Most of the concerns being brought up here have already been addressed by the FCC, or are in the process of formulating a solution. But as with all change, there will be a large number of unhappy people no matter what the outcome. Here is my understanding of the future of TV and thought on TV manufactures.
The senate recently passed a bill that set the hard date for the return of Analog channels to April, 9, 2009. This same bill sets aside money raised by the auction of the spectrum channels to subsidize every household that still has an analog TV.
Article What is not said is that the subsidy is for one converter per household only and I have not yet determined if the subsidy is for a free converter or to reduce the cost. My thought is that it is for a free converter as most articles I've read seen to think that the simple converter will only be between 15 and 30 dollars.
In addition to the above, it is my understanding that after the cut off date, TV service providers must provide cableCards free of monthly charges, but they are allowed to charge a nominal one-time fee to recover the cost of the card which is considered to be disposable. This is apparently a throwback to the law that states a cable company can not charge you for each TV in your house. However, the companies currently get around this by offering STBs for which they can charge for the enhanced service. There is also some loophole for the cable company connecting an outlet, but they cannot charge you for each outlet if you connect it yourself.
As for the ATSC turner mandate, this is actually a lost opportunity by the TV manufactures. The law actually says that that if the TV includes a tuner, that it must carry an ATSC tuner (currently based on TV size), and I believe in the near future, that all TVs must carry an ATSC tuner and may not carry an analog tuner. However, this is only if the TV has a tuner. I believe this is a lost opportunity because TVs should be dumb and nothing more than a display device like your PC monitor (which is a TV). There was once a push for monitors back in the early eighties but it never caught on because nobody was buying the few STBs of the time like the multivison tuners. However, now is the perfect time to resurrect the concept. If TV manufacturers were to make the monitors capable of plugging in a device, they can make all kinds of different devices at different prices levels. The consumer would be able to get the items they want and upgrade as technology changes, which it will due quickly during the next decade. I guess they are worried that too many people will use leased devices and not purchase their STBs. But if the manufacturer makes the device so that it is hidden or better integrated, then maybe the public will purchase their devices instead. Also, since the cost of the monitor is lower to manufacture, then they be get better market share.
