Emco last
>Saturday. These are relatively high end audio/video stores.
>I asked whether they carried any ATSC STBs.
>
>"No, we don't," he said.
>
>"How come?"
>
>"Because DTV receivers are built into all TV sets. If you
>bought a TV in the past 10 years, it will have the DTV
>receiver built-in already."
>
>Gosh, I guess I've been watching HDTV all along, thinking
>it was NTSC. The image quality sucks. No wonder people are
>switching to cable.
>
>Unbelievable. And to make matters even worse, I noticed a
>customer listening intently to one of the "experts" while
>I was there, and TAKING NOTES!
>
>Bert
>
>
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--
><> ><> ><> ><> ><> ><> ><>
Regards,
Mark A. Aitken
Director, Advanced Technology
<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><
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