In an economy that is putting more lines of worry on broadcast-ers" faces than there are of resolution on an HDTV set, picture clarity could become a critical selling point and a path to differentiate channels in a way never seen in the analog age, broadcasters say. That's why some of those broadcasters are now smarting even more over last fall's FCC decision allowing cable operators to compress broadcasters' high-definition signals. That ruling came as part of the FCC's mandate that cable operators add must-carry stations' digital HD signals in HD. In short, they argue, what good is a great picture if most people don't get to see how great it is? In an analog world, "You didn't necessarily differentiate product on quality of picture," says David Donovan, who heads the broadcasters' chief spectrum lobby, the Association for Maximum Service Television.
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