June 11, 2009 - With the “official” countdown to the DTV conversion being nearly over, there have been a flurry of media reports about the issue in the press this past week. As usual, the majority of the popular press seems to be incapable of reporting the story in a competent, thorough or politically unmotivated [...]
FCC rules discourage local television broadcasters from providing quality TV signal reception, forcing most to use expensive cable & satellite TV providers. Eureka, CA, February 24, 2009 – I was perusing KIEM-TV’s website earlier tonight when I ran across an interesting link to their policy on granting waivers to satellite television viewers (specifically DirecTV viewers) [...]
The United States Senate voted unanimously today to extend the deadline for U.S. TV stations to covert their broadcast signals from analog to digital (DTV) until June 12, 2009.
The bill still needs to be approved by the U.S. Congress before it is signed into law by President Obama. Both the President and Congress have indicated their willingness to see the law passed. The original deadline for the transition to digital television was February 17th.
Eureka, CA – It’s not very often that I see articles in the mainstream media where the reporter has an actual grasp of technical issues, or even bothers to spend time seriously researching the subject that they are writing about, for that matter. That being said, there is an excellent story written by a reporter [...]
Washington, D.C. – When Obama speaks… people listen. Well, it seems that politicians listen, at least. After penning a request to Congress two weeks ago to push back the official transition date to digital television, it seems that both the House and U.S. Senate are prepared to do just that. The below paragraph from Friday’s [...]
Washington, D.C. – This story is only marginally connected to the DTV transition, but is so amusing that I just had to pass it on. Apparently, the Federal Communications Commission received a number of complaints about the cable television provider when it decided to switch certain analog channels on its cable system to digital this [...]
Washington, D.C. – There was an interesting article posted on Fox News this morning concerning the transition to Digital Television next month. “ President-elect Barack Obama is urging Congress to postpone the Feb. 17 switch from analog to digital television broadcasting, arguing that too many Americans who rely on analog TV sets to pick up [...]
Eureka, CA – According to today’s Times-Standard, a representative from the Federal Communications Commission will be in Eureka on Thursday, January 15th, to demonstrate how to install a “digital conversion” box and “… help people complete the applications necessary to get a coupon that will provide $40 toward the purchase of a converter box”. As [...]
As we expected, TV viewers in rural parts of Humboldt County may very well be left in the dark after the switch is made to digital television (DTV) in February 2009. The Times-Standard reported this week that viewers in the Orleans area may lose access to KIEM-TV, the area’s only NBC affiliate, when analog transmissions cease and DTV is made mandatory. The problem? Reception in that area is currently only available via a low-powered analog translator, which relies upon solar power and batteries to broadcast a signal. The only way to keep translator service available would be for the station to install a new DTV translator or convert the station’s main signal from digital back to analog in order to be rebroadcast. The station’s current solar system does not produce enough electricity for either option though.
KEET TV pours foundation for a new digital DTV transmitter tower located in Smith River, CA. Will broadcast KEET’s PBS programming to Del Norte County.
We finally found a source for a decent CECB digital-to-analog converter box for DTV this past week. Even nicer was the fact that we were able to buy it for only about $13 out of our pocket.
A list of translators and low-power (LPTV) television stations in Northern California. Includes TV channels for digital and analog TV broadcasters.
Few things are more frustrating than being bombarded with comercials urging you to rush out and buy a product, only to find out later that no stores have the item in stock. No, I’m not talking about the new Apple Iphone. I’m talking about the new DTV converters individuals will need in order to continue watching over-the-air television after February 2009.
Review of DirecTV’s new Video On Demand (VOD) service, available to DirecTV customers with HDTV satellite TV and DVR receivers. Downloads using broadband.
The Eureka Reporter ran an interesting story in yesterday’s edition about the state of HDTV and DTV service in Humboldt County, along with some generic information on the switchover to digital.
