Already, there are signs that the industries are starting to work together again and that the government is ready to take on the leadership role. Consumer electronics manufacturers want to sell more and better TV sets, and they accuse broadcasters of dragging their feet in getting the signals on the air. Broadcasters don t want to put signals on the air that nobody can watch, and they accuse the set manufacturers of failing to develop sets that can pick up the HD signals without a lot of expensive aerial equipment. Well, everyone is mad at cable operators, accusing them of being unwilling to pass through HD signals in all their glory. Fortunately, most large cable operators are enthusiastic about HDTV, if only because it gives them a competitive advantage over satellite.
Cable has more bandwidth to carry HD than satellite.
A typical cable plant will carry the simulcast feeds of a handful of broadcasters, plus marquee cable networks. That s about 1,500 simulcast feeds. All that data funneled through one or two satellites will put a damper on other advanced services as they come down the pike. But the big question, of course, is whether the technology will catch on with viewers. Opinions vary, but many observers say HD will be a big hit if programmers support the format from the outset and set manufacturers can get the price down to a reasonable level.