HDTV AND HOME NETWORKING EMERGE FROM PACK AT NCTA SHOW
NEW ORLEANS -- Although video-on-demand (VoD) and broadband Internet service hogged most of spotlight this week at NCTA convention here, other new digital cable products and services also stepped out of shadows. Many exhibitors, other vendors and panel speakers also focused on prospects of several coming services, especially HDTV and home networking. They also discussed other products and services in pipeline, including IP telephony, retail cable set-top boxes and even personal video recorders (PVRs), as industry started looking forward to next big product rollout after VoD this year. “"The business is far more competitive now,” said AOL Time Warner CEO-designate Richard Parsons on opening panel. “But we have far more to offer and the market is expanding.”
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HDTV, up to now rather obscure subject that hadn’t merited much discussion at NCTA show for years, suddenly appeared as appealing service for cable operators. Several cable and general consumer electronics manufacturers -- including Scientific-Atlanta, Pioneer Electronics and Pace Micro Technology -- unveiled and demonstrated sophisticated new digital cable set-top boxes that could carry high- definition signals. In fact, HDTV displays could be found throughout exhibit floor. “Cable operators are finally starting to show interest in high-definition gateways [advanced set-tops],” said Josh Bernoff, TV analyst for Forrester Research.
With DirecTV and EchoStar already plunging into HDTV, at least one major MSO sought to catch up with satellite TV rivals during convention. AT&T Broadband announced plans to introduce HDTV service to digital cable subscribers in Chicago area this summer (CD May 8 p4). “I don’t know how fast it [HDTV] will sell,” Comcast Pres. Brian Roberts said, also on opening panel. “There’s clearly an enriching experience.” Roberts, whose company has started offering HDTV pay tiers in at least 3 markets, suggested that HDTV might make “great” VoD offering. He also urged programmers to develop HDTV shows that were “rich and local.”
Parsons, whose company is offering at least one HDTV signal in about 20 markets, joked that he was “looking forward to seeing whether HDTV allows you to see the puck during a hockey game.” Right now, he said, he never sees puck on TV. Cable’s new-found interest in HDTV comes on heels of early-April proposal by FCC Chmn. Powell that cable and satellite TV providers offer at least 5 broadcast and cable networks with plenty of HDTV programming to digital subscribers free, starting in Jan. Just before show began, NCTA Pres. Robert Sachs made industry’s official response to Powell’s plan, pledging to meet his standard. At convention, cable officials trumpeted their quick, supportive response, noting that broadcast and CE industries hadn’t yet said what they would do. “We're completely on board with the plan,” Insight Communications CEO Michael Willner said, and it made more sense to comply voluntarily than have something worse imposed later: “Cable needs to lead in high-definition or we'll be perceived as laggards in technology.”
In breakfast talk with industry officials Tues., Powell praised cable industry again for its commitment. Despite consumer confusion about HDTV sets and lack of high- definition programming, he predicted HDTV would prove to be popular because “people like high-quality TV” and want their electronic devices to be “smarter and more powerful.”
Cable’s late-blooming enthusiasm for HDTV also comes 4 months after company CEOs and chief technical officers made their first trip en masse to annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. There, cable attendees said they were stunned by large-screen HDTV displays throughout exhibit floor, often in conjunction with satellite dishes. “It was a huge eye opener for all of us,” said Chris Bowick, chief technology officer and senior vp-engineering, Cox Communications.
Home networking’s emergence as potential hot new service was less sudden than HDTV’s, but nearly as strong. As in HDTV’s case, cable and other consumer electronics manufacturers showed prototypes of various home networking devices with built-in cable modems and home entertainment “gateways” with HDTV, PVR, IP telephony, interactive TV and/or other features. Manufacturers displaying those products included Motorola Broadband, Pioneer, Pace, Scientific-Atlanta. Pioneer, for example, introduced new home networking gateway device that combined cable modem, router and wireless base station in one box. When it hits stores this summer, it’s expected to cost $300-$400. “I see 2002 as the takeoff year” for home networking, said Dan Ward, mktg. dir., Pioneer’s Cable & Communications Div.: “It'’s all about making it easier for the consumer.”