Now that DTV is delayed........

[Arp2]

In the few ads from today that I've seen, I'm noticing the cheaper converters that were priced at $5-10 over coupon are now priced at $20 over coupon, the same price earlier buyers paid to get the better boxes.

[Big Media]

Poor Jay. It just ain't gonna happen. Even if there are a few hold-outs post 2/17, I doubt many of those hold-outs will wait until June.

[Paradigm]

WTOV just announced that they will not cut off their analog on the 17th and gave no date for when to do so.

[Mr. Jones]

WTOV just announced that they will not cut off their analog on the 17th and gave no date for when to do so.

That would seem more like a corporate decision (Cox) than a shitty engineering situation (WOAY).

I'm just sayin'.

[Dave Loudin]

Is WDTV cutting over on 2/17?

[Big Media]

The early word from ION is that only 3 or 4 stations will be shutting 2/17. The remainder will stay on for now. I don't know what will happen with WLPX.

[genlock]

Actually DTV is not delayed. It has been on for several years.
The delay is in the mandatory shut-down of NTSC broadcasting.
Good riddance, I say.

[Force Commander]

Why hasn't Pres. Obama signed the bill? At least as of today?

http://www.multichannel.com/article/173 ... e_Bill.php

[RADIOHEAD 1]

Now that Channel 13 is broadcasting only in digital when is Time Warner cable in the Ashland-Ironton going to add
them to their HD lineup...After the 17th or in June...A friend of mine called them to ask and could not get a straight
answer..After talking to a supervisor they were told that it would be when station started sending the HD feed..My friend
told them that 13 was sending HD CBS feed and had been for quite some time..The person then replied it was up to CBS...When if they asked if signal was picked up off air or satellite they could not answer..frustated He hung up...

[Paradigm]

Now WTOV is saying they will cease analog on the 17th apparently Cox can not make up their mind.

[Mr. Jones]

Now WTOV is saying they will cease analog on the 17th apparently Cox can not make up their mind.

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=16557

[Big Media]

Now that Channel 13 is broadcasting only in digital when is Time Warner cable in the Ashland-Ironton going to add
them to their HD lineup...After the 17th or in June...A friend of mine called them to ask and could not get a straight
answer..After talking to a supervisor they were told that it would be when station started sending the HD feed..My friend
told them that 13 was sending HD CBS feed and had been for quite some time..The person then replied it was up to CBS...When if they asked if signal was picked up off air or satellite they could not answer..frustated He hung up...

Remember.. You are dealing with a call center in Fargo, North Dakota, or some other godforsaken place. These fools have no earthly idea.

The current retransmission consent that Time Warner has for WOWK is very likely for the main channel only, down converted from HD to SD. WOWK, like most other television stations, believe they should receive much higher retransmission fees for HD pass through.

As I understand it, Sinclair want's an absolute fortune for WCHS and WVAH HD signals. This is why you rarely seen them on your cable line up either. Once retransmission negotiations begin again, I would expect the bigger cable companies to fight for retransmission rates similar to what they are paying for SD channels.

[Mr. Jones]

TV WEEK:

February 11, 2009 9:54 PM
FCC Rejects 25% of TV Stations' Early DTV-Switch Applications

By Ira Teinowitz

The Federal Communications Commission late Wednesday rejected, at least temporarily, a quarter of the requests from the 491 TV stations that had asked to switch to digital-only signals on Feb. 17.

President Barack Obama earlier Wednesday signed legislation pushing back the national switch to June 12 from the original Feb. 17 date. Stations were given the option of applying to stick with the February date.

The FCC had warned it might reject switches that weren’t in the public interest. In Wednesday night’s action the commission expressed concern about markets where all the major network affiliates were switching early. That would potentially leave viewers who were unprepared for the digital switchover without any source for local TV news or emergency messages.

The action blocked switches of major stations in Dayton, Ohio; Eugene, Ore.; Billings, Mont.; Lincoln, Neb.; Madison, Wis.; Providence, R.I.; Rockford, Ill.; LaCrosse, Wis.; Charleston, W.Va.; Santa Barbara, Calif.; Sioux City, Iowa; Topeka, Kan.; Wausau, Wis. and Wichita, Kan., among other locations.

The agency, however, suggested it could let many of the same stations go ahead with switch if at least one major local station would continue to broadcast an analog signal. Other factors considered would be as assessment of whether the analog station had news and public affairs programming and if stations would set up “walk in” centers to help local residents apply for coupons and set up converter boxes that would let analog TVs receive digital signals. The stations were asked to agree to the conditions by Friday if they wanted to go ahead.

“We have identified 123 stations of the 491 intending to terminate analog service on February 17th whose early termination poses a significant risk of substantial public harm,” the agency said in a statement.

The FCC determined which applications for an early switch would be rejected by identifying markets in which all stations would be terminating analog service on Feb. 17.

Then the agency spotlighted the markets in which affiliates of all four of the major networks, ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC, would be terminating analog service.

Alternatively, the agency looked at markets that do not have affiliates of all four networks to determine if all of the major networks broadcasting in those markets would be terminating their analog service on Feb. 17th.

Other factors that went into the FCC's analysis included the size of the market, and how critical it is in a market to have major networks and affiliates delivering local news and public affairs information.

“Therefore, even if independent or non-commercial stations remain on the air in these markets, we still considered these areas at risk,” the FCC said.

That's all I can find so far.

[Big Media]

“We have identified 123 stations of the 491 intending to terminate analog service on February 17th whose early termination poses a significant risk of substantial public harm,” the agency said in a statement.

Bull shit.

[sportsvoice]

If I were one of those stations that got their apps bounced, I'd hate for the analog TX to "accidentally" shut off. Heck, if you need documentation, just file a silent STA and mark the reason as "engineering" on it. At least then you can save on the power bill.

A dirty little secret on this change is going to be the multipath issue. I was having a horrible time holding a signal on my locals yesterday because of all the trees blowing around causing multipath issues...and I am maybe around 10 miles from the local TV tower farm. It's even worse when the leaves are out. I think there are going to be quite a few peeved viewers out there who can't get a usable digital signal where the analog worked fine.

[wvengineer]

<SOAPBOX>
Leave it to our outstanding congressional officials to make a already screwed up mess even more screwed up….. They cant leave well enough alone… it would have been in the best interest to just make the damn switch on the 17th….

Broadcasters have been preparing this for almost 10 years….. the public has been made well aware for 2 years and had a whole year to order coupons, ask questions and get ready….

To all the procrastinators that have waited till the last minute YOU deserve to lose your ability to watch tv. You shouldn’t have waited till the last minute and then complain that your not ready..

I think every broadcast station in America should ask for some of that freeflowing taxpayer bailout money that the government seems to carelessly throw away to pay for the electric bills and expenses for keeping analog up just because Joe the plumber can get off his lazy ass and go buy a converter box, hey honey git me another beer…

i hope Rockefeller chokes on some salmonella laden peanut butter!
</SOAPBOX>

[Big Media]

Well stated. And ditto.

[Tom Taggart]

Is the 13 analog transmitter back on?

[genlock]

Nope, It is finished with it's mission.

[Mr. Jones]

FCC Imposes Conditions for Digital TV Switch in Charleston-Huntington

HuntingtonNews.net:

http://www.huntingtonnews.net/entertain ... ition.html