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TV Execs Warn FCC: NextGen TV DRM Could Turn Free TV Into Gambling and Pay-TV Platforms
(www.antennaland.com)
this post was submitted on 10 Feb 2026
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Let's just cut the shit and admit that over-the-air broadcast television is effectively dead.
This is why Net Neutrality mattered, because the future isn't in old tech (radio broadcast) being consumed by DRM in desperate plays to stay relevant and/or profitable.
The future was always in things like YouTube, Netflix, and other online content delivery services. Which is why strict regulation of Net Neutrality and strict regulation of such services was and continues to be so important.
No, the infrastructure isn't "open" like broadcast airwaves, which technically anyone with a license and equipment can jump into using, whereas internet infrastructure is all privately owned wired networking. The fact that it is different isn't an excuse for any and all governments to have just effectively given up on regulation of those spaces when they're where the media-consuming public happen to be. That's why we needed legislation of these things instead of a back and forth wankery of the FCC changing how the internet is classified over and over again in between warring political factions.
I can almost guarantee you that nobody under the age of 30 gives a singly flying fuck about having an antenna on a television. They're probably watching more than half their media on their phone or tablet anyway.
The real reason that this kind of change is happening to over-the-air broadcasting is because it doesn't have enough viewers, and by extension, enough advertising, to sustain it as a model anymore.
I think the loss of over-the-air programming isn't the best thing, but I also think it's stupid to keep holding on to this idea like it matters very much in 2026 where if you asked a kid in their twenties if they even knew what an antenna for a television was they'd probably go "what the fuck are you even talking about?"
But I mean we can't even regulate shit like paid political speech online needing to say that it is paid political speech, so fat chance of any useful legislation coming anytime soon. US government in particular has been broken as fuck for three decades.
I just went through the annoying ass process of looking for my OTA antenna for my TV for the Super Bowl because you had to pay a subscription in order to watch it anywhere else and I figured that the OTA channels would at least have it on.
In the end, I gave up trying to find a live play of it and will eventually watch the highlight reels if I even care that much.
I probably threw the antenna away because as you said, no one watches antenna TV any more.
The best way to watch sports is to go to the arena, the second best way is to go to the pub/bar/sports cafe and watch with the neighbours. Like the old days.
Lets be honest, going to the arena sucks. Especially for a game like football where you will almost certainly be crazy far away from any action. I've gone to a few and outside the "it was cool to say you were there" part, I'd rather just watch it on TV. Not even taking the cost into account.
Can't really categorically say one way is best or worst. Depends on the individual arena (location relative to you and transportation options, suitability of the arena to the sport, concession prices, concession quality, weather if the arena is open), the teams playing, the personality of the other fans near you, your own personality. It's all good.