Following the publication of research that found digital TV equipment is much harder to use than existing analogue kit, e-commerce minister Stephen Timms called on the digital TV industry to wake up and pay more attention to usability. "Today’s digital TV equipment is confusing and difficult to use, even for people who take to new technology quickly," warned Timms.
"As many people as possible should enjoy the full range of television services. Manufacturers must recognise the opportunities and commercial rewards from designing products which are accessible to the widest range of consumers. We cannot expect people to fully embrace digital television unless it is simple and easy to install and use," the e-commerce minister added.
The government-backed research was carried out by The Generics Group. It found that around 2 million people -- around 7 percent of the UK population -- would be unable to use one of today's digital set-top boxes because the kit is too complicated, badly designed or "non-intuitive".
The government's approach to digital television is increasingly resembling a game of chicken. Its official policy is that it is committed to completing the switch from analogue to digital transmissions by 2010. However, some in the industry suspect this isn't achievable, which reportedly discourages manufacturers and television firms from large-scale investment in digital products and services -- making the doubts self-fulfilling.
Culture secretary Tessa Jowell banged the digital drum last week, insisting that the government is still committed to shutting down the analogue signal by 2010. "The advantages of digital are such that the question is not whether, but how and when we will achieve switchover," said Jowell, in a speech to the Royal Television Society's conference in Cambridge.
Taken together, these comments from Jowell and Timms indicate that the government is raising the stakes in the hope of convincing sceptics that digital switchover by 2010 will happen. Failure would be intensely embarrassing, but a successful execution would boost the UK's technology sector. As well as meaning large sales for manufacturers, it would also increase the number of citizens going online, via digital TV-based Web browsers.
Talkback
The Generics Group and the DTI have been disingenuous in this report. The focus on set-top-boxes does not get to the heart of the matter which is that the consumer has a choice in how he or she decides to get digital tv into their home and what they do with it when they get it there.
This report does nothing to help people decide to take up digital tv, in fact it has inaccuracies in it that could disuade people. For example, page 53 indicates that the only solution to recording digital TV while watching is a personal video recorder, when in fact twin tuner STBS are available - but they cost more than the sub-£100 units. Page 53 also goes on to say that recording digital TV to a VCR is difficult, again there are other VCR products on the market that use SCART link recording. The consumer should be encouraged to look at the whole story when it comes to digital TV, not just the STB. Some come on DTI, give us the whole story and give the manufacturers a chance to get things right.
In November 2002 Consumers' Association (publishers of Which?) and the Independent Television Commission (ITC) published the results of similar research on the usability of digital TV equipment. The report is available at http://www.itc.org.uk/uploads/Easy_TV_2002_Research1.doc
This research by the DTI and Scientific Generics confirms these findings. Unless digital TV is easy to use it will remain a turn off for many consumers.
This emphasises how important it is to ensure that digital switchover only takes place once consumers and technology are ready. At the moment far too many consumers are put-off by the technology involved and are not attracted to the new services which digital technology offers.
Why doesn't the governments of the US and UK let the consumers pick which standard they want? Clearly people are avoiding DTV so far because either the added quality isn't worth the cost in term of price or effort, or because they're satisfied with the quality as it is.
If the DTV groups and the government want this so badly, find a way to make it transparent and have it add nothing to the price of a TV and I think you'd find it will sell like hotcakes.
Remember - added value only works if the consumer perceives that there is an added value - it's the consumer who determines that - not the producer. Sounds like more than a few people in the government and in business need a refresher course in market theory...
The main problem is branding. Just imagine if Colour TV was branded in a similar way when it was first introduced (something like "ColourView"). It would seem like a diferent service to the one currently available.
If digital television had been shown to be analogous to the diference between black and white and colour TV, then I'm sure that the public would appreciate digital TV.