FCC Tags Markets in Need of Extra DTV Care
About 80 TV markets require extra care and attention prior to DTV transition.
By John Eggerton -- Broadcasting & Cable, 8/18/2008 10:06:00 AM
The Federal Communications Commission Monday said it identified about 80 TV markets that would need some extra care and attention in the transition to digital TV.
Those are markets where either at least 100,000 viewers, or at least 15% of the viewers, get their TV over the air, according to FCC chairman Kevin Martin, who said Monday that at least one of the FCC commissioners would visit each of the markets -- he likened their selection of what cities each would visit to the National Football League draft -- adding that the National Association of Broadcasters agreed to help coordinate so-called analog-cutoff soft tests in those markets.
They include some of the largest markets in the country, among them Washington, D.C.; New York; Chicago; San Francisco; Denver, Phoenix; Nashville, Tenn.; Atlanta; Houston; and Baltimore (see below for full list).
Martin was at the Newseum in Washington Monday for a brief briefing on the DTV transition, which is only six months away.
It is only three weeks away for one market -- Wilmington, N.C. -- and Martin said one of the things the FCC learned in the run-up to the Sept. 8 turnoff of full-power analog in that market was that it needed to take further steps to help the markets with the highest number of over-the-air viewers.
Wilmington was picked as a test market in part because of the relatively low number of over-the-air viewers (about 7%) that would be potentially dislocated (its multichannel-video penetration is about 93%).
Martin said the commission would also send staffers to each of those markets and, more generally, would open a speakers' bureau to better educate everyone about the transition. The NAB already has a speakers' bureau as part of its education campaign, which it values at $1 billion.
He would not estimate the cost, but he said the effort was possible thanks to $12 million in education money recently reallocated by Congress. He added that the FCC may go back and ask for more money before this Congress ends.
Also in attendance was Barrington Broadcasting CEO James Yager, who spoke for the NAB, as well as top broadcast-group executives Alan Frank of Post-Newsweek Stations and David Barrett of Hearst-Argyle Television.
Yager praised the FCC as a "great partner" in the DTV-education effort and pledged the association's help in setting up the soft tests, in which stations pull the plug briefly on their analog signals or simply simulate the shutoff. The Wilmington stations are planning such a test for Tuesday, Aug. 19.
He added that about 30 stations have already conducted such tests, with "many more planned."
The markets most in need of educating, according to the FCC, are all over the map and the population-density tables.
At the end of the conference, Martin opened the floor for calls from local reporters from the affected markets to ask questions remotely. There were none, but there were also some technical difficulties with the sound, so that may have been a lack of opportunity rather than interest.
The markets are listed below:
Albuquerque-Santa Fe, N.M.
Anchorage, Alaska
Atlanta
Austin, Texas
Baltimore
Bangor, Maine
Billings, Mont.
Boise, Idaho
Boston
Bozeman, Mont.
Charleston, S.C.
Charleston, W. Va.
Charlotte, N.C.
Chattanooga, Tenn.
Chicago
Chico-Redding, Calif.
Cincinnati
Cleveland-Akron (Canton), Ohio
Colorado Springs-Pueblo, Colo.
Columbus, Ohio
Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas
Dayton, Ohio
Denver
Des Moines-Ames, Iowa
Detroit
Duluth-Superior, Minn.
El Paso, Texas (Las Cruces, N.M.)
Erie, Pa.
Fairbanks, Alaska
Fort Wayne, Ind.
Fresno-Visalia, Calif.
Grand Rapids-Kalamazoo-Battle Creek, Mich.
Green Bay-Appleton, Wis.
Greenville-Spartanburg, S.C.
Harlingen-Weslaco-Brownsville-McAllen, Texas
Helena, Mont.
Honolulu
Houston
Idaho Falls-Pocatello, Idaho
Indianapolis
Joplin, Missouri-Pittsburg, Kan.
Kansas City, Mo.
Knoxville, Tenn.
La Crosse-Eau Claire, Wis.
Lansing, Mich.
Laredo, Texas
Los Angeles
Lubbock, Texas
Madison, Wis.
Memphis, Tenn.
Miami-Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Milwaukee
Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.
Missoula, Mont.
Nashville, Tenn.
New York
Philadelphia
Phoenix
Portland, Ore.
Raleigh-Durham, N.C.
Richmond-Petersburg, Va.
Rochester, N.Y.
Sacramento-Stockton-Modesto, Calif.
St. Louis
Salt Lake City
San Antonio
San Diego
San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose, Calif.
Seattle-Tacoma, Wash.
South Bend-Elkhart, Ind.
Spokane, Wash.
Springfield, Mo.
Tampa-St. Petersburg, Fla.
Toledo, Ohio
Tucson, Ariz.
Tulsa, Okla.
Twin Falls, Idaho
Washington, D.C
Wausau-Rhinelander, Wis.
Yakima-Pasco-Richland-Kennewick, Wash.
Yuma, Arizona-El Centro, Calif.
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Chicago + Analog TV = 15 viewable stations
Chicago + DTV = 3 viewable stations. Two of which are pixilated and freeze.
This is ridiculous that you can go from 15 to 3. I live only 5 miles from the Sears Tower.
They need to TEST markets. Have all stations in Chicago turn off TV for a week. Then deal with the complaints BEFORE analog shuts down.
Each market should do this BEFORE. Will they? No, because they want to shut it down and not have to fix it once it's broken.
Eric Post - 8/19/2008 10:54:00 AM EDT -
Drenching rain wiped out most of my DTV channels a couple of weeks ago. First impression: now broadcast TV is going to be like cable. Has anyone addressed the weather issue? How about the fact that portable DTV TVs are scarce, and those 7" models in the stores don't work well with the telecoping antennas they come with? How about in hurricane zones, where people depend on TV for emergency info? How about DTV audio-only sets for the seeing impaired? No units for sale. Then there's the elderly and those in nursing/assisted living facilities. Where's the outreach? And interference; has the FCC done a field test to determine just how fragile these signals are? How about the antenna issue? DTV may require directional antenna tuning; how many antenna-dependent viewers realize they may need someone to realign their antenna -- or install a rotor? The antenna issue barely has been discussed.
In sum, there's no way the industry nor government nor the public will be ready by February, less than six months off. When will lawmakers realize this, and extend the deadline so this transition won't end up being a huge embarrassment as well as a public safety issue? Will B&C please address these issues?
Adam Smith - 8/18/2008 5:02:00 PM EDT
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