TV Station ‘Renaissance,’ Interactive Services Seen by Donovan
TV stations can take a page from competitors’ playbooks by offering interactive services and transmitting higher quality signals using an approach taken by wireless companies, said Assn. for Maximum Service TV Pres. David Donovan. Facing stiff competition from cable and the web, broadcasters want the FCC to ensure viewers don’t encounter interference from devices using so-called white space they'll vacate after the DTV transition (CD Oct 19 p1), Donovan told us. The industry is entering a “renaissance” in which viewership trends may reverse course and climb, he said.
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Rosy predictions won’t pan out if HDTV signals are blocked by interference, which the FCC has the authority to prevent by auctioning wireless spectrum it’s getting back from broadcasters, Donovan said: “In a competitive, wireless world, interference rules are important… Don’t kill the service in the crib.” The stakes are high because HDTV signal degradation will completely wipe out reception of a TV program, unlike analog where interference is less noticeable, he said: “This is an enormous issue that could screw up the transition big time.”
Broadcasters may improve reception using distributed transmission systems (DTS) -- placing smaller transmission towers throughout a region, much as wireless operators use multiple cell sites in cities. “With DTS and mobile content deals, you essentially have a wireless business,” Donovan said: “I believe we are on the verge of being a facilities- based competitor.” Two-way applications are one possibility, as are PVRs that let over-the-air viewers record shows and store them, Donovan said: “There’s nothing preventing that… A lot of it depends on compression technology, in terms of what you can get out of it.”
Stations may require FCC waivers to more efficiently transmit in HDTV after the Feb. 17, 2009, transition, said Donovan. Some stations may need the waivers, called STAs, to relocate DTV transmitters from the side of antenna towers to the top, he said: “I think the Commission does understand this.”