Skip to main content

Broadcast TV had its day. It's time to move on.

After 90 years, traditional US television broadcasting is fading fast.

ATSC 3.0, the newest US TV broadcasting standard, looks great on its face: modern, efficient, and flexible.  But there are growing problems, a tired plot that has been repeating over and over for all US broadcasters:

  • Very poor content.  Broadcast TV is loaded with very low-value content.  Why watch broadcast TV if the programming is abysmal?  Yes, there are some excellent programs, but that's about 1%.
  • High ad frequency.  Broadcast TV has a huge and growing volume of advertising. Why watch broadcast TV if the ads are so amazingly annoying, and when all of them feel like money scams? QVC may be profitable, but is it a significant value to the public?
  • High cost.  The broadcast industry is working to make the tuner in your brand new TV obsolete in just a few years. Why buy a new TV today if it is just going to be obsolete in a couple of years?
  • Blocking.  The broadcast industry is actively pushing signal encryption, making watching TV less flexible than ever.  Why watch broadcast TV programming if it is less convenient than it was in 1980?

But is it all bad?  No!

  • There is a huge amount of content on-demand and on-line.  Broadcast is more irrelevant than ever, but on-demand IP-based video is stronger than ever.
  • The current huge block of 34 TV channels is ripe for repurposing into hyper-useful IP-based services, including but not limited to mobile ISPs and cellular services.
  • High quality monitors without ATSC3 tuners are a better and more affordable choice.  TV manufacturers have caught on, and are reducing their TV sales growth.

Is it the end of US TV forever?

Hopefully, as we know it, yes: I hope to see the US converting the 34 TV channels to 5G mobile services. 

Seem impossible?  Think again!  5G Broadcast TV is coming in strong, with a lot of serious work going on right now.  This promises to put the old fashion notion of "TV is its own tech" to rest.  The next generation will be a philosophical merger of Internet technologies, 5G mobile services, and Broadcast TV.

Using this strategy, we can still have broadcast TV like we did for decades, but it can be played on everything and anything, from a living room TV to a computer to a cellular phone.  Even better, it leverages the existing 5G cellular network, minimizing costs for both users and broadcasters, while greatly improving coverage.  Video broadcasts could then be delivered through cell towers, the internet, satellite, mmwave, WiFi, or any other medium. 

Will this happen soon?

Broadcasters are aiming to pull the ATSC 1.0 plug on most stations in a little more than 2 years, but in reality they are taking steps to end it now.  It seems unlikely that the people will spend serious money on a replacement TVs, or buy expensive tuner set-top boxes for no reason other than the promise of a benefit to broadcasters.

Instead, I see people, manufacturers, and countries voting with their wallet and jumping into 5G video broadcasts, leaving ATSC 3.0 to be the end of the line.

 


Labels:

Popular posts from this blog

Fixing a SodaStream Jet, part 1: Disassembly Guide

I've had my SodaStream Jet for years, and once in a while something has gone wrong. Disassembly is the first step to repair.  Start with this article to see how to disassemble the SodaStream, and then once you have that down, scroll through my other articles to see how I repaired specfic SodaStream problems. SodaStream Jet Disassembly Guide Tools Required Flat head screwdriver Phillips head screwdriver 1. Remove the Carbonator.  Duh. 2. Remove the black panel lever The front big black tilt lever needs to be removed first. Removing this panel is tricky, but it isn't impossible. Looking up at the bottom of the black panel, there are two tabs, one on the left and one on the right. These tabs fully secure the panel in place. The trick is to use a flat-head screwdriver under the plastic to gently lever the tabs out of the way.  Note in the pictures how I approach these tabs with my screwdriver.  I usually release the left side first, and then I release ...
Read more

E-waste portfolio grows, thanks to the losers managing Ring.

 I just installed a Ring doorbell the other day, and in perusing the website I read this gem: "security updates until at least four years after the device is last available for purchase"  Four years is all Ring promises for a brand new device?  This isn't 2007.  It's a mass market doorbell and a camera, something expected to be safely used for years, if not decades.  Even my home router has a longer promised life, and that's saying something. Ring management must be embarrassed by their ineptness.  They're idiots, and clearly the only way they know how to make a buck is not through great ideas and great implementations, but through planned obsolescence and customer abuse.  
Read more

Repairing a Crate TX15 Taxi amplifier battery

A friend gave me a Crate battery guitar amp that he used for busking. It is a nice 15 watt amp with an internal battery. Sadly it died, and its custom power adapter was misplaced. After several years the battery will fail, and it requires a functioning battery to work at all. Happily, new batteries are inexpensive, readily available, and easy to install. Obtaining a replacement battery for the TX15 The original battery was a 4+ pound, sealed lead battery. Any replacement battery should closely follow the specs of the original. I bought this MightyMax Battery on Amazon , which is a perfect replacement. There are many batteries that conform to the needs of the TX15, and they can be found at local hardware stores as they are commonly used in lots of equipment. It pays to look locally if you need something faster than Amazon.  The battery specs are as follows: 12 Volt, 7.2 Ah lead battery (mine was marked 1272). Length: 5.94" (151 mm)  Width: 2.56" (65 mm) Height: 3.94" (100...
Read more

Fixing a SodaStream Jet, Repair #2 - Broken Fill Button

My Soda Stream Jet's fill button broke, which means I can not longer carbonate water by pressing the pushbutton. This caused all sorts of grief in my household. Here is how I managed to repair my Jet to give it another 10 years of life (hopefully). First, a look at the button The fill button on the top of the SodaStream is actually a simple lever. Pressing down on the button moves a pin that does the actual work of pressing open the Carbonator's valve. Unfortunately, the axis point is fairly thin and can see a lot of stress. That's where my Soda Stream button cracked. [ I think the usage tip here is "don't over-press the button like a gorilla, it doesn't do anything but put high stress on the button."] Cracked levering point of the button The Pesky Lever Retaining Pin The Fix It was pretty easy for me to replace the button: Take off the back of the Soda Stream and remove the carbonator. Push out the the button lever's steel retaining pin. This takes qu...
Read more

Keep That Old Printer, or, New Printers Stink

Old laser printers have some notable advantages over many newer printers. An old laser can be found for little money. You can easily find great working printers on Craig's List for under $40. My old-school HP LaserJet 5L - still works like a champ! The inexpensive toner cartridges for these printers can often be found on Amazon for under $20 each. And each cartridge, typically rated for several thousand pages, can last five times longer than many more expensive inkjet cartridges. And these old printers are solid. Many were designed last for years in high volume situations. And they were designed to be maintained, instead of thrown away. My laser is nearly 15 years old and it keeps on ticking. Keeping it Modern Buying a good old fashion laser jet for under $40 is easy. But it likely has an old-fashion Parallel interface on it - meaning that your computer can't even use it. What to do? My answer was to buy an Epson Net C823781 Print Server . It isn't the latest device...
Read more

Macintosh: Upgrading an eMac

It's been a long time since I wrote this article, but the fact remains: The good old eMac can still be useful if you take the simple steps to keep it as good as it can be.  All can run Tiger, and most can run Leopard - great operating systems for their day with a bit of useful life.  This article describes the procedure I used to upgrade my old eMac, including: Replacing the internal hard disk with a large capacity drive. Increasing the memory for performance Upgrading the operating system Here I'm upgrading a 700 MHz eMac, but the procedure and tasks for upgrading other eMac models should be almost identical. Upgrading versus Replacing My sister's eMac is of the 700 mhz variety, with 256 MB of memory. The machine seemed to be getting "slower", and the original 40 GB disk was becoming jammed packed with photos and iTunes, and within a few months she'd be out of disk space. There were two options to address the problems: upgrade the eMac, or go o...
Read more

Other Posts

Show more