Holiday wishes
I put together a list of wishes that, if granted, would allow the industry to realize convergence promises.
Maury Wright, Editor-in-Chief

For starters, will the recording and movie industries please realize that hanging on to old business models is futile? The music industry has only harmed itself by refusing to start a transition to downloadable formats, and it's not clear that the old industry will even survive. The movie industry, meanwhile, has stymied everything from DVDs to PVRs to DTV acceptance with misdirected piracy concerns. While the studios fervently try to stop individuals from copying 6-Gbyte movies onto some yet-to-be-delivered media, large-scale pirates carry on making thousands of perfect copies with professional equipment. To both industries, quit wasting money and time on battles you can't win. Use your energy to solve real problems.

Next, I wish the DTV industry would settle the 8-VSB vs COFDM controversy and get broadcasters moving toward federally mandated transition dates. I know 8-VSB isn't perfect, but neither is COFDM. Enhancements in broadcast systems are already improving 8-VSB reception (see "Improved forecast?" in this month's Inside the Digital Den), and new receiver chips and antennas will solve the reception problems.

While we're at it, let's accept IEEE 1394 as the interface for DTV systems and, in fact, the entire digital living room. The cost of 1394 is miniscule compared to DTV gear, and the more primitive DVI (digital visual interface) does little for consumers. The PC industry could take a hint here as well. Rid yourself of USB 2.0 in favor of 1394 at the high end and Bluetooth or IrDA (Infrared Data Association) links at the low end. We need peer-to-peer interfaces—not PC-centric ones—for the convergence era.

To the PVR vendors, realize that only by satisfying consumer wishes will you achieve success. Your customers expect extensible storage schemes including external storage. Get together with the TV and movie industries and find a way to move the hard disk away from the PVR function.

To dissenters in the DVD industry, quit coming up with proprietary schemes any time you don't get your way in the standards bodies. DVD+RW has only stymied the entire rewritable-DVD market, and Super CD is doing the same thing to DVD-Audio. If not for your arguing, both of these markets could already be blossoming. The combatants in the skirmish over flash-memory modules could deliver the same holiday present through unity.

Finally, to service providers everywhere—in cellular, DSL, cable-modem, datacasting, wireless data, and voice-over-data markets—please deliver what you promise. Please build the infrastructure before you build expectations and then disappoint the market.

To all of you, our loyal readers, I say thanks for your support during CommVerge's first year. We intend to continue delivering the latest information on convergence technology to help you fulfill your wish lists. Happy holidays, and we'll talk next year.