Audio Video News

Slowly, but perhaps inevitably, digital television will become a reality. The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) has announced that its members will include digital tuners in large model television sets by the year 2004.

The decision is a major concession to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chairman Michael Powell, who recently delivered a hard-hitting speech in which he admonished all participants in the delayed rollout of DTV to do their parts. CEA members had long resisted incorporating digital tuners in television receivers on the grounds that the addition would increase costs without increasing sales. The agreement to include the tuners in new products is a voluntary move, one that will help propel DTV to the next level. "You either get on this train, or it will run you over," Powell told attendees at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) convention earlier this month. "A voluntary plan does work. All parties have something to gain."

The CEA apparently agreed, announcing their cooperation the day after Powell's speech. "We will discuss the chairman's proposal with our manufacturers as soon as possible and examine how we can support our mutual goal of expediting the transition to digital television," said CEA president Gary Shapiro. "We call upon all affected industries to join us in recognizing that we all must give a little, so that in the end, each industry—and consumers, in particular—will gain a lot." Powell was said to be pleased with the CEA's conciliatory attitude, mentioning that he had been contacted recently by major manufacturers saying they were ready to accept the digital tuner requirement.

The CEA will try to adhere to Powell's voluntary proposal: that beginning January 1, 2004, half of all TV sets 36" or larger come equipped with digital tuners. By the following year, all such sets would need to have digital tuners. By January 2006, all sets 13" or larger should be equipped with digital tuners. Even with manufacturers cooperating in the DTV rollout, other obstacles remain. Cable providers are still balking at carrying wide-bandwidth signals, and the entertainment industry is extremely reluctant to produce high definition programming until there is some sort of reliable copy protection system in place.

After the CEA made its announcement, Senator John McCain (R-AZ), former presidential hopeful and a key member of the Senate Commerce Committee, issued a statement calling into question the intentions of broadcasters in the DTV transition. "American taxpayers have been shortchanged," McCain said. "Broadcasters received $70 million worth of spectrum for free, and they still have not come close to meeting their digital TV commitments."