The Broadcasters' Transition Date Roulette: Strategic Aspects of the DTV Transition

INTRODUCTION ................................................................................... 438 I. THE BROADCAST TELEVISION MARKET ............................... 440 A. Regulatory Aspects ................................................................ 441 B. Wireless Engineering and Physics .......................................... 446 C. Industrial Organization ....................................................... 448 1. The Evolution of the Networks and the Ownership Cap ................................................................................ 449 2. Current Organization of the Industry .......................... 453 II. THE SWITCH TO DTV ............................................................. 455 A. The Development of the DTV Standard ................................ 455 B. The Long, Slow March toward Transition ............................ 459 1. Changes in Power Requirements and Spectrum Allocation ...................................................................... 459 a. Existing License Holders ........................................... 459 b. Reallocations and New Users .................................... 461 2. The Mandatory Transition to DTV and Cessation of Analog Broadcasting ..................................................... 462