In the United States, as opposed to many other countries, a conversion to both digital signals and high-definition pictures is occurring at the same time. Some countries are broadcasting in high-definition pictures but are still using an analog signal. Digital signals, in contras

Since its birth, television has dramatically changed the way we view the world. It has affected not only how we learn, but also how we communicate. It has brought us almost limitless access to information, news, drama and the arts. It has taken wars continents away and brought them into our living rooms. It has stirred our emotions, boggled our minds, introduced us to both the famous and infamous and become our primary mode of entertainment. It has made our world smaller, and our perspectives larger. However, the underlying fundamentals of the (analog??) television have not changed significantly with the advances in communications and technology developed in the last twenty years. Digital television, with its vast capabilities, represents a quantum leap in the broadcasting and video-entertainment industry. Coupled with commensurate changes in all areas of communication, interactive media, computer technology and the Internet, this next generation of video hardware and software will change how we look and listen to TV in ways that are not possible for its analog counterpart. Once again, our world-view will be altered in unimaginable ways by the “view of the world” we enjoy from our family-rooms, bedrooms, rec-rooms and living rooms. Our window on the world will be opened even wider, and more clearly perceived without leaving our homes.

Digital TV, as opposed to analog TV, is a much more suitable for interactivity. The National Television Standards Committee (NTSC) television sets can display a picture 720 pixels wide by 486 pixels high. That's a total of 349,920 pixels. This may seem to be a great amount, but it is a relatively low resolution compared to computer monitors, where the resolution is often 800 x 600 or better. Most people today would rather interact on a higher resolution computer monitor that’s easier on the eyes, than on a low resolution NTSC television. Digital TV can have a resolution of up to 1920 x 1080, or 2,073,600 pixels, six times more pixels than on an analog TV (Conexant Systems, 2001). The higher resolution makes TVs comparable to computer monitors and a more fitting interactivity medium. Examples of the interactivity that digital TV will bring include: TV on demand, Internet access with online banking and e-commerce, as well as the capability to play along with game shows (Casswell, 2000). For example, if you subscribe to a program in the DTV world, you can watch programming live or anytime after it airs. With the current NTSC system, if you miss a current episode of your favorite TV program, you must record it on your VCR, or you're out of luck until the reruns. If you want to know what the weather forecast is, you can tune to

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