Do you happen to know the effective range of a WIFI hotspot?
āThe government wants OTA to vacate UHF spectrum.ā
Only the range above a certain frequency - not the entire UHF spectrum. Only mid to high UHF frequencies would benefit mobile carriers. The reallocation of those frequencies for mobile carriers is the purpose of the FCC repacking agenda and plan.
For OTA purposes a move to both lo and hi VHF may not be a bad thing. VHF performs better through trees and around obstacles. The two VHF channels in my area give me the best reception. Not persuaded that the focus on UHF during the digital reorg a few years back was a good thing. In days of yore (like the 50ās) channels were VHF (which is why they were known as āchannel 2ā or āchannel 6ā). Can we go back to Elvis and John Wayne?
It depends on the WiFi radio, but not that much. You can increase the range with repeaters. @LinkNYC told me the range of the free hotspots is supposed to be around 150 ft. I tested one, and I could get access within about half a NYC block. I donāt know if they plan to add repeaters to the free citywide system. Hope so. I want to be able to access it from within my apartment. But if they do, that probably wonāt be soon. Weāll see!
Initially, the FCC wants 120 MHz. Obviously, if the FCC thought there was enough remaining spectrum for all the channels in the various markets, the reverse auction options wouldnāt include outright purchase of broadcast license and repacking. Those who participate in the auction and accept the bid have no longer then 39 months to implement their choice.
The Federal Communications Commission (āFCCā) has established the
initial deadlines for its 2016 broadcast incentive auctionāan auction
that could involve the sale of up to 120 MHz of attractive low-band
spectrum and draw bids of $60B or more.
I didnāt know about this whole FCC/OTA issue. The whole television industry is in flux right now, with a strong lean towards streaming as the future.
Iām enjoying the funky OTA channels with legacy programs, but who knows how long they will exist, and thatās all I watch on Tablo since I subscribed to the Playstation Vue streaming service. Playstation Vue has all the broadcast channels, plus all the cable channels. The cable channels have become necessary in todayās world. They broadcast most of the presidential debates and town halls. You canāt be a fully informed citizen without them. Plus there are a lot of shows I like on cable TV channels.
I have to pay a monthly fee for Playstation Vue, but itās a lot less than I paid for cable TV and I get more for it. I can record any number of programs simultaneously without conflicts, and there are no space limitations. Iāve seen some reports of service problems in the support forum, but Iāve had no problems. The picture is as good as I had with cable and everything works.
Still, a streaming service is more fragile than cable TV - more things to go wrong (unexpected load, network issues unrelated to the service) so itās good to have the backup of OTA, at least right now when streaming live television is so new. But will it take 3 years to sort of the kinks? Will I need OTA backup for that long?
Also, Iāve got to think that the audience for the OTA channels I most enjoy - MeTV, Decades, Antenna - has to be miniscule. I donāt know how they make money. Can they survive? Will they survive? Will they still exist in 3 years?
Will OTA television exist in 3 years?
Iām starting to at least have some basis for a logical decision on a guide purchase. Need to do some research. I realize it may seem like overkill to some, but like I said, I have more time than money. Also, Iām a curious person, and I like to understand these things! Researching stuff is fun for me.
Ughā¦ Iāve only just started reading about whatās going on with the FCC, but Iām already wishing I hadnāt bought the Tablo at all. OTAās days are definitely numbered. Thereās a question as to whether the Tablo will continue to work through 2016. If it does (broadcasters may sue), it wonāt be for long after that. The future is internet streaming - there is no doubt about it. Its reach is infinite and itās vastly cheaper.
I bought the Tablo before I knew about the existence of PlayStation Vue. My cable TV bill had been skyrocketing and my March bill was ridiculous. So I started to research how I could cancel my cable TV service while maintaining access to the channels I wanted. I knew about Sling TV, which has some cable channels (though not the one I watch most) but no broadcast channels. I bought the Tablo to add the broadcast channels Sling TV lacks.
But Iām like a pitbull when it comes to research, so I kept looking for a way to get access to this one cable channel that I like - and a way to record the cable programs (Sling TV has no DVR). Thatās how I found PlayStation Vue, which has both. It was still in beta at the time, and not widely known. Had I found it first, I would not have bought the Tablo.
I so wish Iād saved the boxes for all that hardware - Tablo, hard disk, antenna, cabling - so I could return it all. Itās within Amazonās return window, but I no longer have the packaging. I spent nearly $500 that I can ill afford for hardware that (except for the hard disk) that will be useless in a very short period of time, possibly months.
Iām feeling a little sick. Maybe Iāll contact Amazon and ask about returns when you no longer have the packaging.
Iām definitely not going to be buying the lifetime guide.
Tablo is nicely designed and works very well, but it will soon be as useful as a high quality turntable. (Perhaps thatās not a perfect metaphor since some millennials have decided vinyl disks are cool and are buying record players again, but you get the idea.)
Then thereās this depressing quote from one of the articles I looked at:
Thatās not the marketersā dream audience, and represents another reason why broadcasting and OTA has no future.
Off to read some moreā¦
What are you possibly reading that would make you think that OTA is going away in any significant amount any time soon (as in less than 5 years)? Too much infrastructure, too many jobs, to much everything. The whole system is based around local network stations, even for the cable and satellite providers. The stations themselves arenāt going away, and the actual cost to broadcast (as opposed to streaming) is not a huge expense compared to staff and programming costs.
Vue only has broadcast networks in selected markets. Weāre not in one of them, and since weāre a relatively small market weāre not going to be high on their list to add. Itāll probably be years before they have all the smaller markets, if they ever do.
A couple of other points. You said:
Thatās not the marketersā dream audience, and represents another reason why broadcasting and OTA has no future.
Iām not sure how you make that connection. For local networks, OTT and OTA get the same programming, with the same commercials. Itās only when youāre using a specific network (NBC, CBS, etc) feed or app that you donāt get the locals. And for Vue, thatās only in areas where they donāt have the locals. And no DVR, limited episodes, etc. So itās not really an alternative to OTA DVR (like Tablo).
Also, the FCC doesnāt share your view. Hereās an excerpt from the National Broadband Plan, which is the document that proposed the 120MHz reduction in OTA frequency bands:
Because of the continued importance of over-the-air television, the recommendations in the plan seek to preserve it as a healthy, viable medium going forward, in a way that would not harm consumers overall, while establishing mechanisms to make available additional spectrum for flexible broadband uses.
1 Like
āAlso, the FCC doesnāt share your view.ā
Thank you FlyingDiver for your quote in the interest of accuracy! Thus far we have been subject to some dippy misrepresentation by a post above imputing paranoid motives to the FCC (i.e. eliminating OTA from the whole of the UHF band) that this āresearchingā poster has taken as a base for wild AND irresponsible speculation. These foolish āresearchā posts could not have been a better ploy to disrupt a great product from a competing service!!! āThinking aloudā passing itself off as thoughtful research LOL. Every few months someone comes along here to post reasons for not buying a Tablo at a forum provided and paid for by Tablo. What inconsiderate rudenessā¦
2 Likes
Doesnāt a 120 MHz reduction equate to approximately a 20 channel reduction? Wouldnāt repacking mean that in some areas sub-channels will be lost? Doesnāt encouraging the movement to low-VHF and/or hi-VHF reduce the distance that a signal would be picked up. Does encouraging broadcasters to give up their license increase or maintain the amount of OTA content.
While MVPDās carry local channels(OTA) the availability of local channels via OTT is usually limited.
No to all of your āspeculationsā pure and simple!
Isnāt a OTA channel aproximately 6 MHz. Or as example:
RF channel 39 is at 623 MHz. And with bandwidth 620-626.
Thus 120 MHz would be approximately 20 channels.
True, OTA wonāt disappear completely this year. But some broadcasters that sell their rights will choose to stop broadcasting, and that will happen as soon as the incentive auction ends. So channel options for some consumers will shrink within months, particularly in rural areas. (I read itās the broadcasters in rural markets who are most likely to stop broadcasting.)
In any case, thereās no doubt that OTA is on the way out, and itās not that far in the future. Thatās why the FCC is holding this unusual spectrum auction (the reverse auction followed by the forward auction). The demand is for internet, not broadcast. Plus the financials are all on the side of the internet. OTA is a dying medium, and I canāt invest a lot of money in technology to access a dying medium. Here are some links I found informative:
Luckily Iām in one of the markets where PSVue does include the broadcast networks. Iām also in the highest priced PSVue market. It still costs much less than cable TV, but every time I see an excited tweet from someone about the 100+ channels they get from PSVue for $30/month, I feel persecuted. But maybe I get some channels they donāt.
Thus 120 MHz would be approximately 20 channels.
Well, frequency slots to be more exact. And each frequency can carry multiple (sub-)channels.
But there are very few markets where the loss of 20 slots (out of almost 50) would actually have any impact. Only highly saturated markets like NY, LA, Chicago, etc. In my market, there are only 8 frequencies in use by full power transmitters, with a total of about 20 channels.
Did you actually read those linked pages? The FCC one is about the whole auction process, and nothing I saw contradicts the actual statement in the NBP that I quoted above. Yes, they will be repacking (reassigning) frequency slots. In some cases, mainly in very crowded markets, will stations disappear. The FCC wonāt pay stations in uncrowded markets to go off-air. They donāt have to.
As for the second, (1) itās Dvorak, and he pontifications have about zero value (IMO). And (2) heās talking about the gains for independent media, like his podcasts. The Internet is his market, not broadcast.
The third article was primarily about TV 3.0 (post-ATSC). Not OTA in general. TV 3.0 might be dead on arrival, but thatās not going to kill TV 2.0 (ATSC).
I donāt consider any technology I buy today to have a useful life past 5 years. Maybe Iāll get more, maybe less. OTA TV will definitely be here for at least 5 years. Look how long it took for the ATSC rollout to be complete (and itās not totally yet). Your viewpoint is biased by being in a very crowded OTA market, with better than average broadband availability and competition. Thatās actually a very small part of the country. I think itās something less than 25% of the US has competitive providers for broadband internet access, and something like 20% donāt have any true broadband options at all. That discounts satellite and cellular access.
āThe FCC wonāt pay stations in uncrowded markets to go off-air.ā - this isnāt the government buying the frequencies. Itās an auction and there is not only a list of sellers there is also a list of buyers/bidders.
āLook how long it took for the ATSC rollout to be complete (and itās not totally yet)ā - analog broadcast ceased February 2009. And I think all channels 52 and above were reclaimed by the government for subsequent auction.
Of course I did! Very carefully. Plus Iāve read several more since. I have a good understanding of the situation now.
The most interesting thing I learned from the FCC site is their stated motive for the incentive auction. This two-phase auction is so unusual and so complicated that it required 6 years of planning and Congressional approval (quite a feat these days). What was so important to warrant that level of effort? Read the first 3 paragraphs of the FCCās home page about it. Theyāre doing it because they think broadband internet is the technology of the future, and should have the spectrum resources currently occupied by OTA broadcast television. UHF is the frequency that travels far and can through buildings. Imagine if LinkNYC used UHF! Wow. Iād have free highspeed WiFi in my apartment. The FCC wants UHF spectrum for the internet.
The purpose of the FCCās incentive auction is to strengthen and grow wireless broadband in America. What happens to OTA broadcasting is not an FCC priority. Itās not even mentioned in the overview.
As for the FCCās promise to preserve OTA broadcasting going forwardā¦ This appears to be lip service. Read that third article. Broadcasters say that the time and money allocated by the FCC for the transition is inadequate.
ATSC 3.0 is highly relevant. Hereās why.
The FCC reverse auction will begin in just 8.5 days. Mostly broadcasters whoāve decided to participate have not disclosed this, but there are estimates based on pre-auction workshop attendance. Perhaps 90% of public television stations and local college stations will participate. But probably only 20% of broadcasters will, least of all in large markets. Participation is extremely tempting because the financial opportunity is huge and will not come again. The stations are looking at this and thinking about the future of OTA broadcasting themselves. Advertising sales are down. Maybe there will never be a better time to get out. From the third article:
This article gives the participation estimates:
No one knows for sure how many broadcast channels will decide to stop broadcasting, and how many will instead decide to share spectrum with another channel. But for sure, there will be fewer channels, and the remaining channels will be squeezed together in a narrower range. Because networks will be sharing channels, the diginets that I like (MeTV, Antenna TV, Decades) may be squeezed out - no more room.
Hereās where ATSC 3.0 comes in. ATSC 3.0 allows more channels to broadcast in a 6MHz slice of spectrum. This could save OTA broadcast channels, but it may not, for a number of reasons. For one, ATSC 3.0 is incompatible with current equipment (including the Tablo) and consumers will resist yet another change. But before we even get to that, thereās a bigger reason: it will require broadcasters to invest big money in a new OTA technology at a time when all signs point to the impending death of OTA as a medium, and itās not at all clear they will do it. And even if they do, ATSC 3.0 can be used for broadband as well as broadcast, so companies have a choice and theyāll do whichever is more lucrative. The third article discusses this issue. Here are a couple more articles about it:
http://www.tvtechnology.com/news/0002/friedel-richer-on-atsc-30-transition/277850
Having said all these gloomy things, Iāll end on a more positive note (āpositiveā from a Tablo point of view)ā¦
Although Iām sure itās end-days for OTA, I have no idea how long the process will drag on. I can imagine a scenario where it collapses in 2 years, and I can imagine a scenario where itās still chugging along 10 years from now. Weāll know a lot more when the incentive auction ends, which will be soon - months at most.
Not everyone gets the broadcast channels with PlayStation Vue, but I do and Iām cash poor, so for me, putting a lot of money into Tablo doesnāt make sense (a decision at last!). I do like it very much, though.
As FlyingDiver said, there are subchannels within each frequency.
Iāve been doing a lot of reading on this, and I havenāt seen the ā120 MHzā figure anywhere. Do you have a reference for that (a link)?
Hereās an article that estimates the number of channels that will be lost:
I certainly donāt mean to be rude. Iād never even heard of these issues until someone here mentioned them, and I think Tablo is a wonderful product.
I was just trying to decide whether to pay $150 for the lifetime guide. Iām cash poor right now, and what I read made this seem somewhat risky. Someone else could think this call was incorrect, and maybe theyāre right. I donāt have a crystal ball. I do have a very sparse bank account!
based on ācash poorā, do the annualā¦ you can see the short term benefit (12 mos. service for the cost of 10).
It takes 3 years for lifetime to break even with annual, so if you feel uncertain to the long term then annual makes more sense.
(I personally went long- I personally am assuming that this will go more than 3 years and therefore went lifetime)