ACCURATE PSIP DATA CARRIAGE CALLED ‘VITAL’ TO CONSUMER DTV EXPERIENCE
Based on the know-how gleaned from operating WRAL-DT Raleigh, the transmission of accurate PSIP (Program System Information & Protocol) data is “vital to the consumer’s digital experience,” Capitol Bcstg. told the FCC in an ex parte filing. Filing on cable carriage rules, it urged the Commission to adopt rules “ensuring that our cable viewers get real-time programming and programming information that can be provided to them seamlessly through PSIP.”
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The FCC’s recently adopted plug-&-play rules would require digital cable systems with an activated channel capacity of 750 MHz or greater to comply with certain PSIP obligations, including provisions of the Feb. 2000 PSIP agreement between the CEA and NCTA. PSIP specs enable receivers to identify, locate and process the various types of content being transmitted, including video, audio, closed captions, content advisory information and ancillary data. To assure the proper functioning of unidirectional digital cable products, the Commission decided to incorporate portions of the PSIP agreement applicable to cable operators into its plug-&-play rules. Specifically, it required that cable operators carry PSIP data when received from content providers in conformity with the ATSC A/65B standard. However, it declined to take action on revisions in the PSIP agreement proposed by NAB and other broadcaster interests (with the opposition of NCTA and others), saying those would be “better addressed in our ongoing digital must-carry and DTV periodic review proceedings.”
Capitol emphasized that the availability of programming data and timely access to those data were more “critical” than the formats or protocols used for cable carriage of PSIP. WRAL-DT is broadcasting PSIP, including “EIT” ("Event Information Table") and “ETT” ("Extended Text Table") data, Capitol said. “An up-to-the-minute program guide is what our viewers want and need,” it told the FCC. It said another critical element in delivery of PSIP was accurate timing, using GPS.
Capitol said one of the “great selling points” of the DTV transition was the “flexibility” afforded by the ATSC signal to broadcast in HDTV or to multicast, as long as it was “seamless to the consumer.” For over-the-air viewers, Capitol said, using PSIP allowed WRAL-DT to convert quickly from a single HDTV channel to multiple standard-definition channels. However, for MSOs that carried WRAL-DT without PSIP, the switchover must be made manually and was “often not a pristine or seamless change to our viewers,” Capitol said.
Responding to an FCC question on how WRAL-DT marketed and promoted its DTV services to consumers, Capitol said it used both its over-the-air digital channel number and Time Warner Cable’s channel number in its advertising. “Obviously, the consumer-friendly solution is 2-part consistent channel numbering for over-the-air and multichannel video viewers,” it said. Capitol said it had promoted WRAL-DT by giving away terrestrial DTV antennas with proof of purchase of a DTV set. “We hope to get other stations in the market involved in this promotion in the future,” it said. Capitol said all its ads cross-promoted its analog and digital stations and it didn’t promote its multicast SD channels as an alternative to cable.