The future of cable on campus is filled with static.
The campus' cable infrastructure is in a "vast state of decay and has exceeded its usefulness," said Richard Bova, senior associate dean of residential life. The system will be turned off completely at the end of the academic year. Students who would like to watch shows on a television set instead of on a computer may have to pay for set-top boxes after the change.
The cable television system in dormitories was installed in 1980, according to Timothy Wells, director of telecommunications and network technology for Computing and Information Services. "At the time, it was state of the art," he said. "In the '80s they probably thought, 'Gee, this will last forever.'"
Fixing the current system - the legacy system, Bova calls it - would incur astronomical costs. The cables running across campus have physically eroded, and the accompanying electronic equipment is more than 25 years old, Wells said. Wells's staff has tried to keep the system up and running, but "it was definitely not designed to be indefinite," Wells said.
However, running new cables through campus would be equally expensive and, "as technology changes, you don't want to reinvest in old technology." Bova said.
In 2005, the University introduced IPTV, which gives students the option of streaming TV over the Internet. IPTV actually has "greater capacity in channel line-up" than the current cable system, Bova said. The Office of Residential Life has engaged Residential Council and CIS to begin discussions as to how "we would migrate from the failing legacy (system) to a total IPTV platform," Bova said.
Bova said he would like to have the new plan figured out by early next semester, but that discussions are still in the early stages.
The infrastructure for the IPTV system is already in place, and "it's more prudent to stream through a system that is stable," Bova said.
IPTV usage is already very high and the connection exists in all residence halls, in addition to many lounges and common spaces, Wells said.
Most students interviewed by The Herald said the issue was irrelevant to them, as they only watch television through IPTV on their computers.
But many students do have televisions in their rooms and "people are going to get upset," said James Reed '09, chair of ResCouncil. After investigating and learning that updating the system is not an option, the council has begun discussing "the best way we can service the students at Brown," Reed said.
If students want to watch IPTV on a physical TV set rather than on a computer after the cable system is shut down, they will need to purchase a set-top box that links the Ethernet connection to the TV. Reed said ResCouncil is discussing multiple avenues for students to acquire the boxes - including rentals, buy-backs and deposits - with the goal of "defraying the cost for students as much as possible."
Bova said ResLife will work to provide boxes for large common lounges, and they plan to discuss options for program houses, Greek houses and first-year units - places where having a functioning television may be integral to programming.
ResLife is also looking at incorporating one set-top box into the suite fee students with a common room already pay, Reed said.
"Students are not going to be used to having to pay for cable; we recognize that," Reed said. "This is going to be a significant issue for students. We're taking it seriously."
Dylan Cashman '10 said though he prefers to watch television on an actual TV rather than on a computer, he wouldn't want to pay the extra money for a set-top box. "It sucks," he said. "I feel like they take away a lot of amenities from us, and no one complains, so they keep doing it."
Margaret Klawunn, vice president for campus life and student services, presented the topic to the Undergraduate Council of Students last week and was confronted with a number of concerns.
UCS will take part in further conversations about the switch to IPTV, and students present at the meeting asked about students who don't have computers, the channel line-up on IPTV and whether recording shows was an available option on the IPTV platform.
UCS President Brian Becker '09 said an obvious concern is that "TV viewing will be different at Brown than what students are used to," but said he sees a lot of potential in the IPTV system. UCS's goal is to ensure that the new system is as efficient and accessible as possible.
"We're on the case to make sure this is as painless a transition as possible," Reed said. "This is only the beginning of the conversation."
