Americans Should Not Be Forced to Buy DTV Over-the-Air Tuners, Says CEA

14-Aug-02

FCC Mandate Ignores Need For Cable Standard And Broadcasters' $70 Billion Spectrum GiveawayPointing to high consumer costs and the scant percentage of households relying on over-the-air television reception, the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) opposed the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) order requiring a broadcast digital television (DTV) tuner in all new TV sets. ""The FCC has just imposed a multi-billion dollar annual TV tax on American consumers,"" CEA President and CEO Gary Shapiro said. ""With fewer than 13 percent of American households relying on over-the-air reception for their TV signal, we don't need a digital broadcast tuner embedded in every new television in order to accelerate the DTV transition; we need digital cable equipment compatibility -- the option for consumers to buy a high-definition set, take it home, plug it into the cable jack in their wall, and turn it on just like they do today in the analog world. A mandatory digital broadcast tuner would be a costly vestigial organ in the sets used by millions of American cable and satellite viewers. ""We certainly respect the Commission's interest in shifting broadcasters rapidly to DTV,"" Shapiro continued. ""TV manufacturers have helped advance these goals by making and selling DTV products that consumers want. Set makers have also offered to help the transition by putting an over-the-air tuner in cable ready DTV sets of all sizes. We further share the FCC's urgency in achieving an 85 percent DTV penetration rate as quickly as possible. We believe minimizing the cost to consumers of new DTV products and making them cable compatible will best accelerate the process."" CEA argued a successful DTV transition is dependent not on over-the-air tuners, but rather on the adoption and implementation of a nationwide standard for sending high-definition television (HDTV) programming over cable -- often referred to as cable ""plug-and-play"" compatibility. The current lack of compatibility is the single largest remaining obstacle to the DTV transition, according to CEA. CEA also noted that ATSC tuning and decoding capability in virtually every TV set would result in a major cost increase and would jeopardize the consumer market for many models. Additionally, most television manufacturers already are incorporating DTV broadcast tuners (ATSC tuners) in their product lines and are offering consumers a wide array of choices. ""Everyone from consumer groups to the Cato Institute opposes a tuner mandate,"" Shapiro continued. ""The FCC has proven the old saying wrong that there is no such thing as a free lunch. Broadcasters are sitting on a $70 billion spectrum grant from the government. Rather than compelling consumers to buy DTV tuners by providing ample HDTV programming, broadcasters have imposed more costs on the American public. Americans should not be forced to buy over-the-air tuners for DTV when they are choosing not to purchase them on their own today. ""It is especially unfortunate that where consumers would benefit and Congress has called for action -- on cable compatibility -- the FCC has chosen the laissez-faire route. Instead, the Commission is imposing unnecessary costs on the vast majority of American consumers. We continue to ask the FCC to use its jurisdiction to make sure consumers can receive DTV and HDTV programming via cable as seamlessly and as quickly as possible.""  For more information about the CEA, visit www.ce.org.

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