Every day tens of millions of Americans switch on radio and television sets for news, weather, and entertainment. Radio and television are a part of our daily routines and a staple of our culture. Today these mass media services are being transformed by the same digital revolution that is bringing us new media choices via the Internet.
Digital Television Service
The Telecommunications Act of 1996 authorized the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to license part of the public's electromagnetic spectrum to thousands analog television licensees for the transition to digital television services.Digital television can provide sharp images that rival the movie theater experience if used in its high definition mode. DTV can also offer CD-quality sound. It can provide new uses such as multiple video programs or other services on a single television channel, including data services, and interactive capability. NTIA has played an active role in the development of digital television and public policy. NTIA's Institute for Telecommunication Sciences (ITS) developed the signal propagation models used by the FCC to establish the digital table of allocations. It also developed new techniques to meaure the quality of digital video picturs on television monitors, among other devices (press release). Hundreds of digital television stations are already in operation in markets serving almost all of U.S. television households. The Administration will continue to monitor developments and encourage its successful deployment, which will reslut in reclaimed radio spectrum for other important services, including public safety.
Speeches on Digital Television Service
NTIA Filings on Mass Media
Maureen Lewis
(mlewis@ntia.doc.gov)
U.S. Department of Commerce
National Telecommunications & Information Administration
14th Street & Constitution Avenue, N.W., Room 4725
Washington, D.C. 20230
voice: (202) 482-1880
fax: (202) 482-6173
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