Re: [IRCA] TV deadline

["Neil Kazaross" <neilkaz@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I will be quite surprised if the TV date gets bumped, for the many reasons 
you mention and from the people in the electronics biz that I know.

73 KAZ

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Scott Fybush" <scott@xxxxxxxxxx>
To: "Mailing list for the International Radio Club of America" 
<irca@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Monday, September 17, 2007 6:59 PM
Subject: Re: [IRCA] TV deadline


> kevin redding wrote:
>>> I think 18% of viewers get TV over the air. The vast majority have
>>> cable
>>> or satellite. However that date may get bumped again too.
>>
>> The current date is Feb 17, 2009.
>
> And it's highly unlikely to get bumped. Keep in mind that the real
> motivation for the transition to DTV is coming not from the TV industry
> but from the wireless industry (cellular carriers, Qualcomm, etc.),
> which desperately covets the 700 MHz spectrum that's being vacated by
> analog channels 52-69, to provide space for services that can't fit in
> the existing 800/900 MHz spectrum.
>
> Those companies have, for the most part, already paid for the 700 MHz
> channels that they expect to occupy in 17 months or so. They're not
> going to tolerate any delays in taking full occupancy of that spectrum,
> and they have tremendous political pull in Washington. (Qualcomm, for
> example, has already taken over most of channel 55 around the country,
> paying analog stations on that channel to go digital-only earlier than
> planned. I count only 12 full-power analog stations left on 55, with at
> least 3 of them about to go digital-only well ahead of the deadline.)
>
> Whatever complaints are lodged in DC by "average viewers" come 2009 (and
> I think there will be fewer than any of us expect, given how many people
> now get their TV by cable or satellite) will be far outweighed by the
> political pull of the wireless companies.
>
> (Keep in mind, also, that the TV stations aren't necessarily eager to
> see the deadline get extended. Many of them are limping along to the
> finish line with analog transmitters that are near-death or with
> transmitter sites they're eager to vacate, and they're not going to want
> to spend the money it would take to keep the already-expensive period of
> dual analog/digital operation going even longer. One example: WPTA-TV
> and WISE-TV in Fort Wayne, which came under common operation a couple of
> years ago. They've consolidated studio operations at the WPTA
> studio/transmitter facility, but the WISE analog and digital
> transmitters remain in the old WISE building a mile away, which has been
> sold. They're paying the new owners to lease back transmitter space and
> antenna space on the tower. Once the transition is over, WISE-DT will
> take over the transmitter and tower space at the WPTA building now used
> by WPTA's analog signal. That day can't come soon enough for those
> stations!)
>
> s
>
> _______________________________________________

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