Written by: Roshan Dwivedi
For some reason, the Federal Communications Commission is considering a proposal that would dismantle the current structure of not only how we receive our television today, but how many consumers wish to receive it in the future. Instead of seeking to ease the set-top cable box into semi-retirement, the FCC is instead considering an idea to force cable, satellite and IPTV providers to build new set-top boxes that would act as universal adapters. Native video streaming services could then be disassembled via those boxes and a retail device connected to the adapter would be able to put the streams back together in a new package. This is very similar to a proposal the FCC considered and abandoned a few years ago called AllVid.
Chew on that for a minute. The world is trending toward app-based everything, and the FCC is considering requiring the development of a new set-top box in the name of creating a retail market for set-top boxes.
Granted, the set-top box isn’t evil, and there are some good ones on the market. But the reality is that these boxes take up precious space, suck up a bunch of energy and always seem to need a good dusting. If this process at the FCC goes the wrong way and the agency mandates the creation of new boxes, it will come at a cost to consumers while eschewing the app-based world we inhabit today.
Source : Forbes
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