[mythtv-users] CATV Going Digital - Was: PVR 150s Cheap

[Brian Wood]

Jack Trout wrote:
> 
> 
>     My local cable company keeps telling me that "The FCC is forcing us to
>     go completely digital".
> 
>     I believe this is totally wrong. The FCC is mandating OTA to go digital
>     so the government can auction off the spectrum space that's saved. The
>     "Public Safety" aspect is a tiny fraction, and is basically a
>     smokescreen to get public, and congressional, support.
> 
>     The cable operators want to go digital in order to carry more channels,
>     and if they can blame any resulting inconvenience to subscribers on the
>     FCC so much the better, to them. 
> 
>  
> I do agree with you there.. the cable companies want to blame it on the
> government so they dont get flamed. at last look, the HD laws were only
> forcing OTA but there might be a stipulation that CATV providers have to
> offer the HD content that the local providers have on thier networks to
> users. there have been a few strikes locally between a local media
> network and time warner, refusing to allow Time warner to rebroadcast
> thier OTA content unless they also added to thier standard lineup thier
> own local cable news network too. so for a short period of time, the TV
> station mailed out free set top antenaes to Time Warner Customers to
> allow them to set thier tvs up to get thier station if the strike went
> into effect, (never happened and the cable news channel wasnt added on
> analog, but it was added to digital).
>  
> but there has been arguments and even lawsuits between cable providers
> and satellite providers, because of advertisements that Cable doesnt and
> will never offer more HD content then they do. but I do think CableTV
> most operators will still have analog content long past the point of the
> HD OTA deadline, or some subscribers will drop off because they have to
> pay 10$ a month for cable boxes.. especially schools they have wired,
> with every classroom with cable, that would be an outstanding cost.

Not just schools, but Hotels/Motels, Hospitals, Senior Citizen
Complexes, Nursing Homes, Bars/Restaurants with multiple sets and any
other institutions with a lot of TVs.

It's like in the mid to late 1970s, when people would pay extra $$$ for
"Cable Ready" and a VCR, then be told by the Cable company that in order
to use them they would have to buy extra STBs, A/B switches, and
possibly enroll in an electrical engineering program to figure it all
out :-)