introduction multimedia
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convergence

Let's see if we are able to give a more precise characterization of digital convergence. In their introduction to the theme issue of the Scientific American, Forman and SaintJohn locate the beginning of digital convergence, historically, at the 1939 New York World Fair:

history

They observe that

the receiver at the RCA Pavillon was way ahead of its time, it was a combination of television - radio - recorder - playback - facsimile - projector ...

Moreover, they remark

that in hindsight suggests that we humans have a fundamental desire to merge all media in one entity

By way of definition we may state, following Forman and SaintJohn, that digital convergence is:

digital convergence

the union of audio, video and data communication into a single source, received on a single device, delivered by a single connection

And, as they say,

predicted for decades, convergence is finally emerging, albeit in a haphazard fashion.

Taking a somewhat closer look, we may discern subsidiary convergences with respect to content, platform and distribution:

subsidiary convergences


Here, Forman and SaintJohn remark that

if compatibility standards and data protection schemas can be worked out, all d-entertainment will converge into a single source that can shine into your life on any screen, whereever you are ...

However, observe that

the number of competing standards and architectures is enormous!

television

 It is fair to say that no device has changed the way we live so dramatically as television. Television, for one, has altered the way we furnish our living rooms, not to speak about the time we waste watching the thing.

Now, we may wonder what interactive television and enhanced televison have to offer us. Looking back, we may observe that it takes some time for the new possibilities to catch on.

observations

  • interactive television (1970) -- people did not want to communicate back to the broadcaster
  • enhanced television --
    • Disney -- Who wants to be a millionaire?
    • Big Brother -- ...
For example, although many people watched Big Brother when it first appeared on television, the willingness of the audience to react other than by phone was (apparently) somewhat disappointing. Perhaps, in the Netherlands this was due to the fact that only a fraction of the PC owners was, at that time, permanently online.

Nevertheless, Forman and SaintJohn state, somewhat optimistically, that

The convergence of digital content, broadcast distribution and display platforms create the big convergence of d-entertainment and information with feedback supporting human interactivity.

Before looking at digital television more closely, let's summarize what digital convergence involves:

convergence


As concerns digital television, we may come up with some immediate advantages:

digital television


Currently, there are some (competing) standards in development, that will enable the mass-scale adoption of digital television, notably:

standards

When speaking about (digital) television, we must make a further distinction between:

acronyms


In addition, we may mention the introduction of set-top boxes, such as

set top boxes

that, making use of what we may regard as standard web technology enable us to access the web through television.

As further discussed in chapter 3, we have (standard) codecs for d-TV, in particular

(standard) codecs for d-TV

that enable the effective delivery of digital video, possibly in combination with other content.

Unfortunately, experts disagree on what might become the most suitable appliance or platform to consume all those digital goodies.

a killer d-TV appliance ...

 Will we prefer to watch stored video, instead of live televison broadcasts? Will the Internet be able to compete with traditional television broadcasting. Will DelayTV or Replay-TV, which allows you to watch previous broadcasts at a time that suits you become popular? Will an extended game machine or PC replace your television? Currently,we must observe that

observation

streaming media (still) have rather poor resolution.

Leaving game machines aside, will it then be the TV or PC that will become our platform of choice? Forman and SaintJohn observe:

TV or PC


The roadblock to the Entertainment PC could be the PC itself. Even a cheap TV doesn't crash or freeze. The best computers still do.

However, they conclude that

The Entertainment TV


it might make sense to adopt a programmable PC that can support competing TV standards, rather than construct a stack of TV peripherals.

Nevertheless, there are a number of problems that occur when we (collectively) choose for the PC as our platform for d-entertainment:

problems

  • thin clients (Sun/Java) vs fat clients (MS/Intel:Dell,Compaq)
  • Internet (IP) is not robust -- QoS
  • proprietary architectures and codecs -- RealVideo, QuickTime, Windows media
Do we opt for thin clients or fat clients? Will we be able to develop a more robust version of the Internet, that includes so-called Quality of Service, which gives you guaranteed bandwidth and delivery? And, will we be able to unify proprietary architectures and codecs into a common standard, such as MPEG-4?

Evidently, the situation becomes even more complex when we just consider the range of alternatives for connectivity, that is for possible ways of distributing contents:

distribution


  • telephone network -- from 0.5 - 2 Mbps to 60 Mpbs (2.5km)
  • broadcast TV -- 6 MHz / 19 Mbps (4 channels MPEG HDTV)
  • cable TV -- hybrid fiber-optic coaxial cable 6 Mbps
  • fixed wireless -- 2 Mbps (radiotowers + rooftop antenna), phones/handhelds
  • satellite -- downloads to 100kbps, modem for uploads ...
Most probably, convergence with respect to distribution will not result in one single way of being connected, but rather a range of options from which one will be selected transparently, dependent on content and availability.

Let's stay optimistic, and ask ourselves the following question:

digital convergence


what will we do with convergence once we have it?

One possible scenario, not too unlikely after all, is to deploy it for installing computing devices everywhere, to allow for

ubiquitous computing

  • smart houses,
  • smart clothes,
  • smart world.
I wonder what a smart world will look like. In the end we will have to wait and see, but whatever will emerge

emergence

We Will Watch

That is to say, it is not likely that we will have a world without television. Television as we are used to it seems to be the dominant paradigm for d-entertainment, for both the near and distant future.

research directions -- technological determinism

Although there are many technical issues involved in (digital) multimedia, as exemplified in the issues that play a role in digital convergence, a technical perspective alone does not suffice. Each technological innovation has its consequences on our social life. Conversely, each trend in society might result in the adoption or development of new technology. Looking at the history of the media, we may observe that media become materials in our social processes. Or, as phrased in  [History]:

media as materials


each medium of communication tended to create a dangerous monopoly of knowledge

For example ( [History], p. 8) for Christians, images where both a means of conveying information and a means of persuasion, that is part of the rethorics of institutionalized religion.

Looking at our age, and the media that have come into existence in the previous century (radio, television, ...),  [History] observe that:

technological determinism


technological determinism was not the answer, ... more attempts were to be made to provide answers about the social consequences of television than had ever been asked about radio.

In effect, underlying all developments in the media (including the computer) we may assume a basic need for information. A rather problematic need, for that matter:

information


Information became a major concern anywhere during the late 1960 and 1970s where there was simultaneous talk both of 'lack of information' and 'information saturation'.

 [History], p. 555

Nowadays, we regard information as a commodity. Train schedules, movies, roadmaps, touristic information, stock prices, we expect it all to be there, preferably online, at no cost. No information, no life. Information drives the economy. Upwards and downwards!
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draft version 1 (16/5/2003)