HMC-FMF-PJ
01-26-2009, 04:15
Excerpts from an interesting article about the switch to Digital Television and the probablity that people's antenna's will not work.
http://redtape.msnbc.com/2009/01/dtv-its-the-ant.html
• Electronics stores are making a killing selling $800 TVs to consumers who walk in looking to buy a converter box.
• The cable TV industry has made a killing by using the issue to market its products to confused consumers. Meanwhile, the industry is undergoing its own painful analog-to-digital conversion.
... tens of millions of viewers are likely to see their televisions turn into bricks on Feb. 17. ... there has been virtually no publicity around the “other” issues facing over-the-air TV viewers come DTV-Day, including the fact that even if their TVs and converter boxes work, their antennae won't.
I know those of you with satellite or cable television have been watching this story with bemused detachment, but trust me: You don’t want to be wandering the streets of American cities the day 10 million or 15 million televisions go dark.
About 20 million Americans rely on over-the-air broadcasts for their television service, and another 15 million have at least one antenna TV in their homes, according to the National Association of Broadcasters. Dallas and Los Angeles alone, there are 1 million over-the-air households, according to Consumers Union's Chris Murray.
The truth is more people should consider getting their TV over the free airwaves. Cutting out pay TV can easily save a household $1,000 a year, and it’s probably the single easiest way to find extra money for the monthly budget. Also, many electronics aficionados will tell you that over-the-air HD channels are higher quality than their pay TV counterparts, because the signal is not compressed as much in delivery. And when you do get your digital TV working correctly, you'll be pleased at the extra offerings you'll discover. Because of extra bandwidth available, many local network stations broadcast multiple channels, sometimes called “sub” channels. Those new to over-the-air digital might find a channel 4.1, 4.2 and 4.3. NBC, for example, has made good use of its extra bandwidth in the digital TV world, adding a 24-hour sports channel called Universal Sports to its lineup. Each local station makes its own decision on what to broadcast.
But getting digital television to work with over-the-air sets is going to be a lot harder than most people realize.
When DTV-Day comes, TV stations will permanently move their transmissions from the VHF band (channels 2-13) to the UHF band (channel 14 and above). Ultra High Frequency transmissions have some serious drawbacks. Namely, their shorter wavelengths mean they don't travel as far, and they are susceptible to interference from objects like tall buildings. They also are much more sensitive to direction.
Thanks to the intolerance of digital technology, you will now get nothing. The Federal Communications Commission has given this phenomenon the rather cute name of the "cliff effect." I guarantee that on Feb. 17 people will have other names for it. I can also promise you that people in cities who have never had trouble picking up TV signals will find themselves falling off this cliff.
.... millions of consumers will probably have to buy new antennae to deal with the digital TV changeover. For them, there are no swanky coupon programs or marketing explanations. In fact, there is not even agreement over what equipment will work best.
Antenna: The only way analog TV viewers can know what will happen on Feb. 17 is to plug in a converter box and try it out with their existing antenna. If it doesn't work, don't run out and buy a Cadillac-model $100 antenna right away. First, try a cheap loop or bowtie indoor model, and fiddle with its direction. That might solve your problem. If you have a little free time, you can even build your own DTV antenna for free using wire hangers by following these simple directions viewable on YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWQhlmJTMzw
Coupon: If you don't have a coupon and you need a box, don't pay full price. Get on the government waiting list. I expect that the FCC and Congress will reach a compromise and make more coupons available. If you spend $60 on a box now, you won't get a refund.
As a last resort, sign up for "limited basic" cable for the short-term. This shouldn't cost you much more than $10 a month (you'll have to ask for this very cheap rate by name; most cable firms don't advertise it). You'll get all the over-the-air channels. Just make sure you aren't required to sign a contract. Within a few months, converter boxes will be nearly free, after the price subsidy from the government coupons dries up.
I predict you'll be able to get one for $10 by June, so a temporary cable subscription will tide you over.
If you don’t yet have a converter box and you want to get some idea of how precarious your reception will be, try tuning your set to UHF channels in the 30s, 40s, or 50s. Your success at pulling those stations is a pretty good predictor of your ability to pull in DTV signals.
http://redtape.msnbc.com/2009/01/dtv-its-the-ant.html
• Electronics stores are making a killing selling $800 TVs to consumers who walk in looking to buy a converter box.
• The cable TV industry has made a killing by using the issue to market its products to confused consumers. Meanwhile, the industry is undergoing its own painful analog-to-digital conversion.
... tens of millions of viewers are likely to see their televisions turn into bricks on Feb. 17. ... there has been virtually no publicity around the “other” issues facing over-the-air TV viewers come DTV-Day, including the fact that even if their TVs and converter boxes work, their antennae won't.
I know those of you with satellite or cable television have been watching this story with bemused detachment, but trust me: You don’t want to be wandering the streets of American cities the day 10 million or 15 million televisions go dark.
About 20 million Americans rely on over-the-air broadcasts for their television service, and another 15 million have at least one antenna TV in their homes, according to the National Association of Broadcasters. Dallas and Los Angeles alone, there are 1 million over-the-air households, according to Consumers Union's Chris Murray.
The truth is more people should consider getting their TV over the free airwaves. Cutting out pay TV can easily save a household $1,000 a year, and it’s probably the single easiest way to find extra money for the monthly budget. Also, many electronics aficionados will tell you that over-the-air HD channels are higher quality than their pay TV counterparts, because the signal is not compressed as much in delivery. And when you do get your digital TV working correctly, you'll be pleased at the extra offerings you'll discover. Because of extra bandwidth available, many local network stations broadcast multiple channels, sometimes called “sub” channels. Those new to over-the-air digital might find a channel 4.1, 4.2 and 4.3. NBC, for example, has made good use of its extra bandwidth in the digital TV world, adding a 24-hour sports channel called Universal Sports to its lineup. Each local station makes its own decision on what to broadcast.
But getting digital television to work with over-the-air sets is going to be a lot harder than most people realize.
When DTV-Day comes, TV stations will permanently move their transmissions from the VHF band (channels 2-13) to the UHF band (channel 14 and above). Ultra High Frequency transmissions have some serious drawbacks. Namely, their shorter wavelengths mean they don't travel as far, and they are susceptible to interference from objects like tall buildings. They also are much more sensitive to direction.
Thanks to the intolerance of digital technology, you will now get nothing. The Federal Communications Commission has given this phenomenon the rather cute name of the "cliff effect." I guarantee that on Feb. 17 people will have other names for it. I can also promise you that people in cities who have never had trouble picking up TV signals will find themselves falling off this cliff.
.... millions of consumers will probably have to buy new antennae to deal with the digital TV changeover. For them, there are no swanky coupon programs or marketing explanations. In fact, there is not even agreement over what equipment will work best.
Antenna: The only way analog TV viewers can know what will happen on Feb. 17 is to plug in a converter box and try it out with their existing antenna. If it doesn't work, don't run out and buy a Cadillac-model $100 antenna right away. First, try a cheap loop or bowtie indoor model, and fiddle with its direction. That might solve your problem. If you have a little free time, you can even build your own DTV antenna for free using wire hangers by following these simple directions viewable on YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWQhlmJTMzw
Coupon: If you don't have a coupon and you need a box, don't pay full price. Get on the government waiting list. I expect that the FCC and Congress will reach a compromise and make more coupons available. If you spend $60 on a box now, you won't get a refund.
As a last resort, sign up for "limited basic" cable for the short-term. This shouldn't cost you much more than $10 a month (you'll have to ask for this very cheap rate by name; most cable firms don't advertise it). You'll get all the over-the-air channels. Just make sure you aren't required to sign a contract. Within a few months, converter boxes will be nearly free, after the price subsidy from the government coupons dries up.
I predict you'll be able to get one for $10 by June, so a temporary cable subscription will tide you over.
If you don’t yet have a converter box and you want to get some idea of how precarious your reception will be, try tuning your set to UHF channels in the 30s, 40s, or 50s. Your success at pulling those stations is a pretty good predictor of your ability to pull in DTV signals.