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Back in the 1960s the word "digital" was not one that Joe average citizen was particularly familiar with.

There was no sign of anything digital in our TV or radio broadcasts, telephones, cameras, music recordings, timepieces or cars. In fact just about the only place you'd find any digital technology was deep in the air-conditioned bowels of a large mainframe computer.

But just look at how things have changed...

Now all of those devices are reliant on large numbers of ones and zeros to accomplish their intended tasks and we really do have an almost fully digital world.

So this is all good news -- right?

After all, as a result of this digital technology our phones are smaller, our clocks and watches are more accurate, our music is delivered with crystal-clear quality, and our cars are more reliable with much better fuel economy and performance.

Well all of that is true, but there are some downsides that are just waiting to make their presence felt.

Readers Say (updated irregularly) I hope the power cord isn't... - Domini Adverts evil?... - Allister Have a book handy... - Chris Control of digital media... - Peter Have Your Say

Look at free to air (FTA) television as an example...

Right now the free-to-air channels arrive at your TV or video in analog form and you have full control over what you do with them. You can watch the broadcasts "live", you can record them to tape for later viewing and you can change channels whenever you choose.

Now skip forward to the day when those signals arrive in digital format (as is the case with Sky's satellite service).

Now the broadcaster has the ability to wrest control of your TV and VCR from you.

Sky Digital viewers will be aware that if they don't pay their bill, Sky can effectively disable their digital receiver. They can also effectively block programme material on a per-channel or per-programme basis for each individual receiver. This is the most basic level of control

However, an all-digital system, where your VCR and your TV accept only digital signals, offers broadcasters a whole lot more control.

A good example of what's possible can be seen by anyone who has a DVD player.

Have you ever noticed that you can't fast-forward through the copyright notices and warnings that appear whenever you pop a disk in the machine? Yes, the FF button is effectively disabled for 10-20 seconds so that you're forced to stare at those messages.

Now imagine this -- it's a few years down the track and your TV/VCR gear is now 100% digital. The programme you're watching is interrupted by an ad break for which some company has paid good money.

Chances are that you'll reach for the remote and flick channels -- but hang on -- the channel-change buttons are disabled for the first 30 seconds of every ad-break.

Why is this? Simple -- the broadcaster needs to make money and they know that people tend to flick when the ads come on. Thanks to digital technology they're now able to sell that first ad-spot for ten times the price because they know you're forced to watch it.

And, if you think you can solve the problem by recording your programmes and watching them later, fast-forwarding through those ads -- forget it. Just as the broadcaster was able to disable the channel-change buttons, they'll also disable fast-forwarding through some or all of the ads.

I had once thought that the arrival of digital technology would spell the end of FTA broadcasting -- but now I'm sure it will actually be the salvation of this model.

My advice... enjoy having full control of your TV and VCR while you can. Take full advantage of Tivo-like boxes (or PCs with that functionality) while you can. Some time in the next 5-8 years you'll be forced to relinquish control of your entertainment system to the broadcasters and the results will not be pretty.

And, if you think that people will revolt at this and stop watching TV as a result then you're sadly mistaken.

Even today, some programme segments during peak-viewing hours are as short as 4 minutes, bounded at each end by a 3 minutes or more of advertising and programme promotions. Around a third of your FTA TV viewing time is spent sitting through advertisements.

If you watch three hours of TV per night you're already wasting seven hours a week watching advertisements!

Now who said that TV viewers aren't stupid?

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