Flagging the Broadcast Flag
I apologize for the lengthy delay between posts; I have been quite busy with school work. I have some major assignments due in the next week and a half. Once I get those done and turned in, I'll get back on track.
But in the mean time, today we're going to discuss the future of television.
At this point, you're probably wondering just what I'm talking about; the future of television.
If you have satellite TV or digital cable, then you already know what's coming, in a way. In much the same way that satellite TV and digital cable are going to a digital format, like most cellular phones, regular, over-the-air TV is doing the same thing. WRAL-TV in Raleigh, NC was the first television station in the US to do so in 1996, and since then almost all of the rest of the nation's TV stations have joined in.
But there are multiple reasons for going digital. The largest reason is that digital TV stations can be put closer together on the band. This means that after the transition, some of the TV frequencies will be reassigned. Some channels between 52 and 69 will be reassigned to public safety. Others will be sold for cellular phones or wireless internet or other services. That will leave us with 2-51, and of those, channel 37 is reserved for radio astronomy, and channels 2-6 have been proven to have problems with digital television.
In addition, digital TV is the primary method for receiving HDTV (High Definition TV). That's something that more people have heard of. For those who haven't, HDTV is simply TV with more lines of resolution, which creates a clearer, sharper image for the viewer. Some people claim it is like looking through a window. This is the biggest draw for the consumer to digital broadcasting. Although it is available via cable and satellite, it is often much more compressed and prone to "artifacts" (those little blocks that you see on satellite before the rain knocks out the signal) than over-the-air is.
The last major draw is the ability to "multicast." This means that since the digital broadcast is sort of like an endless computer file, it can be divided into multiple "streams." That's right, multiple programs on the same channel. It's difficult to have more than one HD (High Definition) stream and one SD (Standard Defition--like today's TV) at the same time, but if a station chooses not to broadcast in HD, as many as six SD feeds will fit on one channel. How do you tell them apart? Well, in digital receivers, they "remap" to different numbers. For example, my local Fox station (Fox 21/27) broadcasts in HD on 27-1, and then they carry the WB on 27-2 (and their repeater does the same with Fox on 21-1 and WB on 21-2). Other stations do the same thing with their streams. The technology to remap also allows stations to keep their identity. For example, 27-1 is actually broadcasting on channel 17, but thanks to remapping, most people never know. (For information on where your local channels are, check out AntennaWeb).
But how does the Broadcast Flag tie into everything? The MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) wants the FCC to require the use of a Broadcast Flag to allow them to control the use of what is viewed on digital television. This would allow them to control whether or not material can be recorded, for how long a recording could be kept, in what quality the recording could be made in, among other things.
This is not the first time such a case has occurred. In the 1980's, the VCR was released. In what was known as The Betamax Decision, the Supreme Court ruled that since VCRs could be used for legitimate purposes, such as for time-shifting (which is what TiVo and related devices are used for), that VCRs could not be banned. Now, the Broadcast Flag threatens those freedoms that the Supreme Court has stated we have.
At one point, the FCC had mandated that all receivers sold after a certain date have the broadcast flag, but a judge ruled that the FCC did not have the authority; only Congress did. Recently, the MPAA submitted a bill to Congress (that happens all the time folks, no need to gape in horror) that would have made the manufacture of receivers with outputs to current analog TVs illegal! This would mean that if someone wanted to continue watching TV in the digital age, they would have to buy a new TV with the broadcast flag and more limited rights. Thankfully, the bill has not been acted upon and there is no requirement to incorporate the broadcast flag.
The FCC operates under the premise that these are the public's airwaves, not the MPAA's or anyone elses. What we do with things broadcast over the airwaves should not be left up to the MPAA to decide! Likewise, the FCC should have no say in cable television, as cable has almost nothing to do with the airwaves (I'm talking about the censorship here, which will be discussed in detail in a later column).
It is important that we stand up for our rights in this digital age , or else these rights will disappear.
But in the mean time, today we're going to discuss the future of television.
At this point, you're probably wondering just what I'm talking about; the future of television.
If you have satellite TV or digital cable, then you already know what's coming, in a way. In much the same way that satellite TV and digital cable are going to a digital format, like most cellular phones, regular, over-the-air TV is doing the same thing. WRAL-TV in Raleigh, NC was the first television station in the US to do so in 1996, and since then almost all of the rest of the nation's TV stations have joined in.
But there are multiple reasons for going digital. The largest reason is that digital TV stations can be put closer together on the band. This means that after the transition, some of the TV frequencies will be reassigned. Some channels between 52 and 69 will be reassigned to public safety. Others will be sold for cellular phones or wireless internet or other services. That will leave us with 2-51, and of those, channel 37 is reserved for radio astronomy, and channels 2-6 have been proven to have problems with digital television.
In addition, digital TV is the primary method for receiving HDTV (High Definition TV). That's something that more people have heard of. For those who haven't, HDTV is simply TV with more lines of resolution, which creates a clearer, sharper image for the viewer. Some people claim it is like looking through a window. This is the biggest draw for the consumer to digital broadcasting. Although it is available via cable and satellite, it is often much more compressed and prone to "artifacts" (those little blocks that you see on satellite before the rain knocks out the signal) than over-the-air is.
The last major draw is the ability to "multicast." This means that since the digital broadcast is sort of like an endless computer file, it can be divided into multiple "streams." That's right, multiple programs on the same channel. It's difficult to have more than one HD (High Definition) stream and one SD (Standard Defition--like today's TV) at the same time, but if a station chooses not to broadcast in HD, as many as six SD feeds will fit on one channel. How do you tell them apart? Well, in digital receivers, they "remap" to different numbers. For example, my local Fox station (Fox 21/27) broadcasts in HD on 27-1, and then they carry the WB on 27-2 (and their repeater does the same with Fox on 21-1 and WB on 21-2). Other stations do the same thing with their streams. The technology to remap also allows stations to keep their identity. For example, 27-1 is actually broadcasting on channel 17, but thanks to remapping, most people never know. (For information on where your local channels are, check out AntennaWeb).
But how does the Broadcast Flag tie into everything? The MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) wants the FCC to require the use of a Broadcast Flag to allow them to control the use of what is viewed on digital television. This would allow them to control whether or not material can be recorded, for how long a recording could be kept, in what quality the recording could be made in, among other things.
This is not the first time such a case has occurred. In the 1980's, the VCR was released. In what was known as The Betamax Decision, the Supreme Court ruled that since VCRs could be used for legitimate purposes, such as for time-shifting (which is what TiVo and related devices are used for), that VCRs could not be banned. Now, the Broadcast Flag threatens those freedoms that the Supreme Court has stated we have.
At one point, the FCC had mandated that all receivers sold after a certain date have the broadcast flag, but a judge ruled that the FCC did not have the authority; only Congress did. Recently, the MPAA submitted a bill to Congress (that happens all the time folks, no need to gape in horror) that would have made the manufacture of receivers with outputs to current analog TVs illegal! This would mean that if someone wanted to continue watching TV in the digital age, they would have to buy a new TV with the broadcast flag and more limited rights. Thankfully, the bill has not been acted upon and there is no requirement to incorporate the broadcast flag.
The FCC operates under the premise that these are the public's airwaves, not the MPAA's or anyone elses. What we do with things broadcast over the airwaves should not be left up to the MPAA to decide! Likewise, the FCC should have no say in cable television, as cable has almost nothing to do with the airwaves (I'm talking about the censorship here, which will be discussed in detail in a later column).
It is important that we stand up for our rights in this digital age , or else these rights will disappear.
posted by Trip @ 9:00 PM
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