[opendtv] Re: --FCC OKs WiFi between TV channels
- From: "Skip Pizzi" <skippiz@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 27 May 2004 16:26:09 -0700
Well, I *had* been lost after Dale's last post (and not being completely
sure that Bert's earlier reply was in fact sarcasm -- although I thought
so...), but now I'm back on track.
Without getting caught up in the dogma and other deep "attitude" that
this forum has become famous for ;-), I agree with Bert's conclusion.
It's been my experience, that despite the vagaries, there are plenty of
occasions where I will fiddle with my Silver Sensor to get the (older
gen) ATSC tuner in my DirecTV HD STB to pull in a local channel rather
than just going to the satellite. It's not just eye-candy, it's the
content. If I really want to watch a particular program, I'd prefer it
to be in HD, but if I can't get it that way, I'll take it in NTSC. OTOH,
if there's nothing particular that I want to see when I sit down at the
big screen, I'll go with my "favorite channels" EPG, which is filtered
to show only HD sat and ATSC channels. It's kind of nostalgic, tuning
through a repeating sequence of a dozen or so channels like I did as a
kid. And if an ATSC channel is coming in erractically, I'll change to
one that's steady, or to a sat channel that's running something at least
remotely interesting to me.
It's not religion, just common sense. Signal quality and content both
matter, but the latter usually bears more weight. Often this means that
broadcast channels still win, regardless of delivery format. The more HD
content these channels run, however, and the more consistently they can
be received (both of which seem to be rising, gratefully), the more they
will continue to hold an important and generally dominant business
position.=20
Meanwhile, the more these operators explore alternative delivery
systems, and become comfortable with the non-broadcast-traditional world
in which they are content-only providers (while others downstream are
service-only providers, and to which such content-providers should
remain as agnostic as possible), the better positioned they will be for
staying on top in the future.
--SP
-----Original Message-----
From: opendtv-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:opendtv-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]
On Behalf Of Dale Kelly
Sent: Thursday, May 27, 2004 5:49 PM
To: opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [opendtv] Re: --FCC OKs WiFi between TV channels
You've completely lost me.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Manfredi, Albert E" <albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx>
To: <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Thursday, May 27, 2004 2:13 PM
Subject: [opendtv] Re: --FCC OKs WiFi between TV channels
> Not sure what I'm mistaken about, Dale? I thought I was
> being sarcastic in the post below, and was certainly NOT
> presenting you *my* views on ATSC. I was instead
> presenting a dogma with which I think by now we are all
> quite familiar?
>
> I don't think there's any question that DBS has trouble
> fitting local into local HD programming into their
> spectrum allocation, and that at least DirecTV and Voom
> use ATSC to solve that problem. What I am explaining to
> you is the response you are likely to get, to "explain"
> how ATSC continues to be irrelevant in spite of this
> function it provides to DBS (and never mind OTA
> households after NTSC shutdown).
>
> A few years ago, it was all HD that was supposed to be
> irrelevant. Since ATSC and HDTV were almost synonimous,
> this was an easy way to demonize the whole thing in one
> fell swoop.
>
> Faced with the realities of a changing marketplace, now
> maybe we're forced to accept that all HD is not
> irrelevant. But "we" must continue to insist that
> broadcasting and ATSC are irrelevant, so we propose the
> notion that there is zero demand for any HD transmitted
> by broadcasters, over ATSC. Ipso facto, ATSC remains
> irrelevant. That was easy.
>
> I don't doubt for a second that Skip's "spin" has
> validity, though. Obviously, if ATSC reception is too
> problematic, DBS users won't bother to ever exercise
> their ATSC tuners. But as ATSC reception improves, they
> will bother. Especially now that virtually *all* prime
> time programming is in HD. It's really silly to believe
> that DBS subscribers with HD facilities never watch
> prime time TV, or would prefer to view prime time TV in
> SD, or are only interested in prime time HD from CBS,
> and *only* in those markets where CBS owns the
> local OTA station. I mean, it takes real mental
> contortions to keep up such a belief structure, no?
>
> Bert
>
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Dale Kelly [mailto:res0xtey@xxxxxxxxxxx]
> >
> > Bert, you are mistaken. Skip and I have completely opposing
> > views on this subject.
> > My original mail was a rebuttal of Craig's reply to John
> > Golitis in which
> > Graig once again railed against the relevance of broadcasting.
> > Skip simply agreed with one of my suppositions and used that
> > to post his "spin" on the subject.
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "Manfredi, Albert E" <albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx>
> >
> > > Dale and Skip,
> > >
> > > In order to stick with the position that DTT and ATSC are
> > > and will continue to be inconsequential, one must continue
> > > to preach that no one with HD reception and display
> > > capabilities has any interest in watching the HD content
> > > available OTA, from the major networks. This belief is a
> > > prerequisite.
> > >
> > > The fact that DirecTV integrates the DTT channels into its
> > > system now for network HD content doesn't matter, because
> > > no HD customer worth his salt would ever care to watch
> > > network fare, HD or otherwise, and certainly wouldn't dare
> > > own up to it. Don't you know. So ATSC continues not to
> > > matter.
> > >
> > > Bert
> > >
> > >
> > > Skip Pizzi wrote:
> > >
> > > > Dale is correct. At least for now, DBS provides only the=3D20
> > NTSC channels
> > > > for its local-into-local services. The only exception I'm
> > > > familiar with
> > > > is that DirecTV carries the CBS-E and CBS-W feeds in HD, and
> > > > if you are
> > > > market where the CBS station is an O&O, you can receive the
> > > > national HD
> > > > feed (E or W, as appropriate for your location). (Not=3D20
> > sure, but Dish
> > > > probably has the same deal.)
> > > >
> > > > AFAIK, all HD STBs for DBS include an ATSC tuner, and most
(all?)
> > > > integrate the two tuners' into a single EPG. This is not=3D20
> > hard for the
> > > > STBs to do, because I believe they receive all EPG data=3D20
> > -- including
> > > > that for the local DTV channels -- from the sat provider, not
> > > > from PSIP.
> > > >
> > > > Note also that the new HD PVR from DirecTV/TiVo includes=3D20
> > not one but
> > > > *two* ATSC tuners (along with two sat tuners), so all PVR
> > > > functionality
> > > > is the same for both sat and local channels. (The=3D20
> > original design had
> > > > two sat tuners but only one ATSC tuner, and DirecTV elected
> > > > to miss the
> > > > Xmas 2003 retail window to retool the unit with a second ATSC
> > > > tuner. It
> > > > started shipping last month, with a price tag of around $1k.)
> > > >
> > > > Finally, my $.02 on the reason why some consumers might
> > > > ignore the ATSC
> > > > feature: 1) The sat channels are always there (except for brief
> > > > rain-fade outages), while the terrestrial channels might=3D20
> > come and go
> > > > depending on your location and other variables (that
> > > > certainly has been
> > > > my experience, anyway); 2) The HD sat channels are ALWAYS=3D20
> > running HD
> > > > content (ESPN-HD is the one exception, and it's soon going to be
> > > > "mostly" HD), while the terrestrial channels still run=3D20
> > more SD than HD
> > > > content. (The latter is also changing for the better as=3D20
> > time goes on,
> > > > but still a long ways from all-HD-all-the-time, or even
> > > > -most-of-the-time).
> > > >
> > > > --SP
> > > >=3D3D20
> > > > Skip Pizzi=3D3D3D20
> > > > Manager, Technical Policy
> > > > Windows Client Strategic Relations
> > > > Microsoft Corp.
>
>
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=20
=20
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