Digital television (DTV) has overcome most of its problems and finally entered a growth stage. But it’s suffered from an Achilles’ heel since its inception: the analog interface, which DTVs have, until recently, used exclusively. Despite efforts to produce and distribute digital content, the signals were converted to analog before consumers viewed them.
During the years of standards battles and foot dragging, DTV promoters failed to agree upon and implement a digital-interface specification, although savvier players knew it was required. Thus, an analog interface’s shortcomings were never addressed -- and certainly never explained to consumers.
The lure of viewing sports or movies in high-definition TV (HDTV) has enticed millions of U.S. consumers to buy new, big-screen DTVs. Most of those consumers plugged DTVs into analog connectors, and have been quite happy with the results.
However, what few consumers know is that a DTV digital interface can provide immediate benefits, including the best possible picture.
DVI to the rescue
In late 2003, this situation began to change when the Digital Visual Interface (DVI) input arrived. In a short time, DVI has become almost ubiquitous; nearly all DTVs or DTV-ready sets sold now include at least one DVI input.
As is the case with PCs, new interfaces in the TV world are readily added -- but very slowly, if ever, removed. This means that all existing and legacy inputs and outputs will be around for years to come.
The television business is large, conservative and responds more slowly to technological innovations than is the PC business. Thus, although a digital interface makes overwhelming sense, it took several years to gain widespread adoption and acceptance.
DVI’s pluses and minuses
DVI entails positives and negatives for consumers. On the plus side, DVI inputs allow viewers with DVI outputs on their DVD players and cable and satellite set-top boxes to seamlessly connect them to their new DTV sets for the best picture the equipment can provide. The adoption of DVD players with DVI outputs has greatly outpaced DVI-enabled cable and satellite set-top box providers.
On the down side, DVIs will bring high-bandwidth, digital content protection (HDCP), which will limit consumers’ ability to copy content. HDCP is included on most, but not all, DVI TV inputs. This feature will display HD-encrypted content delivered through the digital connector. Of course, analog inputs, even high-bandwidth RGB and component versions, won’t be affected by HDCP, and viewers still see a good picture.
The same facts apply to digital, over-the-air broadcasting of standard-definition and HDTV, digital satellite and digital cable. All digital-delivery methods terminate within the TV as an analog signal. Except for a few proprietary interfaces, no serious attempts until DVI to standardize a digital interface for the DTV.
The TV as a monitor
Think of a TV set is as a monitor rather than a receiver. However, this is not a popular marketing approach; consumers have overwhelmingly rejected high-quality video monitors. Yet, these monitors were simply premium TVs with the tuners removed.
In fact, many TVs are today used as monitors. A TV is connected to a VCR, DVD player, satellite or cable set-top box, video-game console or in rare cases, a computer, is a monitor. Over-the-air broadcasting has become a minor option amidst today’s many content-delivery choices. Thus, using a TV as a self-contained receiver has diminished. And, as the source material moves toward ever-higher resolutions, the need for a high-bandwidth interface increases.
The information-carrying capacity of standard analog interfaces, composite and even S-video, are limited to less than what is demanded by the HDTV formats -- such as 1,920 x 1,080 and 1280 x 720 -- but are fine for 640 x 480 and 704 x 480 definition.
DTV faces broadcast realities
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) mandate that a digital tuner accompany an analog counterpart, which may cause a return to the TV monitor model. The high penetration of digital cable, satellite and DVD players isn’t what the FCC envisioned when it generously -- and hopefully -- handed over a huge slice of electromagnetic spectrum to broadcasters with the gentle suggestion that they use it to deliver HDTV to the masses. It’s not happening as planned.
The number of households capable of pulling an Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC) HDTV signal off the air is estimated at about 1%. The FCC is scheduled to pull the plug on analog broadcasting in 2006, but Americans aren’t panicking.
Alas, no one -- except the FCC -- is concerned. Consumers receiving HDTV through cable and satellite won’t even notice if local analog or HDTV broadcasts go dark. They will still be receiving films, ESPN, Voom HDTV, network feeds and plenty of HD and near-HD quality programming without ever having to put up an antenna.
Broadcasters get the shaft
Local broadcasters face ever-increasing competition from cable and satellite services that offer many more channels. Local broadcasters gained the benefit of the free spectrum to deliver HD programming, but they also paid the bills for upgrading studios, transmitters and towers so they could deliver HD to an unwilling audience.
That’s why the broadcasters fought so hard to require cable operators to “waste” their own precious bandwidth to deliver HDTV to a miniscule viewership. By doing this, at least the competition would be stuck in the same boat.
FCC tries to mandate demand
To solve these problems, the FCC is attempting to force-feed broadcast HDTV to consumers by trying to make them buy it. However, no one has ever successfully forced customers to buy something they don’t want in a free-market economy. Perhaps DTV will be different, but it’s unlikely.
After July 1, 2004, the National Television System Committee (NTSC) has mandated that all TVs 36 in. or larger, such as analog tuners, must have an ATSC digital, over-the-air decoder. In 2005, the cutoff drops to 25 in. In 2007, all TVs 13 in. and up, as well as VCRs, DVD recorders, PC tuner cards and all TV tuners, must be ATSC-capable. Similar planning is now in various stages in Japan, Korea, China and much of Europe. Policymakers in those regions should study the United States’ situation first.
DTV scenarios
Two possible outcomes exist for the FCC’s mandate; neither of them will be its intended widespread adoption of broadcast HDTV. The first potential outcome, that TV receivers with tuners will become TV monitors without tuners, has been the de facto home configuration for decades. Consumers won’t like paying $100 to $200 for a digital tuner they’ll never use.
Second, scrapping the FCC’s current schedule and delaying it to a more reasonable date, such as 2011, could provide a more orderly transition. The FCC is already calling the 2006 cut-off an “aspirational” date, not a deadline. Such toned-down FCC rhetoric will become more common in the coming months, as local broadcasting continues to lose ground to satellite and digital cable.
Whatever happens with the FCC, I believe DTVs will continue to sell. And with the DVI connection now in place, DTVs can now honestly be labeled as DTVs.
