A Times Editorial

Forcing digital television

Think your television set offers a clear picture and quality sound? That's not good enough for federal regulators.

Impatient for the TV industry to go digital, the Federal Communications Commission voted recently to require television manufacturers to equip all sets with digital tuners by July 2007. Televisions with screens 35-inches or larger must have the device by July 2004, while the requirement for smaller sets will be phased in over the following three years.

The FCC is already requiring most TV stations to convert by December 2006 from existing analog technology to more efficient digital transmission. To receive the signals after broadcasters switch, TVs will need a digital tuner or a set-top box, which receives the digital signal and converts it to a signal the set will understand.

Digital television does offer a variety of options not possible under the analog system. Digital signals can carry high-definition television broadcasts, which greatly improve picture and sound. But the system's benefits aren't so affordable.

The Consumer Electronics Association, a trade group for the industry, estimated that installing a digital tuner in a television would add $250 to the price tag -- doubling or tripling the cost of small sets. Buying a set-top box to receive digital programming now runs about $450 or more, although industry experts expect the prices will drop once the technology becomes mass produced.

Many consumers will end up paying for an extra they likely won't use. The digital system directly affects about 15 percent of the population -- those who pick up TV signals with rabbit ears or outdoor antennaes. Most Americans rely on cable or satellite systems for their television, rather than over-the-air broadcast signals.

All but two TV makers are opposed to the FCC decision. Most plan to appeal it in federal court. The only television manufacturers who support the ruling also stand to profit from it. Thomson Multimedia, maker of RCA brand electronics, and Zenith own some of the patents behind the tuners and could earn royalties for every one sold.

Although FCC chairman Michael Powell claims otherwise, he and fellow commissioners are forcing digital television on consumers rather than allowing the market to welcome the technology on its own. When it comes to improving home entertainment, U.S. consumers don't need this kind of government intervention.

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