When I was your age, television was called books.
WILLIAM GOLDMAN
One of the issues that plagues me with my traumatic brain injury is visual processing. I get sick and fatigued when I get overstimulated in this area. Big box stores are bad for me especially Lowe's and Home Depot. I can handle the grocery store because I let my wife do the shopping as I push the cart. If I had to hunt down what we eat, I would get that sick feeling there, too. It is not seeing that causes me issues but actively looking for things. Another issue is when there is an overload of visual stimuli. They have these kaleidoscopic videos on YouTube that take me to the edge of vomiting. When I went blind with the cataracts, life was hard, but the dimming of my vision provided relief from the visual processing issues. I have learned that wearing dark sunglasses helps, and I destimulate each day in a dark room.
I have never been a huge fan of movies or television shows. I spent the entirety of the 1990s without owning a television set. I preferred the radio and my CD player. I prefer listening to watching. The brain injury only added to a way of life I already had. I don't feel deprived of anything. The only thing missing from my life is binge watching which I don't need.
I have been adding visual entertainment back into my life in small bites. After six years, I can watch two hours of dramatic content without getting sick. Action movies and eye candy movies sometimes make me sick. An old black and white show like Perry Mason where talking is more prominent than action is the fare I can handle now.
My attention issues make it hard for me to listen to people talking. People will talk, and I will miss a sentence or two. It is like someone hit the mute button briefly and turned it back on. This is aggravating in a conversation, but I can tolerate it in a podcast because I sometimes listen to the same program twice. You can't hit repeat on a real world conversation. I carry a voice recorder for times when the conversation counts to play back later. I never had these issues before the TBI.
Physical Media and the End of OAB TV
I could live the rest of my life just reading books, but reading is not a shared experience. I could read aloud, but this becomes tedious. Passively listening to audiobooks is not the same as actively reading a page. So, I took to watching the free programming that was available on my dog ear antenna. I remember that we watched Andy Griffith on MeTV, Columbo on Cozi TV, and a bunch of western movies on Grit TV. We had a good time until our old second hand TV gave up the ghost. When I looked into buying a new TV, the market is dominated by smart TV sets that I can't stand. When people cut the cord on cable, they replaced it with the streaming cord and now pay more to watch movies and TV.
Instead of buying a new TV set, we bought a portable DVD player. This solved one problem for us. As for watching television, we have turned to watching free streaming channels like Tubi and Pluto. This leaves OAB TV that still exists for free and the temptation to buy a new dumb TV. This is where things get nasty.
TV broadcasters don't want to broadcast TV anymore. I learned this from the Antenna Man on YouTube. They make more money from rebroadcast fees on cable and streaming. Those stations are now lobbying the FCC to make it possible to turn broadcast TV into over-the-air cable TV where you pay for programming you now watch for free. Naturally, this will kill broadcast TV, but these stupid bastards don't care. The people that will feel this the most are folks living in rural areas that don't get cable or streaming. The broadcasters are hoping to shut it down by 2028.
Knowing that they want to put the screws to me, I don't see the point in buying a new dumb TV set to replace the old set. They don't want my business. It is sad to see things going this way. Some folks like the Antenna Man don't think it will come to this. I think he is wrong. I totally believe they can and will kill broadcast TV as we know it.
Like I said, I don't watch much visual content. I would be more upset with the loss of AM radio which is also endangered. At the end of the day, I like watching old movies and TV shows with my wife. I can get those on DVD, and those portable DVD players are big sellers right now as people reject streaming. I think this will become more of a thing going forward. Physical media will persist especially among people who live in rural areas who don't have high speed internet. I think these people are the ones keeping DVDs alive.
UPDATE: Tyler the Antenna Man and Lon.TV posted some news about the move to ATSC 3.0:
FCC Votes to End ATSC 1.0 Simulcast Rule, Speed Up ATSC 3.0
The FCC Listened to You — NextGenTV DRM Is In the Hot Seat
The rule change essentially allows the broadcasts to ram the new standard through in a shorter time frame. Tyler cautions against hasty conclusions and misinformation, but I know better. His YouTube operation is based upon antenna television, so his audience is going to disappear now as people like me turn our backs on OTA TV knowing the betrayal is coming. Tyler will nurse the illusion as long as he can. He said something similar some time ago about ATSC 3.0 claiming that it would be a long time coming and be a good thing for consumers. Now, it is a short time coming, and DRM is going to screw consumers. Others will claim that the FCC is listening to the consumers, but I don't believe the FCC will do anything for them. Listening is just a PR move, and they will listen to the very end while they kill broadcast television. I don't have a YouTube channel promoting antennas, so I can afford to be brutally honest in my assessment.
Here are some great combox comments from the videos:
I live on the Texas Gulf Coast and often the internet will go out in bad weather. I like being able to watch local channels without the internet. I may need local news and weather independent of the internet. I do not think that local channels should be dependent on the internet.
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We just want to watch free TV. We are retired, we recieve our tv over roof top antenna and have no desire to pay for any tv program
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This sounds promising. I'm not getting my hopes up as long as Brenden "we can do this the easy way or we can do this the hard way" Carr is running the show. He doesn't strike me as someone who cares about the viewers, just his own interests.
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I hate to be a party pooper, but It's simple for me. I have a new TV, among other ones. I also have a small portable digital TV (does not connect to the internet), that I take outside and on trips sometimes. The day I turn on my portable TV and can't see anything, I will be done with whole OTA shebang. For 70 years we had analog TV. Then only 20 something years we've had digital 1.0. Now I'm supposed to upgrade again? More televisions, more adapters, new streaming boxes for things like Tablo etc. No thank you. And I'm still not going to go back to cable. I'll just stream, which is what I usually do anyway. I'll miss the MeTV group of channels if they switch, maybe a couple of others, but that's life.
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Many people who rely on OTA TV live in rural areas where internet is not exactly reliable and may not even be available. So if the law requires that all OTA TV be free to view, how are those viewers going to be able to get what the law is supposed to guarantee them? And how is it still considered “free to view”, if you have to pay for an always on internet connection in order to view that “free” programming? How is this serving the public?!?!
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Being forced to have active Internet connection in order to watch over the air broadcasts is both Stupid and unacceptable
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I have a 77 inch high end Samsung OLED less than a year old. Also a 70 inch LED 3 years old. Neither of them or others in the home have a ATSC 3 tuners. I have them all hooked to a large antenna through an amplified splitter. They would all lose OTA reception with this rollout. I am not buying expensive DVRs or non recording tuners to connect to them. I will not waste my money on 3.0 tuners that are useless e waste once DRM is turned on or off whenever they wish. Over the air TV dies with ATSC 1.0 for me.
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Encryption creates a “pay wall” for local broadcasters. If that happens, I will toss my smart TV into the trash. :-( :-( :-( :-( :-(
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ATSC 3.0 with DRM TVs, I'M NOT BUYING THE TVS with it..PERIOD!
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"provides for future monetization opportunities"
pretty much sums up this whole discussion, doesn't it?
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Lucy is really going to let us kick the football this time!
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FCC is going to side with the broadcast industry and you're getting encryption... The FCC is bought and sold by the media corporations.
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They are trying to turn public airwaves into a proprietary streaming service. Let's not let them.
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I was planning on installing a giant TV antenna up until this DRM nonsense
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seems by their focus, they have ALREADY decided and are broadcasting BS by that document, seems it all boils down to 3 points;
1. Shutting off 1.0 (broadcasters wanted to force 3.0 adoption), 2. Mandating forced 3.0 tuners by tv makers since they have chosen to ignore it, 3. it still seems they agree with DRM and bushbeating citizens like they fricking care. I have huge trust issues with FCC since they have let A3SA, Broadcasters get so far already. I have ZERO faith our words matter at all even with million of comments.
I notice there has been ZERO talk about requiring internet to setup devices with ATSC 3.0 and retaining internet for periodic encryption check/updates. A LOT of people in Rural America don't have home broadband , Are they just not going to have TV or are they going to be forced to buy expensive starlink just to watch ATSC 3.0?. Why should internet be required, Are citizens going to be forced to buy/maintain internet to activate ATSC 3.0 devices.
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What do they say? Wish in one hand poop in the other and let me know which one fills up first. Our country has been stolen by corporate interests and they will not allow you to have what you want.
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DRM=failure. If they end up keeping DRM. It is done. Stick a fork in the ATSC 3 rollout.
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It's simple, broadcasters want DRM-encryption because of profits. They want people to buy cable or a streaming service in which they get a cut. If broadcasters don't want to provide free broadcasting, then don't put it over the public airwaves.
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they want to charge distributors more carriage fees by blocking OTA
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Fcc is toothless and just carries water for these huge corporations in case you haven't noticed
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DRM is a critical decision the FCC will have to make after collecting all the relevant data=$$$$$$$$$$$ from the primary stakeholders. Three guesses on how they vote?
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The issue is that the FCC is run by a corrupt mob type clownish character who has no regards for the will of consumers, and I believe once all is done, the FCC will side with the big guy and will rule in their favor and will step on the will of the consumer. Sad times indeed.
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Corporate greed is limitless. If they could charge us for the air we breathe, they would.
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ATSC 3.0 isn't needed but it's wanted by the networks to ensure they can monopolize a free market.
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More likely the DRM is wanted by the networks to monopolize a free market. In recent years, corporations have shown an increased amount of greed and willingness to limit consumer rights and choices. Reference the right to repair / right to own movement, as it is a pushback to this encroachment.
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NO ONE wants ATSC 3.0 except broadcasters.
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In Star Trek: The Next Generation, they predicted the end of television as a medium by 2030-2040. Looks like we are right on schedule.
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I'm starting to long for the days of analog TV. Sure, we had fewer channels, but at least most rural communities weren't left in OTA deserts. Those simpler times had their own kind of charm.
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Nonsense. "Get with the times" is just a thinly veiled appeal to novelty. Newer isn't inherently better, Analog TV was superior to digital.
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This has already happened in Detroit. Only NBC still runs 1.0 and doesn't DRM their 3.0 signal. The rest moved to 3.0 and DRM, while disabling their 1.0 signal.
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This makes me pretty angry. People wont be able to access channels anymore due to stupid ATSC 3.0 and its dumb DRM. Keeping ATSC 1.0 for the long term seems better. I personally dont want to replace my TV(s) for a while and only got an ATSC 1.0 tuner box for my older ones a while back after my family dropped cable (due to me telling them its not worth it when all they use it for is news they can get over the air anyway)
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I am not going to touch a damn thing on my ATSC 1.0 tv setup in my house. Until I loose all the main network local channels here in Chicago area, I will stay with the same hardware.
I don't see how millions of people can easily just throw away their existing TV's and buy newer compatible devices. This is all a disgusting "big money hungry grab" by the TV stations and the TV manufacturers. We are going to see allot of protests to this FCC rule in the near future. 2028 is only a few years away.
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Man we all used to be so optimistic about ATSC 3.0 what a disaster this has all been.
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I'll probably end up watching movies and other shows on blue ray if we lose free tv.
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Viewers: we love watching free over the air tv.
A3SA: were going to take away free ota tv and treats viewers like pirates [criminals].
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They are in a hurry to make people start paying for over-the-air TV . Just watch and see.
@AntennaMan
I think that is the end goal.
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idc what they do so long as they remove DRM. why FREE tv needs some BS to PREVENT VIEWING is just blindly dumb af.
Thank you so much as always for keeping us updated and helping us who refuse $100+ cable
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These fcc knobs and the broadcasters pushing this atsc 3.0 are just grubbing for money. And only 65 pages of lawyer-speak? What a deal... (sarcasm, in case you can't tell)
I'm still going to be using my antenna. I'm an old guy on a retirement budget. Paying fifty bucks a month is untenable just for tv.
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I really don't think any kind of forced cutover to ATSC 3.0 with DRM in the mix is ever going to happen, if that's their endgame. Considering the increased cost to consumers, and the fact that an internet connection is required under the current setup, consumers would simply quit watching OTA TV. Alienating such a large percentage of consumers just isn't good for business.
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WHO THE HECK IS DOING THIS STUFF?? I get 90% of my TV OVER THE AIR!! I live in the country and live between Oklahoma city and TULSA OKLAHOMA.. THEY are already screwing with chanels and have taken away a bunch I used to get!!! WHY can't they leave what has been working for years alone?? My guess is that They want to go to pay TV???
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I barely watch tv but I don’t mind not watching any tv at all. I personally won’t be updating anything.
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I'll just be watching DVDs then from that point
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Nope, not buying another TV. Went through that with the transition to digital. Not again. TV still works. Makes a fine monitor. Streaming if I must but mostly, I just don't care.
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Broadcast is dead if you ask me. Broadcasters better figure out ATSC 3.0 is not wanted.
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As long as 3.0 has DRM, we will not buying a new TV period... Even if 1.0 becomes obsolete.
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Well thats the end of over the air tv because we won't upgrade because nothing will work with drm and we are not going to buy a new tv
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If I had the internet to "authorize" my antenna box to receive OTA, I wouldn't need the antenna because I could stream. TOTAL INSANITY.
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No plan to buy a new TV or an adapter. Done spending money on the latest great thing. In this case is not all that great. DRM is a serious turn off. The juice is not worth the squeeze.
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I bought a 4K Sony flat screen a few years ago because of this. My local 3.0 broadcasts (I have 3 of them) take 5-10 seconds to load and the picture is no better than the 1.0 broadcasts.
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the broadcasters will have a captive market with no one watching
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just remember when you lose access to ota tv, that you can "rest assured" that FCC took your comments seriously in order to "protect" the consumer
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i won't buy any new equipment I would rather stop watching tv, it is all garbage now anyway just buy dvds and watch whatever i want with no ads
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@AntennaMan
Books are good. Truth be told - I started this YouTube channel with the hope that people who switched to an antenna would watch less TV and hopefully read more books.
