High-Definition TV Coming Slowly into View, Officials at Broadcasters Expo Say

[Gregg Lengling]

April 11, 2003 14:14

High-Definition TV Coming Slowly into View, Officials at Broadcasters Expo Say
By Chris Jones, Las Vegas Review-Journal
Apr. 11--While several factors have stymied people's acceptance of high-definition television, America's movement toward HDTV is gradually gaining momentum, officials at this week's National Association of Broadcasters expo said.

Viewers have long been titillated by the technology's clearer picture and sound quality compared with traditional analog sets. But factors such as HDTV's relatively high cost, a lack of high-definition programming and federal disputes over broadcast standards have resulted in poorer-than-expected sales.

Last year, about 2.7 million digital television sets were sold nationwide, the Consumer Electronics Association reports. By 2006, that sales total is expected to top 10.5 million.

Las Vegas viewers will eventually respond to the HDTV revolution, said Ralph Cintola, sales manager at Herda's Discount Appliance Warehouse in Las Vegas. So far, however, he said most locals seem to be caught in a long-standing dispute between television manufacturers and program providers.

"The cable and television companies haven't made a lot of HDTV programming available because they claim not many people own the sets; because of that reduced demand, the cost (of HDTV sets) has stayed a bit higher than analog televisions," Cintola said. "And now not many people own the sets because they don't think it's worth the extra money for such limited programming. So both sides are pointing fingers at the other."

Because HDTV sets are largely limited to floor-size projection models, Cintola said it's not fair to compare their sales with those of traditional sets available in a variety of sizes and price ranges. Though HDTV dominates sales of large-model sets, he estimated only 30 percent of his store's current total television sales involve HDTV models.

"That scale is going to tip, but where and when I don't know," Cintola said. "People are buying (HDTV sets) more for the future than for today."

Cintola believes recent steps will improve HDTV's local popularity, though. In Las Vegas, seven television stations now offer some form of HDTV programming via traditional over-the-air broadcast. In addition, the valley's dominant cable provider, Cox Communications, last year unveiled its own HDTV service.

Sources at this week's NAB's expo said the digital revolution is well under way. Steve Mahrer, a director of product engineering for Panasonic, said about 70 percent of U.S. television broadcasters now offer some sort of digital programming. As more stations expand their HDTV offerings, he expects consumers will force competing stations to follow suit.

"When everyone in a market was analog it was OK, but once one station goes to digital and viewers see how much better it looks, they're going to demand the same quality from other stations too," said Mahrer, who compared the difference between digital and analog pictures and sound to the improvement in quality between digital video disks (DVD) and analog videotapes.

Though still an anomaly, Mahrer said a local television station in North Carolina is using high-definition equipment for every aspect of its evening news broadcast. He expects such trends to continue.

"The network broadcasts in HD, and they wanted everything from their studio news to reporters in the field to have that same quality," Mahrer said. "That type of commitment is very small, but it's growing."

Mahrer said he's also encouraged that many broadcasters have begun to view HDTV as an opportunity rather than a nuisance. A growing number of cable operators are adding HDTV programming, with some even offering discounts to customers who purchase HDTV sets, he added.

Smaller television stations often can't afford digital equipment, but Harris Corp. spokeswoman Jackie Broo said prices for tools such as digital transmission towers have fallen in recent years. Broadcasters once had to pay as much as $2 million to transmit their signal digitally, Broo said. Now such systems now sell for as little as $150,000 to $200,000.

"There's been a real push for HDTV among broadcasters," said Broo, whose Melbourne, Fla.-based company makes communications equipment. "The next pull of the chain will have to come from the consumer."