[opendtv] Re: Another Wireless PC-to-TV Idea

  • From: Craig Birkmaier <craig@xxxxxxxxx>
  • To: opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
  • Date: Wed, 6 Oct 2010 06:42:58 -0400

At 4:29 PM -0500 10/5/10, Manfredi, Albert E wrote:

Craig Birkmaier wrote:
Bert's wireless ATSC idea has at least some merit - it could connect wireless devices to the TV in a crude way that would enable the content to be displayed 
 on the TV. The Ch 3-4 ATSC modulator idea is technically feasible, but
unnecesary, as any new devices that might need to connect to the TV - DVD and BluRay players, game consoles, etc, already have HDMI as a low priced option. 

You are totally confusing the issue.
We are talking specifically PC content to the TV, e.g. for viewing streaming media or catch-up TV on the TV set. And we are talking *wireless* and simple, not requiring you to connect a length of HDMI cable from that imaginary HDMI connector on the PC, to the TV. 

OK, then your idea makes NO SENSE at all.
Most of this content is NOT encoded using MPEG-2 and is not streamed using the MPEG TS structure. So first it must be re-encoded, then turned into a compliant ATSC transport structure before it can be transmitted to the ATSC receiver in the TV.
I fully understand that there is no cable between the PC and the TV. Instead, you are adding an ATSC transmitter and intelligence to the PC to make your scheme work.
The ALTERNATIVE is to add the dongle and intelligence to the TV and use the WiFi node in the PC to send the data to that dongle.
Any way you look at it, this will be about the same cost, UNLESS you can get really good terms on all the intellectual property needed to mae it work, not to mention permission from the FCC to transmit on a VHF channel.
And when you are done you can ONLY send video streams to the TV, while the dongle connected to the TV can provide multiple services and it will ALSO work without the computer. 

There is simply NO COMPARISION in functionality and value to the consumer.
The article you posted went on at great lengths explaining how certain web sites were making their TV content ready for TV screen display. But the thing is, computers can already do that for you, with Flash or WMP or even Quicktime, or whatever. And there's no reason to get the media moguls to agree. The media moguls are ALREADY making their shows available over their own web sites. At least, some shows, delayed in time from the actual broadcast. So it's not hard to get that content to your TV, whether or not they "participate" in anything to this end. That's keeping things unwalled, Craig. 

A different thread crept in here, but your point is well taken.
The point the SECOND article made about prepping a web site for the TV is quite valid. MANY websites now check for the client they are supporting and send the appropriate HTML version for the device. TVs are not PCs - there are differences in resolution, aspect ratio, and viewing distance, so it is to be expected that a website for the TV will be different than the website for a mobile device or a PC.
Unfortunately, if you use a PC to render the website, it is likely that the server will send the PC version, so it may not play well on the TV. But even more germane, is how you are going to use an ATSC transmitter to get a viewable page onto the TV screen via the ATSC tuner. Are you going to have the PC render still images of the page then transmit them using MPEG-2 in a valid transport stream? Are you going to send PSIP?
Your arguments are bordering on the absurd, given the rush by companies to put the intelligence IN the TV or in a cheap dongle that connects to the TV via HDMI. And then there is the issue of needing a dongle for each PC, smartphone, iPad, etc, that you want to use to send content to the TV. We have four devices that could send content to an Apple TV in our home, not to mention additional devices (iPhones and an iPad that our kids typically carry with them when they visit). 

As you can see Bert, your arguments are ludicrous...
Most of the streaming media content these days can be viewed full screen viewing on the PC. So you transmit that stream to the USB dongle, and it converts it to MPEG-2 and your choice of 4:3 or 16:9 for the TV display. And you don't need anything TV-unique from the web. (Of course, you need the computer!!)
Tyr figuring out how much software and related IP you will need to make this work. And don't leave out the software needed to scale video, re-encode it in real time, and create transport streams.
Or, naturally, you can also wirelessly connect the PC to the TV just to use the larger TV display. For any computer stuff. 


REALLY? please tell me how this works via an ATSC receiver in the TV...



Minimal hype, minimal fuss.


Minimal logical thinking...

Regards
Craig


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