TECHNOLOGY - Feb. 13, 1993

HDTV Testing Yields No Clear Winner: After 18 months of technical tests on five different high-definition television systems, a Federal Communications Commission advisory committee has concluded that none of the proposed systems is good enough to be designated the U.S. standard. Improved versions of four of the systems, which use advanced digital technology to provide much clearer pictures and better sound then traditional TV, will be retested beginning in March. The fifth, an older analog system from the Japanese broadcasting company NHK, has been eliminated. The additional tests will push final selection of an HDTV standard at least six months beyond the June, 1993, target date. The proponents--AT&T; and Zenith Electronics, General Instrument Corp. and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a consortium that includes NBC Television, Thomson and Philips--have also renewed discussions aimed at merging their technologies into a single system that would be supported by all companies.