Perhaps one day free over the air TV might be completely auctioned off.

[HDTV1080P]

Perhaps one day free over the air TV might be completely auctioned off. Back in 1983 UHF channels 70-83 (806 MHz to 890 MHz) were taken away from free over the air TV and used for analog cell phones. Then recently with the move from NTSC to ATSC UHF channels 52-69 (698 MHz to 806 MHz) was taken away. So all that is left is channels 2 to 51. Of course with ATSC digital compression several virtual channels can be squeezed into the same area as 1 analog NTSC channel held.

Now the FCC is considering on taking away more TV spectrum and selling it to companies that need it to offer more wireless Internet services. It is possible one day that all the TV and/or radio spectrum could be taken away within a few decades. In the future just about everyone might subscribe to a wireless Internet provider to receive TV and radio channels that are streamed over the Internet. Right now the FCC is only talking about eliminating a portion of the TV spectrum and not the entire TV spectrum. And Radio spectrum for now would remain untouched with no plans yet to take away radio spectrum. If the spectrum keeps shrinking for TV over several years then someday there would be no more Free over the air TV. Perhaps AM/FM radio spectrum could be taken away also and eliminated. Since peoples taxes and advertisers pay for free over the air TV and radio, technically free broadcast TV and radio is not really totally free.

In the future all new wireless phones and most wireless devices might be able to pick up digital ATSC TV stations and streaming live TV channels from the Internet.

Following are Select Quotes from Broadcast Engineering article

"The FCC is considering taking back some spectrum from television broadcasters and auctioning it off to wireless companies to increase the availability of mobile broadband services"

" A strong argument in favor of reclaiming some of the spectrum broadcasters were given for free is that broadband access is simply more useful to the average citizen than traditional TV."

" Although TV stations never paid for it in the first place, the FCC envisions paying broadcasters about $12 billion to buy the airwaves back and $9 billion to move homes watching OTA TV to digital or subscription services."

" The current thinking at the FCC is not to take back all of the broadcasters' airwaves. Instead, the commission would take back a portion of the airwaves set aside for digital TV broadcasts and auction them off to wireless companies that want to offer more wireless Internet services."

" Broadcasters, now pushing their own wireless standard, want mobile phones and other wireless devices to come equipped with receivers that would allow consumers to watch digital TV."

" Special auctions for the reclaimed spectrum would net the FCC as much as $62 billion."


http://broadcastengineering.com/news/fcc-considers-tv-spectrum-1102/

[Clark Kent]

" Special auctions for the reclaimed spectrum would net the FCC as much as $62 billion."

That is what the entire thing of the matter comes down to for the government. Since they are spending money in ever-increasing sums, they are scrambling to generate revenues.

[dobyblue]

Shame, OTA is way better than satellite or cable and the more channels the satellite and cable companies add in HD the worse overall the picture gets.

Plus with OTA you get the original broadcast signal, unlike some satellite and/or cable providers that change everything. For example, Bell TV in Canada is all 720p, regardless of the original resolution. That means CBC, NBC and CBS immediately lose half the screen resolution as they're 1080i

[HDTV1080P]

Originally Posted by dobyblue

Shame, OTA is way better than satellite or cable and the more channels the satellite and cable companies add in HD the worse overall the picture gets.

Plus with OTA you get the original broadcast signal, unlike some satellite and/or cable providers that change everything. For example, Bell TV in Canada is all 720p, regardless of the original resolution. That means CBC, NBC and CBS immediately lose half the screen resolution as they're 1080i

You make a good point dobyblue about OTA picture quality. I always noticed a improvement watching the ATSC HD local channels with a outdoor and indoor antenna compared to some cable QAM HD local channels that used more compression. When I switched to Verizon FIOS 100% fiber optic I noticed that the channels are bit for bit the same quality as the original broadcast. Hopefully more cable companies and telephone companies will offer 100% fiber optics to the side of the house like Verizon does. Then everyone can experience better quality picture and sound with a larger selection of channels. Verizon FIOS has over 16,000 video on demand channels each month with many in 1080i HD. Verizon does not offer 1080p/24 Video On Demand yet like Direct TV does. Of course nothing beats BLU-RAY when a high quality 8K or 4K scan of the film is done and converted to 1080p/24 at a high bit rate.

[ZIPPO]

It'd be a shame if they did.

[fuwa]

I use an outdoor antenna, the same VHF/UHF antenna that I have used for 30 years.

I thought satellite would be just as good. I had cable before with standard definition and there was noticeable picture degradation. Over the air with no boxes etc. just seems cleaner and more pristine to me. There are plenty of channels for me to watch as I like PBS, Lost, and some sports; otherwise blu-ray or dvd movies most of the time.

Do you satellite users sometimes experience signal losses? This happens infrequently using the outdoor antenna. Anyway this is not as much as a concern anymore as most good TV programs can be later purchased on blu-ray or dvd.

[HDTV1080P]

Broadcast Engineering December 2009 web link
(Also located on page 10 of the December 2009 Broadcast Engineering magazine)

Wow, things are happening faster in Washington D.C these days.

The FCC might completely eliminate over the Air ATSC TV broadcast spectrum and sell the TV spectrum to wireless Internet providers in order to generate around 62 billion dollars in revenue. If this "Plan A" happens there will be no more free over the Air broadcast channels since channels 2-51 in the United States will be eliminated (When and if the plan passes the goverment might have a shut off date for ATSC occurring in a few years or several years). The broadcast industry and consumer electronic companies spent several billions of dollars to move from NTSC to ATSC. The switch to full power 100% ATSC just occurred in 2009, now the government may decide to completely turn off over the air ATSC programming by taking back the borrowed spectrum. Another newsletter I subscribe to claims that the goverment has plans to drive FM and AM stations out of business in order to resell the radio spectrum to wireless Internet providers. There is a big push this year and companies are starting to offer in dash car Internet radio's for 2010 that require a wireless subscription to stream radio over the Internet. In several years from now the only way to receive free local TV and free radio stations might be with a wireless Internet TV/Radio device (plus a paid Internet subscription). I am seeing many new articles mentioning handheld wireless IP video that one day will be used to stream live TV and radio feeds from the Internet.

There is a "Plan B" the FCC is considering where only UHF channels 14-51 would be eliminated and VHF channels 2-13 would be kept for ATSC. Plan B can always be revised and maybe less or more channels would be removed or inserted in the final plan.

It appears that under "Plan A" that consumers that switch from over the air TV will be provided a free subscription to cable and satellite programming. It is not clear if the government would pay for everyone's cable and satellite bill or if only low income consumers would get their cable and satellite bills paid for. Another question is would the government pay everyone's basic cable and satellite bill for several decades? Everyone's taxes most likely would need to go up so consumers can get free cable and satellite channels.

Select quotes from the Broadcast Engineering article

"Dark, ominous clouds of potentially cataclysmic, business-changing proportions are brewing in Washington. Formed by converging forces of progressive-philosophy-leaning government officials, increased consumer pressure for bandwidth, the worst economic times since the Depression, and a Congress and president panicked for new revenue, these winds of change could put every TV broadcaster out of business."

"The report, authored by Coleman Bazelon, outlines a plan to implement wireless broadband (and kill over-the-air TV) through three simple steps:

· Buy out broadcasters and turn off OTA TV broadcasting;

· Provide free subscription cable/satellite programming to current OTA homes; and

· Sell the freed-up spectrum to the highest bidders."

"One report said he suggested broadcasters might want to consider giving up their channels in exchange for a share of the billions that a spectrum auction would generate.
Should these antibroadcast forces ever get their way, broadcasters may be left with two options: relinquish their license, turn off the transmitter, give up any potential new OTA revenue streams and become a cable-feeding program stream; or simply take the buyout money, turn off the lights, and go home."

Here is the link to the Broadcast Engineering Editorial article called the "Perefect Storm"
http://broadcastengineering.com/news/perfect-storm-1209/index.html


Spectrum Theft Update
"The commission issued a Public Notice on Dec. 2, “Data sought on uses of spectrum.” The notice reinforces the commission’s plan to “repurpose” large blocks of spectrum from someone, anyone and everyone. However, as the notice makes clear, it’s OTA television spectrum that the commission is seeking to grab. If that’s not sufficient to scare you, then consider that the comment closing date is Dec. 21.

Only 19 days have been allowed for responses. Heck, it took the FCC 505 days to decide on the XM and Sirius Radio merger. And now, only 19 days to receive comments about the future of an entire industry? What’s the hurry?"
Spectrum theft update (Click link to left to read the entire article)

[bhampton]

Personally,

I've already seen enough "TV" for one lifetime.

But that's just me.

Edit - I like some shows like Weeds, Bones, or Sarah Conner Chronicles but I wait till I can get them on disc.

-Brian

[BJMRamage]

This is great news for people that like to pay for things that should be FREE.

This will help so many homeowners who do not want to pay or don't feel the need to pay for TV or have very little cash available to pay for it. Kudos for the Government stepping in and taking more away from Americans (for their own good) and helping large companies charge Americans for something that was once free.

Yeah for the Government thinking they know better. The idea of voting out every person in Government the next election(s) is seeming better and better.

[Sammy]

Pirate Broadcasts will flourish for sure.