Monday, Sept. 15, 2003 | 8:56 a.m.
HDTV. SDTV. DTV. EDTV.
Confused?
You're not alone.
Since Congress announced in 1996 that all broadcasters must provide a digital signal by Dec. 31, 2006, consumers have been scrambling to sort it all out.
It gets even more confounding with this qualifier: "That date may be extended until most homes (85 percent) in an area are able to watch DTV programming."
As Chuck Abbott, owner of Abbott's Audio and Video, 4601 W. Sahara Ave., said, "People usually don't have a clue" as to what's going on. "There's a lot of misperception. They go into a Circuit City or other big chain and people there don't know what's going on."
While most consumers are in the dark about digital TV, the bottom line is that for the majority of Americans who own analog television sets (and chances are, if your set is four years old or older, it's analog), you will have to buy a converter box to receive the digital broadcast signal whether you subscribe to either a cable or satellite service.
Without a converter box, you'll have to buy a DTV or DTV-ready TV set.
And already the confused mutterings begin: "What's a DTV?"
DTV stands for digital TV. According to the Federal Communications Commission's website www.fcc.gov "Digital Television is a new type of broadcasting technology that will transform television. Because DTV is delivered digitally, it allows for the delivery of a signal virtually free of interference. DTV broadcasters will be able to offer television with movie-quality pictures and Dolby digital surround sound, along with a variety of other enhancements."
Instead of using the analog signal to transmit pictures and sounds, digital signals are broken down into computer code ones and zeros similar to a CD or DVD.
For the same bandwidth in which a broadcaster provides one analog channel which are used by most TVs found in U.S. households a DTV broadcaster may provide a crystal-clear, high-definition signal or multiple standard-definition signals simultaneously.
The government wants to push consumers into the digital age for the added technological benefits, but also to free up signal space. The government leased the broadcast airwaves to networks decades ago. The move to digital will free up much of the analog space for other groups, such as advanced wireless and public safety services.
What's often confusing, though, is what digital television is not.
Under the Congress mandate, broadcasters are to offer a digital signal, which is not the same as a high-definition signal.
In fact there are three types of digital broadcast signals: SDTV (good), EDTV (better) and HDTV (best).
SDTV (Standard Definition TV) is a basic digital television transmission.
EDTV (Enhanced Definition TV) offers an improved digital television transmission.
HDTV (High Definition TV) is the best digital television signal available -- even better than a DVD. It also broadcasts only in 16-by-9 or "widescreen," which is why the sets are shaped like a movie theater screen and not the 4-by-3 ratio of the near-square traditional TV screen.
Both SDTV and EDTV also receive the 16-by-9 broadcasts along with the 4-by-3 format. While the picture quality of SDTVs and EDTVs are not as sharp as high definition, the picture quality of an SDTV broadcast, for example, is still roughly double that of a standard analog signal.
Meanwhile, HD offers a picture five times better than that of analog. In fact, going from analog to HD is "more striking" than going from black-and-white to color TVs, Abbott said.
"Have you seen some of this stuff? It's incredible," he said. "There are a lot of advantages, and not just picture quality. With a widescreen TV, watching a football game you can see more of the players at one time on both sides of the ball."
It's important to note that while all HDTV sets are digital, not all DTV is HDTV. HDTV sets come integrated with the digital decoder necessary to receive the high-definition signal, and are also "HD ready," meaning the set only needs an additional converter box to receive an HD signal. Cox Communications, for example, offers an HD converter box for $9.95 a month.
It's the same for DTV. Some sets are DTV ready, while others only need a converter box to receive a digital signal. However, a digital TV is not backward-compatible with HD. You must have an HD-ready set or one integrated with the HD chip to receive the HD signal.
While Cox Communications won't divulge numbers, Cox Vice President Steve Schorr said there's been a "substantial increase" in the number of its high-definition users, most of whom pay subscription fees for HD broadcasts from pay-channels HBO and Showtime, as well as for ESPN-HD and the Discovery Channel's HD Theater.
The networks are also broadcasting their prime-time lineups in HD, along with all major and some minor sporting events, and PBS has gone HD, too -- all of which can be received for free with a simple rooftop antennae.
"High definition is a wonderful way to view video," Schorr said. "It's as close to three-dimensional as you'll ever get."
The big question, though, remains: How ready will broadcasters be by Dec. 31, 2006?
The FCC lists 518 DTV stations on the air (licensed or on official program test authority) as of July 30, including four area stations: KVVU Channel 5 (Fox), KLAS Channel 8 (CBS), KLVX Channel 10 (PBS) and KTNV Channel 13 (ABC).
"It's pretty much recognized that 85 percent of the households will not be DTV-ready by 2006," said Jenny Miller, communications manager with the Consumer Electronics Association. "It will be much later."
For local broadcasters, cost is delaying the transition. To purchase the equipment necessary to broadcast DTV is very expensive -- in the case of high definition, it's cost prohibitive.
"The sky's kind of the limit," Donald Engelhardt, chief technical officer of KLAS, said of the money necessary to convert to high definition. "It would be millions of dollars and would take a total rebuilding of the facility."
The station already spent nearly $2 million two years ago to convert to DTV.
"The prices are coming down," Engelhardt said. "(But) it's a hefty investment. And in a smaller market, it's even tougher on them."
In the meantime none of the local stations are offering local HD programming; rather, they're only providing prime time and sporting events from the networks.
Budget-conscious TV connoisseurs should know that high definition doesn't necessarily equal an enormous price tag. While some kits can cost more than $20,000, the cost can drop to $700 for a 27-inch, HD-ready set.
As for the analog sets, don't throw out the old turn-dial just yet.
DTV set-top boxes are slowly being rolled out to consumers. The converter box does not improve the TV picture; rather, it simply takes the digital signal and transforms it to analog.
There is much speculation as to the cost of these converter boxes. Some industry experts said the networks may pick up the charge since they could potentially lose millions of viewers because of the technology switch, while others believe the boxes will cost no more than $150.
The truth is, no one really knows what will happen come Dec. 31, 2006 -- except that millions of TVs nationwide will not go black.
"That won't ever happen," Miller said. "I think it will take awhile to get to the 85 percent operation. Not 20 years, but it will take awhile."com
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