Brazil raps about transition to digital TV

When we talk about TV in Brazil, we mean something big, really big. Television has ultra high penetration and influence in this country -- 98% of the population watches it at least once in the week (anatel). And soon this household electronic unit will be the central icon in the national mobilization of attention to the World Cup games in Germany. As the Brazilian soccer team fights in the German fields in June to maintain global sovereignty most of the population will be glued to the TV. This is the context in which the debate about the digital TV implementation is arriving and the open network is again holding the most productive exchange of ideas and arguments on the issue. In Brazil, the premier soccer country, when one wants to be clear and direct, it is common to use sports metaphors and analogies. That's why Mr. Helio Costa, Brazil's Minister for Communications, in a public appearance in the Chamber of Representatives in late January, "kicked off" the governmental decision process on the transition to digital TV using the best verbal resources at hand: "I placed the ball on the penalty mark for the President. He can kick the ball strongly and score a 'plate goal' (a goal that deserves a memorial plate), or he can shoot softly and still score, or he can shoot out and miss the goal." Min. Hélio Costa - Digital TV audience in the Camara dos Deputados - in Pênalti Digital - Blog Silepse The minister, who was previously a famous TV reporter of a big broadcast network, was very pedagogical in laying out the available choices. To implement digital TV we have to choose between the three available standards: the Japanese (ISDB), the European (DVB) and the American (ATSC). It seemed necessary that decisions on the digital TV transition be quickly taken because 2006 is not only the year of the World Cup but also the year of the Brazilian presidential election where TV plays a huge role. More...

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