| Perfect Example of Government Intervention... This program is going to cost taxpayers (or already has) millions, if not billions...simply because Congress thought it was "better" to force everyone to switch over to 100% digital.
They should have let the market-place work; you'd likely have analogue and digital broadcasts running parallel for years...and by the time things were 100% digital, there would only be a few percentage points of the population that would be effected, and have to get converter boxes.
But no...government always knows best.... 
also, this is an example example of what happens when you subsidize something; when you make something really cheap/free via government money, you only get more of it...and low and behold, it also causes shortages and other problems...big surprise.
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"True Patriotism is more closely linked with dissent than it is to conformity and a blind desire for safety and security...I accept the definition of patriotism as that effort to resist abusive state power." -Ron Paul |
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 Morac
join:2001-08-30
Riverside, NJ
kudos:1
 ·Comcast
1 edit | The Government gave the broadcasters free radio frequencies to implement digital TV. In exchange the networks were supposed to turn in their old frequencies for use in things like emergency services communication and licensing out to wireless communication.
It's not the Government's fault that the broadcasters dragged their heels in getting things working. The Government got sick of waiting and gave them a deadline, postponed it a few times and finally said enough is enough.
If anyone is to blame it's the broadcasters and TV manufacturers for not getting their act together. You might as well throw in retail chains as well for trying to sell TV's that they knew wouldn't work in a year or two to customers.
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The Comcast Disney Avatar has been retired. |
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 tiger72SexaT duorPPremium
join:2001-03-28
Saint Louis, MO
kudos:1
 ·T-Mobile US
| reply to Fox McCloud
unfortunately it's not that simple. First of all, the government owns and manages the spectrum. So, if, as in this case, the government wants to better manage our frequencies by forcing broadcasts from analog to digital, and to a smaller broadcast spectrum, then that is the government's job to work out.
In this case, the government wants to open up spectrum to sell. The cost of implementation is expected to be less than the profits from selling the unused broadcast bandwidth.
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"What makes us omniscient? Have we a record of omniscience? ...If we can't persuade nations with comparable values of the merit of our cause, we'd better reexamine our reasoning."
-United States Secretary of Defense (1961-1968) Robert S. McNamara |
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 BF69Premium
join:2004-07-28
Camden, TN | reply to Fox McCloud
said by Fox McCloud:This program is going to cost taxpayers (or already has) millions, if not billions...simply because Congress thought it was "better" to force everyone to switch over to 100% digital. They should have let the market-place work; you'd likely have analogue and digital broadcasts running parallel for years...and by the time things were 100% digital, there would only be a few percentage points of the population that would be effected, and have to get converter boxes. But no...government always knows best.... also, this is an example example of what happens when you subsidize something; when you make something really cheap/free via government money, you only get more of it...and low and behold, it also causes shortages and other problems...big surprise. Show me where taxpayer $$$ are being used for this? Boy you are ignorant of how this switchover works. |
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 tschmidtPremium,MVM
join:2000-11-12
Milford, NH
kudos:5
 ·Fairpoint Commun..
 ·Hollis Hosting
| reply to Fox McCloud
said by Fox McCloud:They should have let the market-place work; you'd likely have analogue and digital broadcasts running parallel for years. You are aware I assume reason FCC is forcing conversion from analog to digital is to free up UHF channels 52-69. They have already auctioned off most of this spectrum for billions of dollars. A little is being spent on the Converter box coupon program but most goes directly to the treasury.
Exploiting this spectrum ought to generated lots of new business opportunity.
/tom |
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 XBL2009------
join:2001-01-03
Chicago, IL
·EarthLink
·AT&T Midwest
| reply to Fox McCloud
said by Fox McCloud:This program is going to cost taxpayers (or already has) millions, if not billions...simply because Congress thought it was "better" to force everyone to switch over to 100% digital. They should have let the market-place work; you'd likely have analogue and digital broadcasts running parallel for years...and by the time things were 100% digital, there would only be a few percentage points of the population that would be effected, and have to get converter boxes. But no...government always knows best.... also, this is an example example of what happens when you subsidize something; when you make something really cheap/free via government money, you only get more of it...and low and behold, it also causes shortages and other problems...big surprise. It cost the taxpayers $5 billion but the government will resell the spectrum for $50+ billion and turn a tidy profit.
It's also long over due since it took them 20 years to finally get everyone to agree to it.
PS: Your government is involved with everything. |
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