BROADCASTERS BOTCHED DTV TRANSITION WITH FCC ‘CONNIVANCE,’ CFA SAYS

Given “a $70 billion gift” of spectrum in “the most valuable real estate in the digital age,” CFA said, broadcasters have dragged their feet in investing in station upgrades and “delayed the developing digital programming.” When they should have created and delivered quality DTV programming, CFA said, broadcasters instead “have produced excuses, blaming equipment manufacturers, cable companies and content pirates” for slow transition. It said the FCC “has acquiesced in this charade, granting waivers, extending deadlines, and most recently, imposing additional costs on consumers of TV sets… The Commission rivals the industry in its foot-dragging and mismanagement.” CFA also said FCC no longer should allow broadcasters to use low power for DTV, that broadcast flag violated intent of Congress, and that Commission should impose expanded public interest obligations on broadcasters.

With little DTV programming to watch, CFA said, “few consumers have been willing to buy the more expensive digital TV sets.” FCC has forced set makers to put expensive tuners in their sets, even though 90% of households don’t use over-air tuners for TV reception, CFA said. “Consumers who were forced to give their spectrum as a gift to the broadcasters are now forced to give again, in the form of higher prices for their TV sets,” it said. If broadcasters “have their way” and impose broadcast flag requirements, “consumers will pay more for sets that are less useful,” CFA said. Including broadcast flag “could render obsolete tens of millions of digital devices that have already been purchased,” it said. It said “forcing consumers to pay more for less hardly seems like an attractive strategy for stimulating adoption of a technology.”

Meanwhile, LeSea Bcstg. said cost of even “minimum build” DTV facilities was too high to be justified economically, “especially given the lack of digital receivers or converter technology.” Company, which operates 2 satellite stations, said proposal to allow satellite stations to “flash-cut” to DTV at end of transition period “presents, for the first time, potential relief.”

Those who want DTV spectrum, however, say FCC should set firm transition deadline. Three groups of rural telcos said “the uncertainty about the DTV transition is needlessly denying rural America the provision of affordable broadband services… Without such certainty, the mass-market economies of scale will not exist to support the development and availability of new product from equipment manufacturers at reasonable price levels.” Filing was by KanOkla Telephone Assn., Peoples Telephone Co-op and Arctic Slope Telephone Assn. Co-op.

Moving too fast to convert fully to DTV could mean millions of Americans won’t have access to free TV, according to filing by 34 civil rights groups organized by the Minority Media & Telecom Council. Even if DTV set prices drop to $500 and converters to $300, “America faces the prospect of doing without universal television service for the first time since the 1950s,” groups said. They said FCC shouldn’t declare DTV ubiquitous, triggering urnoff of analog TV, until DTV set prices decline “to the point where a person on a modest fixed income can afford it.” Filing also said broadcasters could fund vouchers to help the “truly needy” afford DTV sets, based on delay in giving up their analog spectrum. Voucher system could be established through “negotiated rulemaking” involving FCC and business parties, groups said.