Slashdot Mirror
FCC Votes To Fight Cable's Reign Over Set-top Boxes (engadget.com)
Last month, reports surfaced that the FCC planned to pry set-top boxes out of hands of cable and satellite companies. Today, the Commission passed the 'Unlock the Box' plan that would do just that. The proposal aims to introduce more competition when it comes to the boxes users rent from television providers. Under the new rules, cable companies would have to give third-party device makers the information they'd need in order to build set-top boxes.
This is nothing but fighting over horsewhip handle designs. Cable industry days are numbered.
Queue the various senators and congressmembers trying to tell us that actual competition is somehow anti-competitive and will stifle innovation in 3... 2... 1...
Didn't the FCC solve this with the Cable Card thing? I have a media server that emulates a cable box for my whole house. Works great.
The only real problem here is that with the demise of Windows Media Center and Windows 7 there isn't a viable fully vetted option for me to turn to that will allow me to watch and DVR protected content. Yes, Silicon Dust is working on a version, but it's not yet certified (as far as I know) for protected content.
The FCC already solved this issue. Why are they trying to solve it again?
"File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
Except you can never buy the cable card, the cable company "rents" it to you at the same price that a cable box would cost to rent.
Its money for old rope. Its just an artificial dependency who's only purpose is to scam you out of another $15/month or whatever.
Why not provide the channels in clearQAM?
In town both cable providers still have a lot of channels on analog cable. Both still charge extra if you want any digital channels.
Minimum threshold fixed. Thanks!
The problem is that there is near zero incentive for making these boxes. They need to prohibit cable manufacturers from supplying boxes - i.e. you can buy service from them, but you can't get a box. Nor can they carry a stake ownership in any manufacturer of a box.
Seriously, why would you compete with someone who can (and will) always undercut you on price and also make it impossible for you to implement all of the features (because they own the rights to the cards). You said it yourself - "there isn't a viable fully vetted option for me to turn to that will allow me to watch and DVR protected content." Everyone who has been involved in the SmartCard market for TV has gotten burned. The smarcards should be portable and easily swappable but, for example, DirecTV linked your smart card to your box S/N effectively making the smart card superfluous (necessary but not sufficient). The cable cos allowed smart cards onto the market and then as soon as they were in the wild they changed the standard ("extended" was the term they used iirc) so that everyone who had a single stream box / card was unable to get to much of the premium and on demand programming. You had to use their box and their card, essentially destroying the value of every existing cablecard box and adapter.
Until you pry the lock from their hands, nobody else will bother to deal with them.
Is it just my observation, or are there way too many stupid people in the world?
See, back in the day I built my own DVR with an NTSC tuner card and a Linux box. When they made it next to impossible to build your own DVR - I quit.
That's right, I haven't had cable or satellite in years.
I now watch whatever I think deserves my attention (not much) via Netflix, Amazon, occasionally the network/show website, or buy buying the disks when it comes out. Hulu was sort of in the mix for a while but I refuse to pay for commercials so it's off the list. I understand they may have a commercial free option now, I haven't bothered to look.
If you really want to send a signal to these companies that you don't like being manipulated into getting their unnecessary spy^H^H^H tuning equipment you can start by not accepting their tuning equipment and keeping the dollars they so desire.
The preceding post was not a Slashvertisement.
It seems clear that the whole need for a set top box is artificial, and that it s actually just another mechanism to justify the cable company adding another fee to your cable bill.
All TVs already come with digital tuners, so serious question: Why can't they just legislate that cable companies have to supply standard QAM to the consumer, then we can do away with the whole stupid intermediate box thing entirely, and all the extra power/heat/cables/remotes that it requires and consumes too.
Yea, I really hated the last time I went out to completive shop my two cable providers. Hidden fees and costs abound and many are not as obvious as the set top box stuff.
I found out the hard way that if you don't buy the bundle they pump up the price of the internet connection, sometimes by over 20%. I also discovered that the ad prices are ALWAYS lower than what you can actually purchase it for. In my case, I ditched the set top box and went for a Network Cable Card tuner solution, but they would have hit me up for $25/set for 2 TV's had I not rolled my own with a cable card for $5/month. All in all, the ad price came in at about $95/month for cable and internet bundled. This ACTUALLY costs, tax, title, license and local sports fee later over $125/month. This would have been over $150/month had I used their set-top DVR box. The kicker here is I was paying about $85 for internet only (tax, title and license) which they advertise at about $75. Oh, and don't get me started on this "That price is for new customers only" soap box.
ALWAYS ask that they give you the TOTAL monthly price, taxes, fees and equipment included. REFUSE to believe the ads you see....
"File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
This FCC vote broke down according to party lines, with the two Republicans voting against increased competition in regard to cable boxes and the three Democrats voting in favor.
You are welcome on my lawn.
Didn't the FCC solve this with the Cable Card thing? I have a media server that emulates a cable box for my whole house. Works great.
The only real problem here is that with the demise of Windows Media Center and Windows 7 there isn't a viable fully vetted option for me to turn to that will allow me to watch and DVR protected content. Yes, Silicon Dust is working on a version, but it's not yet certified (as far as I know) for protected content.
The FCC already solved this issue. Why are they trying to solve it again?
There is no reason they can't just do it with software and a protocol for key exchange.
Ok, I get it, not everyone lives where I do...
But I have gigabit fiber to the home now, in fact both Verizon and AT&T have run fiber to my house, so I have both choices.
If we would simply commit to deploying fiber to every home in the nation, removing all the old cable and phone lines, have you purchase your Internet connection from a regulated utility the way you buy power and water, then let the various companies (DirecTV, Comcast, Verizon, etc.) compete to sell you packs of channels, or channels by themselves, or better yet, programs and seasons, we'd all be better off.
The need for cable/sat existed when everyone was on dialup or DSL, but with high speed cable or fiber growing, I think the days of that are numbered.
It doesnt work 'fine' it works ok. Tuning adapters piss me off. The one they gave me was THREE TIMES the size of the PC i was going to use (Intel NUC) to record TV on. CableCards suck because the cable companies did everything in their power to fuck it up. Its the shittiest of compromises, not a great solution for providers and consumers.
Good-bye
It's interesting that Thomas Wheeler's FCC seems to be much more consumer-friendly than its preceding incarnations.
I still remember the gloom-and-doom discussions here on /. when the ex Cable lobbyist was appointed by Obama... Fortunately, Wheeler seems to be a man of character, which is pretty rare these days.