By Robert J. Dattner, TV Answer Inc
For over 20 years, the cable television industry has sought a cost effective way to retrieve real-time information from the home. Recent laboratory and field tests have demonstrated the suitability of over-the- air radio transmission as an alternative way to received pay-per-view and other data from subscribers' homes. The new system uses bandwidth efficient pulsing to achieve high speed viewer polling, (upwards from 784,000 per minute; nominally 945,000 per minute), without two-way cable or telephone connections. The TV Answer System is currently being tested at Media General Cable in Fairfax, Virginia. In addition, the Federal Communications Commission is considering the allocation of one-half MHZ in the 216 to 222 MHZ band for the use of this new viewer response service. Field tests are now underway to support a petition for formal rulemaking.