article: Bad & Good news for Sub Channels

gregg75 · Jan 23, 2015

Bad: The upcoming spectrum auction will have a negative effect on subs.
Good: Stations will soon be able to pack more subs into their channels.

http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/82488/diginets-proliferate-and-possiblities-expand

landtuna · Jan 23, 2015

Will ATSC 3.0 be compatible with current digital TV's or is this going to be another analog-to-digital fiasco?

Mediafrog+ · Jan 24, 2015

landtuna said:
Will ATSC 3.0 be compatible with current digital TV's or is this going to be another analog-to-digital fiasco?

Not compatible with current ATSC sets. However as soon as the ATSC 3.0 standard is finalized and made official, compatible sets will start to be manufactured and sold before the new format hits the air.

Since most viewers watch TV through a video provider, the change might not be as big of a deal as you might think. The world survived the analog to digital conversion, and the sun continued to rise in the east, cows still gave milk, chickens still laid eggs.

Then we can get to work on ATSC 4.0. What comes after 8k?

landtuna · Jan 24, 2015

Mediafrog+ said:
Not compatible with current ATSC sets. However as soon as the ATSC 3.0 standard is finalized and made official, compatible sets will start to be manufactured and sold before the new format hits the air.

Since most viewers watch TV through a video provider, the change might not be as big of a deal as you might think. The world survived the analog to digital conversion, and the sun continued to rise in the east, cows still gave milk, chickens still laid eggs.

My "video providers" are the OTA stations so does that mean they will transmit two different signal formats or will we be back to those interface boxes ala analog-to-digital? And I guess the same question would concern the cable/sat providers as well. Will they have to offer two signal types as with SD and HD?

Mediafrog+ · Jan 24, 2015

landtuna said:
My "video providers" are the OTA stations so does that mean they will transmit two different signal formats or will we be back to those interface boxes ala analog-to-digital? And I guess the same question would concern the cable/sat providers as well. Will they have to offer two signal types as with SD and HD?

Since the final technical specs of ATSC 3.0 have still not been decided, it is too early to say how the actual transition will go. And there is no target date, either. All this has yet to be hashed out...lots of moving parts especially with the upcoming spectrum replacing. There might be two streams, perhaps from the same transmitter.

Cable and satellite providers convert the broadcast stations into a different digital format for distribution, so no change for subscribers.

landtuna · Jan 24, 2015

Mediafrog+ said:
Cable and satellite providers convert the broadcast stations into a different digital format for distribution, so no change for subscribers.

Right, but as the gubmint found out, belatedly during the analog-to-digital fiasco, there are still quite a few of us OTA "customers" out there (and that number is still growing unlike the cable/sat subscribers.

One would hope and pray the idiots who "designed" the last cluster**** would not still belong in the industry this time through.

Mediafrog+ · Jan 24, 2015

landtuna said:
Right, but as the gubmint found out, belatedly during the analog-to-digital fiasco, there are still quite a few of us OTA "customers" out there (and that number is still growing unlike the cable/sat subscribers.

ATSC 3.0 is still many years away from being the only OTA standard. There will be a transition period from the old to the new system. You'll probably replace your current set with an ATSC 3.0 compatible set long before the old ATSC 1.0/2.0 goes away.

One would hope and pray the idiots who "designed" the last cluster**** would not still belong in the industry this time through.[/SIZE][/FONT]

How would you have done it differently? There was a lengthy (over 12 years) transition period. The switchover was actually delayed by three years in order to give everyone more time to prepare. You could have delayed it 100 years and there would still be a few people complaining. I was rather impressed by how relatively smoothly the transition went.

You didn't think the analog transmissions were going to go on forever, did you? And even if you didn't want to replace your old SD set, you could get a converter box for free with the government subsidy. Sometimes you have to give people a little push.

landtuna · Jan 25, 2015

Mediafrog+ said:
ATSC 3.0 is still many years away from being the only OTA standard. There will be a transition period from the old to the new system. You'll probably replace your current set with an ATSC 3.0 compatible set long before the old ATSC 1.0/2.0 goes away.

Not if it turns out to be as reliable as my 1987 Sylvania rear projection big screen which is still running just fine (with interface box).

Mediafrog+ said:
How would you have done it differently? There was a lengthy (over 12 years) transition period. The switchover was actually delayed by three years in order to give everyone more time to prepare. You could have delayed it 100 years and there would still be a few people complaining. I was rather impressed by how relatively smoothly the transition went.

The primary failure was not to test digital in a variety of topographies and power levels - areas where signals tend to be interrupted by naturally occurring obstructions or just plain old distance. A lot of perfectly good analog viewers were shut out either totally or partially by digital not being as robust. I am 8 miles clear as the crow flies from my towers and still cannot get consistently good reception on RF8 or RF12. And that is with an outdoor antenna. During the spring and fall equinox, when the towers are directly in line with the sunset, I cannot receive many signals for periods of up to 30 minutes. There are apparently many people living in downtown areas who have even worse experiences.

Mediafrog+ said:
You didn't think the analog transmissions were going to go on forever, did you? And even if you didn't want to replace your old SD set, you could get a converter box for free with the government subsidy.

I think the change was a monumental waste of time and resources. Yes, the video is marginally better (for those who can receive it) and yes, the broadcasters can now cram additional channels into their signal but so what - it isn't like these services didn't exist before on cable.Wow! I can now watch Dennis the Menace on three, count 'em, three channels!!!

Carmine5 · Jan 26, 2015

landtuna said:
My "video providers" are the OTA stations so does that mean they will transmit two different signal formats or will we be back to those interface boxes ala analog-to-digital? And I guess the same question would concern the cable/sat providers as well. Will they have to offer two signal types as with SD and HD?

There is also talk of either a USB tuner or a converter box (perhaps even a converter/internet-connected/DVR box) for ATSC 3.0 which will make older HDTVs compatible with the new standard. Of course, all of this presumes that the FCC will even approve of a new standard. So far, the Commission has only said that they will look at ATSC 3.0 when it's ready.