Well that's the pitch. However, I can tell you from slightly inside the industry that this isn't a completely altruistic move by Congress for the benefit of more efficient use of the airwaves.
Broadcasters will get exactly the same amount of spectrum as they had with analog, so there goes the reduction of EM airspace arguement. Stations will be able to do more with it digitally, but the FCC is putting pretty tight restrictions on reselling the excess. In addition, local stations are being told by their Network overlords that the Network also has plans for the spectrum. So basically, stations paid for their analog space and now if they want to be digital they have to pay for a digital license and even though they can send more over the same spectrum they are being told they can't. The government makes money by selling these licenses. Not so altruistic, eh? I work peripherally with our Public TV station here to help develop new uses for sending data over their digital broadcast signal. It's not as bad as I make it out to be, but right now it's more of a political game than a technical one. Kevin Graeme > -----Original Message----- > From: Ben Doom [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] > Sent: Friday, September 20, 2002 1:16 PM > To: CF-Community > Subject: RE: US Government might make you buy a new TV in 2006 > > > The big push is because of wireless bandwidth. Analog TV takes up a huge > swath of it in "prime real estate." Digital requires much less. > So, if the > gov't can get back most of the bandwidth used by analog by forcing the > switch to digital, then it can auction it off. > > So it's not just the electronics industry paying for this. :-j > > > --Ben Doom > Programmer & General Lackey > Moonbow Software > > : -----Original Message----- > : From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] > : Sent: Friday, September 20, 2002 2:02 PM > : To: CF-Community > : Subject: Re: US Government might make you buy a new TV in 2006 > : > : > : how much are they (the electronics industry) paying > : Tauzin?? > : > : > http://www.msnbc.com/news/810360.asp?0dm=C15LT > : > > : > U.S. lawmakers are working on an effort that would render > : standard televisions > : > and VCRs obsolete within five years by > : > requiring broadcasters to switch to digital, copy-protected > : signals. A proposal > : > released Thursday by Rep. Billy Tauzin, > : > chairman of the House of Representatives Energy and Commerce > : Committee, would > : > require broadcasters to transmit digital > : > signals by the beginning of 2006, and require them to cease > : standard, analog > : > broadcasts by the end of that year. > : > > : > > : > > : > ______________________________________________________________________ This list and all House of Fusion resources hosted by CFHosting.com. The place for dependable ColdFusion Hosting. Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/cf-community@houseoffusion.com/ Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/index.cfm?sidebar=lists
