Let’s talk about HDTV, in February or soon after: McEwen

Concerned that the 2011 analog shutdown date is fast approaching even though multiple barriers to consumer entry into the high-definition television market still exist, broadcasting consultant Michael McEwen hopes recommendations to encourage HD uptake are put on the table at February's BDU and specialty review. And he's not the only one. "I would argue that HD will be the norm and to get there in an hell of a hurry you don't want to put barriers up in terms of cost," says McEwen. "If you've got a barrier up from the distributor with a more expensive box and then the next barrier becomes fees for certain services, then you have to ask yourself, ‘what is the strategy leading to the analog shutdown in 2011?'"Last week McEwen offered his predictions for February's public hearing as an independent third party. But when it comes to discussing how policy influences the transition to digital and HDTV, the former president of the now-closed advocacy group Canadian Digital Television says, "Now I'm not the so disinterested observer." He continues, "I know that CDTV served its mandate and is gone now, but I think there should probably be some industry/government regulator group that sits down... a straightforward strategy for analog shutdown. Part of that is public education and part of that is not putting up barriers in terms of fees."No doubt McEwen has the support of Canadian consumers. CCR previously reported that one of the main issues espoused by the private citizens who submitted comments for the BDU and specialty review was the increased cost associated with HD. The interveners argued that there should be a competitive market for set-top boxes, there should be no additional cost to receive HD channels that are already available free over the air, and subscribers shouldn't have to pay for the standard-definition version before they can then pay for that same channel in HD. "I see no reason why we should be forced to pay the cable companies an additional sum in order to receive the programming we are already paying for," submitted Edmonton's Dave Phillips. Of course, there is one reason: high definition is more expensive for broadcasters and BDUs. Peter Lyman, a partner with Nordicity Group Ltd., says that even if you discount HD production, which remains more expensive than producing in standard definition, there's still the burden of transmitting at least two feeds of each channel even beyond the analog shutdown, one in HD and one in non-high-definition digital. "That all has to be absorbed as an extra cost of HD by a combination of broadcasters and BDUs as you make that transition," says Lyman. "If there's no extra revenue coming to anybody that's an extra cost to the system."Lyman also notes that as the commission continues to lighten its regulatory burden and let market forces reign, it seems even less likely the CRTC would implement additional policy to foster the transition to HD. This means for consumers, if there's a demand for programming in high-definition, they'll have to pay a premium for it, at least for the time being. As for the additional cost of delivering HD, McEwen says it was appropriate to charge a premium for high definition in its infancy to reward broadcasters who made an early commitment to broadcasting in the technology, but now its time to talk about how best to speed the transition. He hopes the talking starts in February. "You've got a lot of players going to and it's an opportunity to put a lot of issues on the table even if they are slightly tangential to the distribution issue," he says. "I don't know whether it's part of this discussion....But one way or the other we're going to have to have that discussion in the next year or so. Because makes no sense."

Let’s talk about HDTV, in February or soon after: McEwen

News | 10/30/2007 7:15 pm EDT

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