Brad on Broadcast

Sony announced this week that it will discontinue manufacturing the ubiquitous 3.5in floppy disk. The portable storage medium has been around for 30 years, or as one might say, longer than many Broadcast Engineering readers have been alive! I know the latter statement is true for the majority of the editors at this magazine. They have probably never seen a 3.5in floppy disk, let alone depended upon one for storage. more

A Washington, D.C., three-judge panel handed the FCC a 3:0 smackdown last week in the commission’s effort at regulatory expansionism. This time the action concerned Comcast. The court ruled that the FCC did not have the authority to regulate Comcast’s network management practices. The court said the FCC was basically asking for “anything goes” authority over all networks and the Internet. more

Tore Nordahl sent me a copy of his latest report, “Fighting for M/H & 3D dollars: Why 720p60 may rise again.” The entire paper is available at his website, www.coax.tv.

I can summarize his paper’s premise: If your station is transmitting in 1080i60, you may want to consider moving to 720p60 to maximize available bandwidth for new services such as M/H. more

My electric toothbrush died. It must be time for NAB. Okay, there are lots of things that signify it’s time for NAB. Tax time is what I often think of. This trip, I discovered a new indication I was at good ‘ol NAB. My electric toothbrush is dead. more

At the March 24 technology conference hosted by the New Democrat Network, Verizon executive vice president, Tom Tauke, suggested that the FCC’s claim to have power over the Internet was “at best murky.” He suggested steps that Congress might take to reign in the commission’s power grab in the agency’s National Broadband Plan (NBP).

Tauke urged lawmakers to refocus the FCC back into an regulation and enforcement bureau, rather than let Genachowski implement his current plans for a wide-ranging policy-making body. “In my view, the current statute is badly out of date. Now is the time to focus on updating the law affecting the Internet,” Tauke said. “To fulfill broadband’s potential, it’s time for Congress to take a fresh look at our nation’s communications policy framework.” In other words, he was telling the FCC to butt out of Internet control. more

According to the blog site marcus-spectrum.com, the FCC is finally hiring some engineers. The FCC’s job site shows four openings for engineering positions. more

As broadcasters look for new opportunities, could delivering mobile television become the next “pot-o-gold?” New research confirms that consumers are increasingly using smartphones, laptops and other portable devices to augment their entertainment consumption. And, when it comes to entertainment, broadcasters know how to deliver high-quality content well.

In late March, QuickPlay Media released the results of its third annual survey on consumers’ use of mobile TV and video. The study shows high interest from users in new TV and video entertainment delivery models, particularly multiscreen video services. In the survey, 53 percent of respondents voiced an interest in services that allow them to seamlessly switch between multiple devices, such as PCs and smartphones, when watching programs. more