DirecTV digital headend distribution

[AntAltMike]

My largest category of customer is SMATV, where I service headends that commonly combine anywhere from a dozen to three dozen DirecTV (or sometimes, DISH) NTSC modulated outputs with a few C-band modulated outputs, and with local VHF filtered and distributed on-channel and local UHF heterodyne converted to VHF.

As the stock of residential TVs gets turned over, more and more of the residents are going to be able to readily accommodate ATSC signals in one form or other, and I think that when the transition is complete, new TVs won't even have analog, NTSC tuners in them.

So how will we distribute the DBS programming? Would it cost DirecTV any less to make a primitive box that put out an unencrypted 480i data stream that I could then modulate into, say 8VSB, using some affordable grade modulator that I might get for a couple hundred bucks per channel? Would the copyright holders be less protective of an unencrypted low resolution data stream than they presently are of the HDTV data?

I see no problem in distributing the off-air "on-channel" in 8VSB format. At each TV, they would simply use a splitter so that the integrated spectrum is available at both the "cable" and HDTV"input ports, and by setting the HDTV input port on "antenna", it would simply ignore any non-8VSB channels that it might detect.

 

[PATONENOW]

In my honest opinion you are correct. BUT it's all in the marketing game and as many can see the whole industry has jumped on it to convince you that HD is the latest and greatest and by the way we will reap millions from you before we are done.By done I mean when all HD is standard and like all the things we had before HD came along. A good example is the stores pushing the new HD antenna when it is the same as before and there really is no such thing as a HD antenna at all. And just to make quite clear I mean the off air antenna.
But I am just an old person set in my ways and use big c-dishes and regular antennas yet as it is my hobby. I used to pick up 300 or 350 miles with the regular off air antennas but you know the story with the new HD. About 40 to 50 miles and thats it. But as many like to put it-"Now you will not see any snow"!

 

[PATONENOW]

MIKE:
Maybe I can ask your feedback on a problem I've been tracking for 3 or 4 weeks now. At first I thought it was in the headend or local station only. But I am over half convinced it is in the main NBC feed itself. From lousy picture to dropout audio to overdriven audio and for a few days audio must have been missing parts because audio was just a whisper. Noticed feedback from others claiming same things but by using different devices I have isolated it right to NBC. But as you may know all you can get fron them is the standard stock answer(almost like D*). Just thought I'd throw that in to see if I'm going buggy or what. Take care!

 

[AntAltMike]

Wow, this is like a free bump! What is your situation? Is this feed broadcast HDTV, DBS satellite spot beam, cable TV digitized standard definition?

 

[PATONENOW]

Thanks for the reply MIKE!
The situation seems to be the main NBC feed that is given to D* plus I have had it happen on off air antennas and HD and SD. Even the big C-dishes. D* uplinks all the locals in this area from WAUSAU,WIS. and only the NBC one has problems. And on the C-dishes I did notice they were sometimes switching between the c and ku bands. I can only state that somewhere along the line NBC seems to have some faulty equipment and I figure if it was a one time glinch then it wouldn't have been doing that for about 3 to 4 weeks already. I guess it must be D* involved in it because I can get the same NBC feed from another off air station and it is an excellent signal.But really hard to pin down because sometimes on HD and then also SD.
I know this probably confuses more than anything. Perhaps they know there is a problem and unless more people complain won't fix it. Or maybe not many are watching NBC(LOL)?
Anyway MIKE I hope you got the gist of my first reply to you and I think once HD is just like what we had before it and it is standard for all then I expect many problems to smooth over.
Take care!