The Michigan Daily - Thursday, April 3, 1997 - 5A
FCC to mandate
digital television
WASHINGTON (AP) - Federal
regulators are prepared to approve a
lan today to begin rolling out cinema-
ality digital television to the public in
24 months.
The Federal Communications
Commission's plan caps 10 years of
work to clear the way for the biggest
industry advance since color in the
1950s.
The 24-month rule will apply to sta-
tions owned or affiliated with ABC,
CBS, NBC and Fox in the nation's top
10 markets. Stations in smaller markets
l1 have 30 months to begin digital
11oadcasting, FCC sources said, speak-
ing on condition of anonymity.
The commission already has
received written pledges from at least
25 stations in the top 10 markets to
offer digital broadcasts within 18
months - in time for the 1998 holi-
day shopping season, the FCC
sources said.
The next step up - high definition
*evision with its even sharper pictures
and sound than digital TV - is being
left up to each station under the FCC
plan, according to sources familiar with
it. Stations will be free to broadcast as
little or as much digital high-definition
programs as they want.
With the new digital technology, TV
stations could cram more services into
their airwaves space. For example, they
could offer sports scores to laptop com-
puter users or even establish a separate
pay-for-view sports channel.
Once the plan is formally approved,
the FCC will immediately begin issuing
new digital broadcast licenses to every
TV station in the country.
FCC Chair Reed Hundt had support-
ed a short timetable for pushing digital
television onto the market, a move
endorsed by the manufacturers of TV
sets.
As they convert to digital, broadcast-
ers will be transmitting programs over
two channels: their existing analog; and
a second digital channel that they'll get
from the government for free. This way,
existing analog TV sets will not be ren-
dered immediately useless.
WALK
Continued from Page IA
will be good," Allan said. "We want to
make sure the lighting is adequate for
where the students are."
Department of Public Safety Sgt.
Gary Hicks said the suggestions made
last night will be strongly recommend-
ed by DPS to various University
departments.
"I really don't see any problems in
getting these things initiated," Hicks
said.
Along with MSA, the eight campus
organizations that contributed to the
Campus Safety Walk are the Residence
Hall Association, the LSA-Student
Government, the Panhellenic
Association, the Interfraternity
Council, Safewalk, Northwalk,
University of Michigan Engineering
Council and DPS.
HOSPITAL
Continued from Page 1A
and 1988 of $1.1 million, $5.7 million,
and $2.4 million, respectively.
Surplus revenue is stored in a reserve
fund, which is estimated to hold a little
under $700 million, Harrison said.
Warren said that the Medical
Center's final net profit should be
available at the end of the fiscal year in
late June.
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