Re: Confusing AP Article is Widespread

TJ wrote:
> Jer wrote:
> 
>>
>>
>> See, here's the deal, the cable company didn't want to be obligated to 
>> supply analog until 2012, they also didn't want to allocate any budget 
>> money to customer's STB's, so they sought a rule variance.  Once 
>> granted, the rules are out the window.  Going all digital with the 
>> variance relieved their network of stuffy old analog, and it also 
>> relieved them of any financial obligation to provide STB's to their 
>> own customers.  If I have this straight, and I think I do, it was a 
>> good move on their part.  Cable company wins, customers with a stuffy 
>> old analog TV are buying their own STB if they want to stay connected.
>>
>>
> And the customers with the "stuffy old analog TVs" are the ones who lose

> out, because the cheap STBs now on sale everywhere aren't supposed to 
> work with cable systems. And there's no government coupon program (yet) 
> to get them some money off on those boxes that WILL work. There may be 
> one by 2011, a year before you've said the cable companies have to make 
> the switch, but what are the "stuffy old analog" customers supposed to 
> do in the meantime?
> 
> Assuming there is no viable terrestrial OTA alternative to this guy's 
> small cable company, I predict several of his customers will switch to 
> satellite services, and he'll get even smaller. Any satellite service 
> marketer worth his salt will jump all over this.
> 
> BTW, I LIKE my stuffy old analog TVs. I saw the picture on a nifty new 
> 1080i HDTV connected to an antenna in a Radio Shack last week. It was 
> set up near the OTA STBs to show customers what they could expect from 
> digital TV. As the salesguy cycled through the available channels, I 
> noticed that the nifty new HDTV video looked fine, quite close to my 
> stuffy old 25-inch Samsung when it gets a good signal. However, when he 
> cycled to a sub-channel showing 480i SDTV content, the nifty new set's 
> video was blocky and unattractive, unlike my stuffy old analog set. 
> Nope, I don't plan to add to the stuffy old waste stream by dumping my 
> stuffy old analog sets any time soon.
> 
> TJ


Nothing wrong with adding old stuff to the waste stream.  They've been 
recycling old stuff by the truck loads for a few years now.  I 
sympathize with your RS experience - maybe one day those RS folks will 
learn how to set up a TV display.  When they do, their new education 
will reveal the brainfartness of comparing apples to oranges.

-- 
jer
email reply - I am not a 'ten'