16 March 2006

Add TV to your list of "Rights"

| johnboy
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Our Brave Leader has put out a media release fretting about what will happen to those unable to save up for a $100 digital receiver when the analog TV signal goes off in 2010.

“Such is the pervasive nature of television, and its importance as a source of information and entertainment in modern society, that such an outcome ought to be unthinkable.

“It seems to be assumed that the market will take care of disadvantaged groups — that retailers will compete for the business of groups such as the poor, the elderly, the disabled, or those without the know-how and confidence to embrace digital technologies.

“This is a questionable assumption and it is vital that the Commonwealth start planning now to ensure that the switchover to digital does not result in the creation of a new layer of second-class citizens in the area of communications technology.”

To what extent is the Chief Minister willing to cripple society to benefit people unwilling to provide for themselves?

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Tanks JR, I won’t buy a Plasma…lucky I’m not a punter.

Sorry Les – gotta go with Thumper on this. I hate some of the shit that is passed off as entertainement but I have found (after years of extensive study) that if you don’t like something that is on the box with the moving pictures – try not watching it!

The problem is that digital television only improves the visual quality, not the barrel-scraping content we’re stuck with. I reckon they should just switch off TV altogether!

Just think about it: No more Big Brother, Aus Idol, Popstars, Backyard Blitz, Neighbours, Home & Away, TodayTonight, Eddie Maguire, Deal or no deal, or any shit Americana we’re constantly berrated with.

Oh praise be to whoever delivers us the gift of freedom from television!

James-T-Kirk11:40 pm 16 Mar 06

Wow,

It’s nice to see that our government has now caught up with what happened 10 years ago.

Gosh.

Does this mean that we won’t have to pay for the bus lane for another 10 years.

Me thinks he should get another advisor…

Hey, this about sums up his role, know nothing, and release what the advisors say…

Anyone buying a Plasma now is a total mug punter. LCD remains the better option for the short term even though screen size is marginally smaller.

Plasma have a limited operational lifetime and the majority of the supposedly high end HD ready devices are not genuinely fully HD compliant not supporting the true 1920×1080 (1080p/i) resolutions nor do they provide a HDMI port (which beleive it or not kiddies is going to be mandatory to get the best out of both the new Blue-Ray and DVD-HD DVD formats)

An alternative option that looks very promising is the Canon SED technology:

http://www.canon.com/technology/display/

Vader – TV’s sold now won’t be obselete in that a set top box can be hooked up to an analogue set sowe can all enjoy high definition garbage. I agree with you that the market isn’t following our decision though – remember when the analogue mobile were phased out in ’99 – you couldn’t buy or connect and analogue phone from Jan ’99 – and the digital phones were the same price from about September ’97 – thus giving us all a little more time to prepare.

I’d like to see it written into our Bill of Rights that all men, women, children (and their pets) will have access to a qualitytelly…not one of those little B&W’s, but a decent-sized plasma ready for HDTV.

Televisions have a life expectancy of what – 15 years? It used to be more, but we’re a throwaway society these days.

It seems odd to me that we were only 2 years away from shutting down the analogue network (4 years now) and it is still almost impossible to buy a digital TV (it IS impossible to find an affordable one).

If the feds were serious about it, surely they would have legislated that all TVs sold from a certain date (5 years minimum before shutdown of analogue system) would have to be digital.

Surely selling goods, knowing that they would be unusable (without the purchase of additional equipment) within 4 years, should be made illegal?

Woolworths:
SD TV Tuner $85
SD TV Tuner + DVD $129

Aldi:
SD TV Tuner $69
HD TV Tuner $250

And whilst we’re on that Thumper – is anyone else sick to death of having to sit through fifteen minutes of Sydney trafffic woes when we try and watch the news of an evening?

Akiles, I agree completely.

For the purpose of the exercise I was trying to be generous to Mr. Stanhope.

No wonder non-Canberrans laugh at this city, when our “Big Giant Head” Chief Minister issues media releases like this! Maybe if people can’t watch the idiot box anymore it might encourage them to do something useful like getting exercise, reading a book or even stranger still, talking to their family or neighbours.

Has he issued a media release saying how appalled he is that 85% of people surveyed think that Jana Pittman is a drama-queen yet??????

Seems a non-issue to me anyway. What are the odds of the cheapest digital receiver being more than $30 in 2010?

I’d be careful if I were Sonic – with digital clarity we may be able to confirm a long held belief of mine that our fearless leader may have hair-plugs…

Yet another slow news day I fear. I’d have to agree with vg – this sort of garbage is designed to take the masses eyes off all the other problems facing this fair town.

barking toad11:00 am 16 Mar 06

vg and thumper youse are very cruel. Our Chief Minister (blessings be upon him) is just seeking to protect our rights and implement his ACT Bill Of Rights for the sort of purpose it was intended.

You must look at the bigger picture. Our rights to view the urn and get a digital set top box are what is important on the international stage. Local issues like health and aged care are mere distractions in the greater scheme of things.

Don’t worry about the impending budget deficit, or health, or community programs, or making the city look something other than a toilet outside the Parliamentary Triangle……lets tackle the big issues, digital TV.

If people start planning now, by my rough estimates if they put away a little under 50c a weel they will have their digital set top box.

Having said that it was incredibly hard to set up my digital set top box. I plugged it in, turned it on and it found all the channels itself.

Another amateur cheap shot at the Feds, who now regard him as nothing less than a pimple on a pigs bum. He clearly doesnt have enough to do

BOOO!
Kill your television!
I think going to digital tv asap will lead a whole lot of people to get of their arses
me included. Bring it on!

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