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The FCC Digital Television Standards Decision

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The FCC’s DTV standards decision of December 1996 is criticized on the grounds that it is likely to hinder rather than to help the development of a viable broadcasting service. The standard-setting process began in 1987, resulting in a proposal to the FCC in 1995. The so-called Grand Alliance proposal was not perfect, as it had too many scanning formats, it used interlace, and had no provision for inexpensive receivers or easy upgrading, but it was a complete system. Because of a dispute between the computer and TV industries, a private advisory committee was formed at FCC urging. It met secretly without public participation, in apparent violation of the Federal Advisory Committee Act. The committee agreed to eliminate the table of scanning formats, and the FCC adopted this radical proposal within a month. Rather than correcting the drawbacks of the GA proposal, the FCC made it worse by introducing uncertainty as to which formats would be for broadcasting and which formats receivers would accept. In so doing, the FCC ignored the views of other government agencies, public-interest groups, and disinterested individuals, but apparently accepted the often erroneous and self-serving statements of the commercial entities involved.

SKU: 0810-90288629272 Category: Tag:

Description

By William F. Schreiber

The FCC’s DTV standards decision of December 1996 is criticized on the grounds that it is likely to hinder rather than to help the development of a viable broadcasting service. The standard-setting process began in 1987, resulting in a proposal to the FCC in 1995. The so-called Grand Alliance proposal was not perfect, as it had too many scanning formats, it used interlace, and had no provision for inexpensive receivers or easy upgrading, but it was a complete system. Because of a dispute between the computer and TV industries, a private advisory committee was formed at FCC urging. It met secretly without public participation, in apparent violation of the Federal Advisory Committee Act. The committee agreed to eliminate the table of scanning formats, and the FCC adopted this radical proposal within a month. Rather than correcting the drawbacks of the GA proposal, the FCC made it worse by introducing uncertainty as to which formats would be for broadcasting and which formats receivers would accept. In so doing, the FCC ignored the views of other government agencies, public-interest groups, and disinterested individuals, but apparently accepted the often erroneous and self-serving statements of the commercial entities involved.

page: 155 – 171
Prometheus: Critical Studies in Innovation
Volume 16, Issue 2

SKU: 0810-90288629272

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