[opendtv] Re: "we'll forever be stuck with by going ATSC"

  • From: "Barry Wilkins" <Barry.Wilkins@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • To: <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Fri, 14 Jan 2005 09:58:11 +1300

Bert wrote:

"Don't know about you, Barry, but this is just
the progression one should expect out of any
subscription service. Shareholders and analysts
are not happy if they don't see growth, and you
just can't expect growth to come exclusively
from increasing the subscription fees. People
bail out when their fees go up too high. I fully
expect satellite radio to go through this same
evolution once the number of subscribers
stabilizes."

If you say one must expect it then the "shareholders and analysts" must
also expect to see many people such as myself exit such services. If
they cannot supply a viable profitable service that enough people see
adequate value in, then what are they doing in business?

Obviously, there are people who are satisfied (or more likely put up
with) what they get but it reaches the lowest common denominator, i.e.
the shareholders make their money and enough people watch content that
they only just put up with. This is verified by a high churn rate (here
anyway).

Regards

Barry



-----Original Message-----
From: Manfredi, Albert E [mailto:albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx]=20
Sent: Friday, 14 January 2005 5:25 a.m.
To: OpenDTV (E-mail)
Subject: [opendtv] Re: "we'll forever be stuck with by going ATSC"

Barry Wilkins wrote:

> So what about HD and broadcasting? If it is
> free like terrestrial broadcasting here, it
> would not impress me in the least. The pressure
> is on to constantly interject the desired
> material with commercials which are always set
> at a blaringly loud average sound level
> (compared to the desired material) that just
> results in infuriation and no recognition of
> the actual item trying to be marketed.

I agree with most of what you posted, but I
think these two topics -- quality level and ad
insertion, are orthogonal.

For one thing, if viewed time-shifted, as I view
most TV, ads become quite innocuous. For another,
I can't think of any commercial program I watch
that isn't better when viewed at cinema quality
levels. Not a single one.

Same applies to audio. I can't think of any radio
I listen to that isn't better when reproduced
with the full audio range. Even if there are ads
in the mix. Even if the program is all news. The
presence of ads and the quality of the signal are
simply two different discussions, for me.

With my 26" LCD, the difference between the ~6
MHz luma bandwidth of DVD and 4.2 MHz of NTSC
becomes very noticeable. So there's little doubt
that I'll appreciate the improved quality of my
favorite commercial shows when I buy my ATSC STB.
If all these commercial shows look as good as
DVDs on my LCD set, that would be wonderful.

With larger screens I've seen in stores, DVD
playback could stand some quality improvement.
HDTV playback and DVD playback are in two
different leagues, on these larger sets. Not
saying that DVDs by themselves don't look great,
but it's just not the same thing as HD content.

So that's the way I see it. I don't think of
HDTV as some discrete entity. Instead, HDTV
means that you have the potential of seeing a
more impressive image every time you increase
the size of the display. Previously, with NTSC
for instance, you simply did not. Larger
displays only gave you uglier pictures. They
only scared you off to a greater viewing
distance.

> The local subscription DBS channels here have
> the effrontery to charge subscriptions + shove
> in ever more advertising of products and
> previews.

Don't know about you, Barry, but this is just
the progression one should expect out of any
subscription service. Shareholders and analysts
are not happy if they don't see growth, and you
just can't expect growth to come exclusively
from increasing the subscription fees. People
bail out when their fees go up too high. I fully
expect satellite radio to go through this same
evolution once the number of subscribers
stabilizes.

Bert
=20
=20
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