Is anyone getting the Pats game in HD from OTA 13-2? I'm getting no signal. Sent email to Craig Clark, who is normally very responsive, but nuthin yet.....

getting it in So. ME, besides the pixel action from time to time..it looks great. DD 5.1 also pretty solid. Pretty great game so far.

Yes, previously with a signal strength from 69-77 but last night it was at 93. It did seem to be a bit more directional as I was pointed toward channel 6 and was getting no signal until I reoriented the antenna. From Windham I would expect a fairly strong signal.
I do get the pixel action, as mentioned by balls75. Is that most likely a local signal path issue or are there too many variable to know?

TW changed their web site today to indicate that HDNet is "now available" instead of "coming soon". I subscribe to the tier so it should be interesting to see if its up or if I'll have to call.

Its up and cooking. Hadn't had a chance to watch since I was distracted by the free preview of NHL Center Ice.

Is that an HD preview?

Nah..just the digital cable mid-season free tease. As a matter of fact I've found that the NHL Center Ice and also the MLB packages have had some of the worst picture quality I've ever witnessed. I don't know if its compression, or the how they pick up the signals, but for instance I was watching the Flyers v Penguins last night and the contrast was so bad you couldn't make out the puck half the time it was so washed out. Which is a damn damn shame since I know those folks in Philly were enjoying the game in HD on comcast sportsnet!
However, there is a hockey game on at 9:00pm on HDNet. Hockey in High Def is one of my favorites.

I joined the AVS forums after diving into HDTV/home theater a couple months ago, but only discovered this thread today. Thought you may want to see the reply I received from Time Warner (KBurkley@aol.com) to a message I sent them Monday re: their HD channel offerings:

The local ABC and Fox affiliates do not broadcast in HD format. When they do, I am confident Time Warner Cable will be able to make the required arrangements for carriage. The exact timing for this is in the hands of the broadcast stations, not Time Warner Cable. The CBS affiliate has not granted us the rights necessary to carry their HD feed on terms we consider fair and reasonable.

ESPN and Time Warner Cable are in negotiations for HD rights. Hopefully we'll see an agreement in the near future, but I can't say for sure. Otherwise, we've been as aggressive as we can be in adding HD programming on a timely basis.

Seems to me, after reading through 13 pages of this thread, there's no change in the last year or more re: WMTW, Fox and ESPN, and the situation with WGME seems to have deterioriated. It sounds like the battle TWMaine had with WCSH a few years ago, when they resorted to pulling the NBC affiliate from the cable lineup in a dispute over what the affiliate wanted to be paid.

My take is TW needs to be reminded it has a responsibility to its franchise-granting communities, and not just to its shareholders. The old movies and retread TV shows available on InHD and HDNet -- for an extra $9.95 a month -- are no substitute for the Pats vs. Carolina in HD on CBS.

You're right mainemojo, things have not been going well as far as WGME in HD, but the problem I think lies with Sinclair Broadcasting (the owner and operator of Channel 13). ABC locally have been giving the same answer for over a year about the pass thru of HD and of course FOX doesn't even broadcast HD nationally, yet. All they do is the widescreen thing.

On another note, from talking to Laurie at TW today, they are trying to make some kind of arrangement to possibly carry the SuperBowl in HD, but no agreements have been made yet. (It sure would be nice), but there is no promises that they can get it done. If they get it done then there will be an e-mail to all HD subscribers.

I've heard from a reliable source, that the 8000HD boxes are in testing locally and they are waiting for some software upgrades to make them compatibly with Buzz and the On Demand channels before passing them out to those who want to record HD for later viewing.

Lets keep the fingers crossed for Superbowl Sunday and GO PATS!!

Also, The HD Tier is weak for the price at this point, but I do enjoy the sports that are available and the HDnet movies are better than the INHD movies for sure. When ESPN shows up, it will be on this HD Tier, so I'm not going to give it up.

HD is the only way to go!!!

darey1:

I don't doubt Sinclair is being greedy. Both companies probably should be reminded they do business -- one as a franchisee, the other as a licensee -- at the public's discretion. Not that realistically, of course, either one stands a chance of having their plugs pulled.

FWIW, I added the HD Tier today [a show of confidence or ignorance? I'm not sure] in part because I expect them to add ESPN to the package. Also told the customer service rep I'd like to see more HD programming. Her response was they're adding channels as quickly as they can. Same thing re: HD DVR, so the info from your "reliable source" is encouraging.

Mo

not much of an update, but I thought I would post a reply I recieved from TW today regarding carriage of CBS-HD and, more importantly, the Super Bowl:

We have made space available already for the channel. We are currently in negotiations with Sinclaire who are the owners of the local affiliate and they are playing hard ball with the Superbowl coming up. However we are ready to air it at the last minute if they allow us to. So that's what is happening at this point, I have had a few customers go off air and are able to get it that way. They may have a different antenna for that.

Is there any way we can start an email campaign to WGME to let them know that we care about having HD carried by TW? I'm not clear as to who the bad guy here is, but I do know local affiliates are carried by cablecos across the country free of charge. I appreciate that TW does not want to charge me extra for it.

Is there any way we can start an email campaign to WGME to let them know that we care about having HD carried by TW?

It's probably worth a shot. WGME's general manager is Alan Cartwright (ACartwri@wgme.sbgnet.com) . Sinclair's phone and snail-mail address is on the Web here (http://www.sbgi.net/contact/contact.shtml) .

Mo

I've sent my letter to Mr Cartwright, although, I don't think the problem is with WGME. If you haven't read the post about Sinclair Broadcasting, then this should be interesting. It's all about $$$$

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=356183

I'll formulate another letter and send it off to Sinclair. At this point, I'm afraid that I'm not going to hold my breath to see the SuperBowl in HD via TWC this year.

It is great to find a group of local DTV enthusiasts.
I have had a HiPix card in my home theater PC since Christmas. I have had great success in getting decent locally broadcast DTV programming from my home in Oxford Maine. It seems that the non-HDTV programing (lower bit-rate stream) I am getting from WGME this week is giving some mild macro-blocking/pixelation. We have a DTV receiver where I work in Lewiston and I am seeing the same symptom. Reception has been great until this week. My signal quality levels are the same as it always has been.

Has anyone else noticed a deterioration in WGME regular programming stream? Their HDTV stream in the evening seems to be just fine.
Later,
Dale

By R. Thomas Umstead & Linda Moss -- Multichannel News, 1/6/2004 6:53:00 PM


Hollywood -- Turner Broadcasting System Inc. is finally proceeding full steam into the HDTV arena by launching a stand-alone HDTV version of Turner Network Television this May, officials said Tuesday.

TNT-HD, an HDTV simulcast of TNT, will offer what Turner is touting as the broadest range of dramatic programming ever assembled in the HDTV format, including series, sports, movies and originals.

Immediate plans do not call for any specially developed programming for the service, which will mirror TNT's regular programming lineup.

While programmers such as Discovery Communications Inc. and ESPN have already rolled out stand-alone HDTV services, Turner had previously only dabbled in the format.

Last February, TNT’s coverage of the National Basketball Association All-Star Game was in HDTV. This February, TNT will do the All-Star Game in HDTV again, leading up to the May debut of TNT-HD during the network’s coverage of the NBA Western Conference Finals.

Turner unveiled the plans for its stand-alone HDTV network at the Television Critics Association’s tour here.

In an interview following Turner's TCA presentation, Turner Entertainment Group president Mark Lazarus told Multichannel News TNT-HD has "already been negotiating with operators" and has distribution deals in place. He would not identify the MSOs.

Lazarus noted that TNT-HD has "a separate rate card" and is not "tied in with other services."

TNT-HD’s HDTV offerings will include the network’s new dramatic series, The Grid, with Dylan McDermott and Julianna Marguiles, which will premiere this summer.

"The HDTV platform adds value for our distribution partners and our customers by offering them the kind of high-profile, dramatic programming that has made TNT a television leader in an environment that heralds the future of television," TBS Inc. president of domestic distribution Andy Heller said in a prepared statement.

As posted on http://news.mainetoday.com/midday/index.shtml#1 (mid-day report for the area):

"Hearst-Argyle group to buy WMTW

PORTLAND -- Hearst-Argyle Television announced Monday it has reached an agreement with the WMTW Broadcast Group to purchase the television station.


Hearst-Argyle agreed to pay $37.5 million in cash for WMTW-TV, Portland's ABC affiliate. The sale is contingent on approval from the Federal Communications Commission.


Hearst-Argyle President and CEO David Barret said "this transaction further advances our strategy to expand in the important New England market."


Executive Vice President of the WMTW Broadcast Group David Kaufman said "the Harron family is pleased to transfer 37 years of stewardship to an organization of Hearst-Argyle's stature."


Hearst-Argyle owns 24 stations including stations in Boston, Manchester, New Hampshire, and Vermont"

I did a quick check via Titan of some of the area stations owned by Hearst-Argyle and they seem to have digitial and HD passthru's available. Hopefully they'll finish the HD cutover here in Maine and we'll have HD in time for MNF next year.

I started a new thread on this, but check out this annoucement on the TW Cable web site:
http://www.twcmaine.com/HDTV/default.aspx
To sum up: No CBS-HD for the Super Bowl, some info about a free preview of the HD Tier, (non)status on ESPN, and their donating OTA equipment to 3 bars so they can get the CBS-HD OTA feed for the Super Bowl.

Just received the attached e-newsletter from Time Warner. The news re: WGME/13 is not good. In a nutshell, any chance of seeing the Super Bowl in HD is all but dead, and negotiations continue for ESPN HD. But the Daytona 500 in HD (on NBC) and NBA All-Star Game in HD (on Fox via InHD) will be carried.

Mo

Very disappointing on WGME's part. Also, another announcement just came out for those of you in York County

http://www.twmaine.com/news/wbz4.aspx

In Multichannel News, Portland is one of 4 TWC areas in the nation that could not work out an agreement with the CBS affiliate.

Mr Cartwright wrote back the other night to my e-mail and showed no sympathy that I, as a TWC customer, could not get thier HD feed.

darey, can you post Mr. Cartwright's response?

darey1: I would like to see Cartwright's reply, too.

And I understand the Portland Press Herald is working on a story about the Time Warner-WGME disagreement. Could be in Friday's paper.

Warning - This is long and disgusting!!!

Here is my e-mail to him -

Dave Arey wrote:


Mr Cartwright, We the subscribers to Time Warner Cable are very disappointed that WGME has had the capability of broadcasting a High Definition signal to South Maine for well over a year, yet, it has not be provided to us folks that are customers of Time Warner Cable. I understand that the decision may not be yours, but it may be a Sinclair problem. It would be greatly appreciated by many of us HD viewers if your company would allow the Superbowl to be broadcast in High Definition over Time Warner Cable. It would be good for your station's name and a step forward in trying to establish a permanent agreement with Time Warner. High definition is one of the hottest sellers of televisions and the best picture I have ever seen. I'm sure you are aware that currently the only local station broadcasting in HD on cable is WCSH and we enjoy it very much. Please see if there is something that can be worked out with corporate, if that's what needed. You folks worked out a deal for the Masters last year over Time Warner and there is no reason why this couldn't be worked out somehow. Thank you very much for your time and I hope something can be worked out since it is our beloved Patriots. Sincerely
Dave Arey
Time Warner HDTV Customer

His first answer was

Dave,
The allegation that we are not broadcasting in high definition is absurd. We were the first station to broadcast in high definition in the Portland market. We do not charge you any money for our signal. Time Warner does. Why are you on their side? I am puzzled over this. Does your television have a tuner? We are broadcasting free-of-charge on channel 38. It is a beautiful picture.
Alan

His second answer I think is the canned Sinclair answer:

Dear Dave,
As you are aware, the digital television signal of WGME-TV is not currently carried on local cable systems. As explained below, the reason for this is quite simple -- the cable companies have unfairly refused to pay WGME-TV for the right to transmit its digital signal.

In many ways, your cable company is no different than a store. It buys products at wholesale and then resells them to consumers at a higher price in order to make a profit. In other words, just like a grocery store buys food and then resells it to its customers, cable companies buy television programming and resell it to their subscribers. Inexplicably, however, the cable companies do not think they should have to pay to acquire content broadcast on local broadcast television stations like WGME-TV.

The cable companies’ position is very surprising given that the model in which they pay to acquire the right to sell television programming is well established. The cable companies routinely pay to carry the signals of cable networks, such as ESPN, CNN, MTV and yes, even Animal Planet. They do this, but refuse to pay for the programming of local television stations, even though the programming on local television stations generally attracts far larger audiences than does the programming on the cable networks.

The cable companies claim that they do not pay for local broadcast television stations because the mere act of carrying the stations, and thus making the signal more accessible to cable subscribers, is consideration enough. The absurdity of such a claim is clear as soon as one stops to consider the standard practice within the cable industry of paying cable only networks for their signal. After all, if carriage of a local broadcast signal provides sufficient consideration to the local television station, carriage alone would certainly be sufficient consideration for the cable networks (which rely exclusively on cable carriage to reach their viewers) such as HGTV and Nickelodeon. The cable companies’ position is no different than a grocery store refusing to pay Kellogg’s for boxes of Fruit Loops, on the theory that just being on the shelf where consumers can buy the cereal should be payment enough.

The cable companies also like to claim that their subscribers will not pay for local channels because they do not really care if they receive local stations via cable since they can already receive them free over-the-air. This simply is not true, as evidenced by the complaints cable companies routinely receive if they do not carry a local broadcast station. Further evidence has been provided by the large number of people who signed up for satellite service, such as DirecTV and Dish Network, and abandoned cable service, only after satellite began offering carriage of local channels. In addition, the vast majority of satellite subscribers pay either $5.00 or $6.00 per month simply to receive their local channels via satellite. As “Television Week,” a major industry publication, recently noted, the addition of local stations to satellite removed “one of the most compelling attributes cable has had over satellite.”

In addition, the cable companies use the carriage of local television stations’ digital signals as a way to retain existing subscribers and attract new ones. They use their carriage of these signals (and such compelling high definition programming as the Super Bowl and the NCAA men’s basketball tournament) as a way to entice analog subscribers to switch to higher priced digital service. They use their carriage of high definition digital broadcasts of local stations to differentiate themselves from their competitor, satellite, which currently does not have the requisite bandwidth capacity to carry these signals.

Cable companies benefit when they carry local broadcast channels in the form of more subscribers and higher profits. A portion of the fees their subscribers pay each and every month is to compensate the cable companies for delivering their local broadcast channels. Fundamental fairness dictates that the cable companies should pay the broadcasters for the signals they are reselling.

It’s that simple.

Sincerely yours,

Alan Cartwright
General Manager
WGME 13

In addition, the cable companies use the carriage of local television stations’ digital signals as a way to retain existing subscribers and attract new ones. They use their carriage of these signals (and such compelling high definition programming as the Super Bowl and the NCAA men’s basketball tournament) as a way to entice analog subscribers to switch to higher priced digital service. They use their carriage of high definition digital broadcasts of local stations to differentiate themselves from their competitor, satellite, which currently does not have the requisite bandwidth capacity to carry these signals.

As if broadcasting the Super Bowl and a few dramas in HD isn't a way to differentiate themselves from their competitors? And as if local TV stations wouldn't lose advertising dollars if the local cable company chose not to carry them at all? Who's he kidding? They're in a greedy, love-hate relationship, trying to squeeze a few more bucks out of the ultimate purchaser -- you and me.

Cable companies benefit when they carry local broadcast channels in the form of more subscribers and higher profits. A portion of the fees their subscribers pay each and every month is to compensate the cable companies for delivering their local broadcast channels. Fundamental fairness dictates that the cable companies should pay the broadcasters for the signals they are reselling.

It’s that simple.

So fundamental fairness would also dictate that they get a piece of the pie from Acme TV Repair for every antenna Acme sells? There's nothing simple about this, except Sinclair's greedy desire to make Time Warner and its subscribers pay for their government-mandated upgrade to HDTV. How quickly they forget they hold a broadcast license, not a license to print money.

The second letter is a word-for-word copy of the letter that the Sinclair corporate DTV officer "MisterDTV" posted on the HDTV Programming forum, here (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=356183).

The cable carriage issue is a common problem with mid-sized media companies in general. Only a modest number of stations owned by these multi-station companies have made the infrastructure investment to gain the ability to broadcast in HD. HD is basically an expense, and there is no way for them short term to recoup any of this investment -- except by cable carriage fees. They don't get any extra income as far as commercial sales go by having HD. They don't get any extra viewers (and actually lose them, as far as Neilson ratings are concerned).

Some of these companies (not just Sinclair -- in Austin, TX, the WB and NBC affiliates are both owned by LIN TV; they were the first in the market to go to high power HD, but they are the only DTV stations not carried by the local Time Warner for the same compensation reason as Sinclair is not here) have decided that cable TV systems DO get value by adding the HD broadcast -- they are able to get folks like us to sign up on their systems because they have HD local programming while systems like DirecTV don't. It seems to me they are RIGHT. All other things equal, how many of you would subscribe to DirecTV or Dish instead of Time Warner? I'm in Adelphia country -- which means I subscribe to DirecTV because Adelphia doesn't have HDTV available. If they did, Adelphia would be earning hundreds of dollars a year from my account. Seems to me that it would be worth their while to compensate WGME for the HD signal.

Don't misunderstand me -- I'm not saying I agree with them -- but I can see why they look at it this way from a business point of view. It seems to me you should be as mad (or madder) at Time Warner for NOT coming to an equitable solution with them as you are with Sinclair for asking for compensation. After all, value added is value added.

While it is true many local affiliates choose to let their DTV signals be carried without additional comensation doesn't mean it is wrong that others choose not to it is their signal.

Just my $.03.

Joe

I'm reposting this from earlier in the thread as there is some updated information

This is the info I have been able to find out about DTV in Maine. Any additions or corrections would be appreciated -- it looks like I am relocating this summer.

Where someone at the station replied to me I listed their name and title (if known), and italicized what they told me.

ERP = effective radiated power
OTA = over the air
STA = special temporary authority
Where I give two numbers for ERP, the first is the special temporary authority (usually a lower power than) the second in parentheses is the full rating

WPME-DT UPN 28 ERP 215 kW not OTA
WPXT-DT WB 4 ERP 10 kW not OTA

Roy Oulette (unknown position)

Our frequencies and power levels did not pass Canadian Coordination so we do not have construction permits for either station. I'm not sure when we will be able to put a digital carrier on the air. We have now entered goverment "red tape" land with the proviso of cross-border relations.(2/03)

As of this past fall, I reconfirmed this with the help of my congressman, Michael Michaud. He was able to get a response from the FCC about the status of these applications -- basically, the FCC is sitting on their thumbs.


WGME-DT CBS 38 500 kW ERP STA (1000 kW ERP) OTA

38-1 Simulcast Analog
38-2 High Definition Channel

Craig Clark (Chief Engineer)

38-2 is active from 12:00PM to 12:30AM


WMTW-DT ABC 46 501 kW ERP STA (1000 kW ERP) OTA

Amy Picucci (Program Coordinator)

Programming on WMTW-DT channel 46 is currently a digital simulcast of the ABC 8 WMTW analog signal from 8-11 pm Monday through Saturday and 7-11 pm on Sundays. These hours will increase in April 2003 to 12 noon to 12 midnight, seven days a week.

We anticipate providing HDTV (High Definition Digital, 720p) pass through of ABC network programs sometime in 2004. (2/03)

Latest news here is that the Hearst-Argyle group is purchasing WMTW (the sale requires approval of the FCC). This may mean that WMTW will have additional capital resources; it also means it could be the last hand in line for capital from the parent company.

http://www.hearstargyle.com/index2.html

Is their website; drop them an email to let them know you are excited they are moving in and encourage them to upgrade the DTV tech here to allow HDTV passthrough.

WCSH-DT NBC 44 500 kW ERP STA (1000 kW ERP) OTA

No Response

From Titan TV, On air 24/7, passing high definition feed when available

WCBB-DT PBS 17 27.9 kW ERP OTA

Response from Dave Roy "Audience Services" concerning the ERP and identical content of WCBB-DT and WMEA-DT.

From Titan TV, the main channel is off air between 1:00 AM and 6:00 AM while the three subchannels are 24/7.WCBB and WMEA both “occasionally” offer high definition shows during prime time.

WMEA-DT (PBS) 45 50 kW ERP OTA

All other comments are the same as WCBB-DT.

WPFO-TV (Fox) Not OTA -- No digital assignment

Analog only, no digital assignment.

Cable Television:

Adelphia Cable does not carry High Definition at this time.

Time Warner Digital Cable carries the following high definition channels: Showtime and HBO (East and West), INHD 1 and 2, HDNet, HDNet Movies, Discovery HD, NBC (WCSH) and Maine PBS. In York County, they also carry CBS (WBZ -- out of Boston)


I'm adding to the list the stations in Bangor (I'm told they may be receivable in Lewiston, where I am moving to) from Jay Ireland's Bangor Post (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=233668):

Bangor ME

WVII-DT (ABC) 14 1.84kW ERP STA (532kW ERP) OTA
Simulcast Analog
Contact: engrabc6@wvii.com

WABI-DT (CBS) 19 234kW ERP STA (363kW ERP) OTA
Now in High Definition, active 12:30PM to 12:30AM
Rumor has it that they are broadcasting at high power now; needs to be confirmed.
shilz@wabi.com

WLBZ-DT (NBC) 25 500kW ERP STA (1000kW ERP) OTA
HDTV
lgilbert@wlbz.com

WMEB-DT (PBS) 9 15kW ERP OTA
HD/SDTV Multicast Analog

Anybody watching the pre-game stuff at all? My receiver isn't receiving DD 5.1 - only 2 channels. I'm just wondering if anyone's getting 5.1 in Southern Maine?

Originally posted by redinger
I'm just wondering if anyone's getting 5.1 in Southern Maine?

Well, the answer to my question is a no. I got this email from Craig Clark:

yes 2 channels, gear on order but did not make it in time for the game

I thought someone mentioned that WGME was able to pass a 5.1 feed, but according to Craig, the gear's not there yet.

Anybody else get to see the game on TWME 504 (WBZ in Boston)? i guess living in saco (York County) finally paid off after all these years. The broadcast was flawless (well, except for that aged breast which was all together to accurate for my eyes). Anyway, thanks to TW for working the deal w/ WBZ just in time for the big game. It was AWESOME!

i guess living in saco (York County) finally paid off after all these years. The broadcast was flawless (well, except for that aged breast which was all together to accurate for my eyes).

Ah, the advantages of being a TWMaine customer in Cumberland County. Maybe we should thank WGME13/Sinclair for not keeping us abreast of the situation. ;)

Showtime Championship Boxing Going All-HD


-- Multichannel News, 2/5/2004 2:45:00 PM

Showtime Networks Inc. said Thursday that starting with this Saturday’s card, all Showtime Championship Boxing domestic fight cards will air in high-definition on Showtime HD.

The main event of Saturday’s card, from Bally's Atlantic City (N.J.), pits former World Boxing Association champion and current International Boxing Federation No. 1 contender Sharmba Mitchell against IBF No. 9 contender Lovemore N'dou for the IBF 140-pound interim title.

The first HD fight on Showtime Championship Boxing was the Mike Tyson-Clifford Etienne heavyweight match last Feb. 22.

I recently e-mailed TWMaine about DVI support for the Scientific Atlanta 3250HD set-top box, and an ETA for an STB with HD and DVR. Here's the reply I received today from Christopher S. Graviss, vice president engineering, Time Warner Cable New England Division:

First we will be adding the DVI activation release over the next couple of weeks. If you have a model S/A 3250 HD set top box you will be able to use the DVI port in late February.

Second the S/A 8010 set top box with DVR and HD together is going through testing as we speak. There are some issues that must be addressed to stabilize this new box on Time Warner platforms. We are working closely with S/A to make this happen in a timely manner.

Now if they could just reach agreements with WGME and ESPN for HD ... :)

that is great news on both counts mainemojo! Now that football season is over, I can wait on ESPN-HD for a little while. Unfortunately, thanks to Sinclair, it doesn't appear that we'll get CBS-HD via TWC for awhile, if at all.

When I lived in Philly (Comcast country) I finally broke down and bought an OTA Reciever to pick up CBS. Philly is a O&O market, and you all probably saw the threads on Comcast and CBS O&O markets. It seemed they would never get an agreement, and the discussions/rumours painted the negotiations as downright hostile. I just threw up my hands and bought the OTA receiver. However there was a happy ending, as Comcast and CBS did finally reach agreement (after I moved, of course). Come to think of it, they've even got ESPN HD now too, and that was really "never going to happen!" :) So keep the faith!
And I think we've all got to give TW Maine some kudo's: When I moved back to Maine last June they were only carrying HBO and Showtime HD. We've come along way.
One last thought: now that Football season is over, ESPN does become less of a priority for me, but how about NESN-HD? How many days until spring training? :)

Here is my recent conversation with WGME Mr. Cartwright seems like a very nice man, and he responded to all of my emails very quickly, but it definitely doesnt seem like WGME is on the verge of offering hdtv to time warner.

Michael wrote:
Hello, my name is Michael. I have a high definition TV
and use Time Warner for my TV viewing. I was very excited to
see WCSH and PBS available on Time Warner's high definition
channels. I was even more excited to see that WGME had also developed a High definition broadcast. However, I now find that
you are not sharing this broadcast with Time Warner. I am very
disappointed with your decision, especially in regards to your
upcoming broadcast of the superbowl. I hope that you will
change your mind and allow not only the superbowl but all of
your high definition broadcasting to be shared with Time Warner.
Thank you

Michael,
> > >
> > > Do you have a tuner? Our chief engineer can help you tune to the
> > > crystal clear beautiful picture on Channel 38 ... we spent more
> > > than a million dollars so we could send it to you for free!!!
> > >
> > > Alan Cartwright
> > > WGME-Tv General Manager

Alan,
Thanks for the quick response. No I don't have a tuner. Time
Warner's High definition cable box is actually a HDTV tuner, so I can watch HDTV through their box without the expense of a HDTV tuner. The only down side to that is I have no way of receiving over the air HDTV,
which I guess would be your channel. That is the biggest reason that I would really hope that you would change your mind and partner with Time Warner to offer HDTV through their system. As time goes on, I find myself watching more and more HDTV and less and less regular tv.

From: Alan Cartwright
> Let me know how we can help. I think a tuner runs $300. It would
> save you the need to pay Time Warner monthly ... the antenna is
> inexpensive they tell me .... Alan

Alan,
>
Thanks again for getting back to me, I really appreciate the fact that you are taking the time to do this. I understand that your company was forced, by government regulation, to spend a huge amount of money to upgrade to HDTV broadcasts. It just seems to me that your goal as a company would be to maximize the return on your investment. Time Warner offers a high definition box which includes a tuner and HDTV broadcasts of the "locals" for no additional charges over their
standard packages. This opens up HDTV to a large and growing group of
people who want the advantages that HDTV has to offer. While I guess
I could go back to times past when my parents had a big antenna on the
roof, and I guess I could spend two or three hundred dollars to buy a
tuner, I'm pretty sure that I won't, and I would imagine most other
people in my situation won't either. I would think that by offering
this programming through Time Warner you would be maximizing your
audience and thereby maximizing your advertising dollars.


From Alan:
You only need a very small indoor antenna. The set should have had a tuner, given the amount you paid, but one can be purchased for a few hundred dollars. The picture is phenomenal. We spent more than one million ... that's one million dollars to build a digital transmitter. It would cost you only a few hundred to be able to receive it. You are spending more than that on monthly cable bills. They charge for their pictures, while ours are free. Having said all that, I understand your frustration. Alan

mphinne2,

Cartwright and Sinclair have an interesting way of demonstrating they "understand your frustration," since from what I've read on other forums, Portland is one of only four TWC outposts where there's no HD agreement with the local CBS affiliate. Apparently, they don't empathize as much as many other broadcasters.

Not that TW isn't to blame, too. I appreciate their desire to keep costs down, but I wonder if they have researched whether those of us who have invested hundreds, if not thousands of dollars in HDTV and home theater wouldn't be willing to spend a little more to guarantee delivery of local HD channels? Would $1 a month crack their nut and be acceptable to subscribers? How about $2 or $3? Personally, I'm paying them an extra $3 a month for the Digital Sports Package, and only because I want the Tennis Channel. Would I pay as much for local HD? Probably.

mphinne2, i had a very similar dialog with Mr. Cartwright and I agree that he seems like a very nice man. What he doesn't consider (or admit, as the case may be) is that plunking down the extra cash for a tuner and an antenna would only offset the cost of monthly cable if we then decided to give up on HBO-HD, SHO-HD, Dicovery HD, INHD, INHD2, HDNet, HDNet movies and any other national feeds (like ESPN-HD, Bravo-HD+....are you listening Time Warner?) that TWC chooses to offer. If we wanted all of the above (and who doesn't?) we would need to invest in both OTA and Time Warner......right now, and for the foreseeable future, Time Warner is the better investment.

Originally posted by mphinne2
I understand that your company was forced, by government regulation, to spend a huge amount of money to upgrade to HDTV broadcasts. It just seems to me that your goal as a company would be to maximize the return on your investment. Time Warner offers a high definition box which includes a tuner and HDTV broadcasts of the "locals" for no additional charges over their standard packages. This opens up HDTV to a large and growing group of people who want the advantages that HDTV has to offer. <cut antenna stuff> I would think that by offering this programming through Time Warner you would be maximizing your audience and thereby maximizing your advertising dollars.


I think you have some misunderstandings here:

WGME ***LOSES MONEY*** for every viewer that watches their HDTV broadcast. The amount of money they are able to charge for advertising is driven by their audience size -- the larger the audience, the more they can charge advertisers for their commercial programming. Audience size is determined by the Nielsen ratings. At this time, Nielsen ratings are for the NTSC broadcast only. So, when you watch a DTV broadcast, a station actually loses money. As you point out, there are political reasons that they broadcast OTA. I have been pleasently surprised by the number of stations which are actually willing to foot the bill for HDTV (which is NOT government mandated).

As I pointed out a few posts back, HDTV is added value to cable companies -- they DO gain revenue by providing local HDTV -- unlike the local station itself. I can't fault local stations for wanting a piece of that revenue.


Later

Joe

One thing thats bothered me and perhaps this is part of the larger negotiations: Its seems that by taking such a hard stand, Sinclair is actually damaging future considerations with TWC. For instance, TWC's future willingness to add sub-channels to their lineup. Is it because Sinclair's other offerings aren't as substantial as say, Viacom, so they're playing hard ball to try to get guarantees for the future?

It's really hard to tell whom is playing hardball with whom -- the broadcasters like Sinclair and LIN, or the Time Warner affiliates. It may be that the O&O's have more pull and are able to negoiate deals on a national level with Time Warner that Time Warner is not willing to make with smaller companies like Sinclair and LIN. Do you know for a fact that CBS is _not_ receiving "considerations" for allowing HDTV on cable (and satellite) in O&O markets? The considerations might not be direct payments -- they could be related to other networks/channels owned by the parent corporations.

It would be interesting to know if the groups that have deals with TW are providing HDTV for free or for payment.

Later,

Joe

Not to change the subject but did everyone else lose the HD feed to Daytona on lap 143 until the end of the race? I was really dissapointed.

Not to change the subject but did everyone else lose the HD feed to Daytona on lap 143 until the end of the race?

Yes. A check of the HDTV Programming forum showed it was a national network problem.

I lost the HD feed also, 6-1 eventually came back on but with SD feed. Major bummer...

Not only did they lose the end of the race, they never kicked it back in for Shrek. I even called WCSH last night around 7pm and got the news desk. The woman who answered said there were no engineers in the building. Someone must of flipped the switch to SD, but I guess they didn't stick around to flip it back? Or is it an automatic thing due to drop outs?

in the past 48 hours, ESPN has signed long term agreements with both Cox and Charter, agreements that include carriage of ESPN-HD. This now makes TWC one of the last MSO's without such an agreement. Hopefully something will be announced soon.

Just wrote to Laurie of TW telling her the same thing and saying that this is a positive sign, since ESPN actually gave in on the amount of increase it wanted each year. They went from 20% to 7 % average over the life of the contract with Cox and Charter. Hope this is the start of something good for TW.

Also asked about getting the Sox and Bruins up here in HD. We'll see what kind of answer we get back.

Someone was telling me that you can receive the standard networks with "rabbit ears" and a HD receiver. Is that true for us up here in Maine? I'm in Auburn, Maine. Please PM me if you can receive ANY HD signals using rabbit ears and how good they are. :)

Thanks.

I'm in Greene, on the shore of Sabattus Pond. With a powered indoor antenna, in the basement, I was able to pull in only two stations -- WPFO (Fox, analog) and WCBB (PBS, digital).

I moved the antenna to a standard TV on the first floor; there I am able to pull in all the analog Portland stations except WCSH with adequate/poor reception. WPFO and WCBB are the only ones that come in strong. Both are close to the east, twoards Augusta. I don't know whether the Portland digital stations might come in -- I suspect not.

I don't think you'll get good reception with rabbit ears. With a radioshack amplified indoor antenna, you might -- you are closer to Portland than I am. If you can pull in the analog stations strong, you'll have a decent shot at getting the digital stations. With a rooftop antenna, pointed at Portland, you shouldn't have any problems. I'm putting up an antenna this spring.


Later

Joe

Just received this email in response to a query on WMTW's HD Passthrough plans:


Based on what I know at the moment, I would say that the new owner (Hearst-Argyle) is very interested in getting network HD pass-thru capability installed ASAP. At this time, we are waiting for the FCC to authorize the sale - until this happens, the new owner cannot legally be involved in station management. We expect the FCC approval in May/04.

Thanks for your interest....

Jack Conner
Director of Engineering

WMTW Broadcast Group, LLC

A few weeks ago, I sent Hearst/Argyle an email query on the subject, and did not receive a reply.


Later

Joe

I emailed Chris Graviss, TW New England engineering VP, after their STB firmware upgrade for the SA3250HD didn't happen on schedule in February. Here's what he had to say:
We did in fact activate the DVI function on our Set Top Box a couple of weeks ago. The bad news is it caused a failure in several other areas of our STB functionality. The result was rolling back to the prior code and sending the Application back to the vendor for more testing. We believe we should be able to retest this month and send the code to all STB.
Fingers crossed ... :)

I wonder how, or if, this delay is affecting the rollout of the new 8000HD DVR's. They are beginning to rollout beyond the original test markets and I was hoping Portland would get them soon!

About a month ago Graviss said "the S/A 8010 set top box with DVR and HD together is going through testing as we speak. There are some issues that must be addressed to stabilize this new box on Time Warner platforms. We are working closely with S/A to make this happen in a timely manor."

I've been following the SA8000HD thread in the HDTV Recorders forum here at AVS, and get the sense that the product is in need of "stabilzation" in markets where it has been introduced by TW.

Multichannel News is reporting that College Sports Television is joining Time Warner Cable's digital sports tier. Portland is one of the initial markets mentioned. Not an HD announcement, but I think I read that they may be planning some HD content later in the year. The full article is here:

http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA401661?display=Breaking+News

My DVI connection is working on my 3250 hd !!! :D and it looks great.
My box rebooted this morning and ran through some numbers in the wee hours so I thought I would cross my fingers and check it out.
TW must of got the bugs worked out hopefully they don't find any more bugs :(

Thanks for the heads-up, etoyoceeliw. Just the convenience of pass-through and up-convert Picture settings is a major improvement. I haven't hooked up DVI yet, but hope to have it in place today.

DVI first impression: Wow. PQ is much better on everything, excellent on on digital channels and outstanding on HD. Now if only TW would get us a few more HD channels, including CBS and ESPN ...

So etoyoceeliw, just what were you doing staring at your converter in the wee hours of the morning? Insomniac or way too dedicated? ;)

on the ota frount just noticed maine pbs showing hd. First time i've seen it since their initial testing. Hope their not just teasing us. Been stuck with only two networks of hd for so long, a note of appreciation and a check may be in order. Also the tropo's were kicking lots of mass. and n.h. dt stations in last night, maybe tonight also. Turn your antennas. my tuner was having a fit, 5.1 was bangor wabi and 5.2 was wcvb boston weather map. alan

Maine PBS is going HD state wide starting this Friday (4/2/04) on 17.2 OTA, no channel assignment announced yet from Time Warner. The whole story from the Press Herald can be found here. (http://news.mainetoday.com/apwire/D81KPN7G0-90.shtml)

PBS-HD was up last night on Time Warner channel 510. They even had the programming info. NOVA about tornado's was hit or miss with PQ (only because it mixed in some upconverted SD stuff), but the last shot of a tornado from only a mile or two away with an HD camera was absolutely STUNNING. Thats about as close as ever really need to be! :)
Meander- just a clarification: 17.1 will still broadcast the analog programming and 17.2 will be the HD feed. 17.2 had the HD on last night.

Thanks for the clarification, jkurlanski, I just edited my earlier post. I don't currently get any HD OTA, so I am a little unfamiliar. I may have to reconsider that stance come fall, when unless CBS and Time Warner come to an agreement, OTA will be the only way to see the Pats in HD! Speaking of which, the Pats opening regular season game was just announced as a prime time Thursday game, Sept. 9th on ABC. Hopefully WMTW will be online with an HD signal by then!

I was in TW's offices last week and while there, I asked if they had reached an agreement with CBS yet. The woman said they hadn't yet, but... she thought they were getting close. I joked with her about having it up by next Superbowl. I guess I'll keep my fingers crossed.

I just read that InHD will be showing some baseball in HD this year. Already there are two Sox games scheduled in April....does anyone know if those will be blacked out locally due to existing coverage by NESN, etc?

From experience at the end of last season, the Sox were on InHD but they were blacked out in this market. I'm hoping that TW can work a deal with Comcast to bring the HD NESN to this neck of the woods. Have seen the Bruins on HDNET and if that's any indication of the picture quality of the Sox in HD, bring it on!! Has anyone heard any scuttle butt on NESN?

Question to my local forum members

Have a GWIII 42" and am running a SA8000 DVR box off TW for SD while waiting for HD-DVR with DVI.

1) I have "snow" (diagonal lines) running in the background (esp. noticable with a black screen on Video 1) which, through a process of elimination, appears to come directly from the BOX itself, Not the feed. (Thus Box connected to TV but not to Feed. Both Plugged into Monster HTS1000.) Tried many configs. Anyone else run into this and/or have a workaround?

2) What's the latest on the HD-DVR and has anyone got one as a "test subject" locally?

Thanks in advance

sagecounsel:

1) I'm running the SA3250HD with DVI, so I can't help you with the SA8000. But there is a separate AVS forum on the SA8000 that's fairly active.

2) Here's what Chris Graviss, VP engineering for Time Warner New England, said in early February re: the HD-DVR rollout: "The S/A 8010 set top box with DVR and HD together is going through testing as we speak. There are some issues that must be addressed to stabilize this new box on Time Warner platforms. We are working closely with S/A to make this happen in a timely manner."

First some info:

The HD DVRs are IN. I got one around 2:30 PM Saturday afternoon at Johnson Road, South Portland (had recieved 15 on Friday Night). So far it works flawlessly though the DVI port IS NOT active no matter what anyone tells you... took me and a Lvl 3 tech guy about 20 minutes to figure that one out.

then question:

On what settings are people watching SD on HD boxes?
This unit allows for 1080i, 720p, 480P, 480i all in widescreen (after you select that you have a 16:9 screen during setup) and 480i standard output.

The party line from the TW guys was "leave it in 1080i all the time 'cause it has the best resolution" BUT isn't that upscaling a 480i signal to 1080i then downscaling it to my GWIII's native resolution. I figure that setting it to 480i standard (basically outputing the native broadcast then letting the TV upscale) then viewing it in wide-zoom would produce the best picture? Does anyone connect a seperate output from their box to view SD and how does it work?

Also, TW said they do not support 720P but doesn't ABC/ESPNHD broadcast in 720P? So what happens when they come on board??

Thanks and good luck getting one!

I'm using DVI with the 3250HD, so everything is native and widescreen. But if I weren't, I'd use either the play-through picture format or one of the up-convert formats. As for 720p, I don't think it's a matter of TW supporting the format -- more likely a user choice of up-convert via DVI or play-through via composite when the programming becomes available.

Personally, I'm going to stick with the 3250HD for the DVI. But I'll be interested in hearing reports about the DVR. Reviews from around the country are definitely mixed.

Sagecounsel:

Have you had the chance to compare the DVR to a standard HD box--I am interested in how the picture quality is both with regular programming and with recorded programming.

Also, what are they charging you for it?

No charge

and

I have not had an opportunity to compare with other HD boxes, as this is my first and I hadn't really viewed HDTV previously.

I did watch Discovery HD and "paused" the picture for a minute or two then restarted (thus recorded programming). PQ was identical it seemed which was shocking this SD DVR recorded programming on the SA8000 shows a significantly degraded picture, I think.

From the GWIII forum I've learned there is NO pass-through enabled yet on this box. Firmware should be upgraded very soon though....

Originally posted by meander
Maine PBS is going HD state wide starting this Friday (4/2/04) on 17.2 OTA,

Finally watched some OTA PBS last night. I was pleasantly surprised to see the Dolby Digital light up on my receiver. That's right, PBS is already passing 5.1 when available.

Picture was of course stunning as expected.

I also picked up an HD DVR last week and so far, it seems to be working pretty well. I am running it at 1080i out and the picture quality is generally very good. I have not done an A/B to the 3200HD box, but I can't believe it is too different. Detail is good and colors are bright--and that is with a signal transcoded to RGBHV.

A few negatives are that the software is kind of clunky and miles behind Tivo in terms of user friendliness and ease of use. However, once you find the show you want, it is easy to select and record. The only recording I have had difficulty with so far was the Red Sox game on Saturday night, which I think was on INHD. Although it appears to have tried to record, there was no picture until the very end of the time slot, after the game had ended. It may have been blacked out?

The two tuners is a plus, so you never have to worry about changing the channel and disabling an ongoing recording.

I was disappointed to see that it apparently does not permit simultaneous output of Standard Definition programming. I have a Tivo which I have been using to control the 3200HD for non-hi-def recording, and now, I am told I can't use it that way because it won't put out an SD signal that the Tivo box can use. I have season passes and all kinds of things set up on the Tivo, plus more hours recording capacity than the 8000, and it looks can't use it together with the 8000 unless they enable SD simultaneous output. That means I have to use a separate cable box at an additional charge, or limit the Tivo recordings to shows the internal Tivo tuner can handle, which rules out all the digital channels

Tivo issues aside, the quality seems good, and it is great to be able to record HD--there has been a lot of good programming on, but it never seems to be on when I can watch it--and now I can record it and see it later.

So, that is my mini review.

Thanks for the review, Bill. And you're right about the Sox game -- it was blacked out because of the NESN coverage. Of course, if TW carried NESN HD it wouldn't be a problem ...

I also have the Hi def dvr box from Time Warner. I used to have a tivo and switched to TW dvr boxes a year or so ago. The biggest pain with TW's dvr is there is no way to set up the machine to record a certain channel at a certain time, without manually programming it once a week. An example, if you want to record a program that shows at 10pm on channel 6 every Wednesday, you can select it to record, you can also program the box to record that show every time it comes on. However, lots of shows are now in syndication, so lets say you want to record all the new Friends episodes, the box will record every Friend episode that is shown on any channel, quickly filling up your memory. With Tivo you could set it up to record a given channel at a given time every week, its just a pain with the TW box.

The picture looks very similar to my old HD box.

Well, the Pats schedule for next year was just released, and as it stands right now, us Time Warner customers will get ZERO games in HD. I know things are subject to change, but the Pats play two Monday night games (WMTW currently not passing an HD feed), one ESPN Sunday night game (no ESPN-HD yet), and we open the season on Thursday Sept. 9th in primetime (again on WMTW). Other than those primetime games, we will play two Fox games (WPFO not passing HD feed). Fox just announced six games per week in HD, see the announcement here (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=391168), but we won't see any of them unless WPFO gets it's act together quick. CBS has yet to announce thier HD strategy for the coming season, but one can assume that as defending champs we will get numerous CBS Games of the Week, which were shown in HD last year. Again, as a Time Warner customer, we will see none of those unless we buck up for an OTA tuner. I'm rambling, but the issues are:

* Will WPFO or WMTW pass an HD feed by the fall?
* Will Time Warner come to an agreement with the local CBS or ESPN to carry their HD signal?

I'm just browsing by, but IIRC WPFO doesn't have a digital assignment, so they might not be doing digital any time soon, unless they go cable-only.

- Trip

Originally posted by Trip in VA
I'm just browsing by, but IIRC WPFO doesn't have a digital assignment, so they might not be doing digital any time soon, unless they go cable-only.

- Trip

As you say they were not given a digital assignment (they came into existence after digital assignments had been made), so they will not broadcast digital OTA for now. When the analog switch is flipped and analog broadcasts cease, they will convert to digital on their analog frequency assignment. Figure on 2006 at the earliest (more likely something like 2010).

I can't imagine that they would invest in the hardware to provide a digital signal before this happens.

WMTW's chief engineer told me that he thinks that obtaining the equipment for HD passthrough will be a priority once the sale of the station goes through, but that nothing can happen until the sale goes through (he estimated on a May timeline:

Based on what I know at the moment, I would say that the new owner (Hearst-Argyle) is very interested in getting network HD pass-thru capability installed ASAP. At this time, we are waiting for the FCC to authorize the sale - until this happens, the new owner cannot legally be involved in station management. We expect the FCC approval in May/04.

Thanks for your interest....

Jack Conner
Director of Engineering

WMTW Broadcast Group, LLC

Later,

Joe

Thanks for the replies, it's hard to believe that as a top 100 market, we have a Fox affiliate so far behind the times....even their website is virtually non-existent. It sounds like there is hope for WMTW. I fully expect ESPN-HD to be on Time Warner by September, so we will have that. If WGME does not come to an agreement with TW by then, my next TV will have a built in tuner!

On a separate note, I'm pushing for NESN HD. Getting tired of being blacked out on InHD every time the SOX are on when I'm paying extra for the channel. Laurie said she would ask if that was in the plans. Don't know how much NESN wants to charge for that service. Does anyone know when the contract for ESPN is up? I assume to work out a new contract, then the HD version will have to be included. Big assumption on my part!! Have the SA 8000HD and love it!! Have noticed no difference between the live and recorded version of a program. Hoping WMTW does get the pass trough equipment needed before September rolls around and I hold no hope for WGME. Sinclair is really be unreasonable (in my opinion) with their demands for lots of money. Just my 2 cents worth.

For what its worth I shot Laurie an email yesterday about NESN-HD as well. She said she was looking into it. I can't imagine they aren't trying. I'm going to try to pick up the HD DVR sometime soon. Hopefully you guys left one for me. :)

As far as the digital assignment goes, I don't believe WPFO can get one even if they wanted to. The FCC put a freeze on digital assignments after they assigned them back in the late 90's. My understanding is that there aren't any channels open -- and where there are a few, the processes of "clearing" them takes years (especially when you through the Mexican and Canadian versions of the FCC into the mix in border zones).

This is why the Portland WB and UPN stations are in "limbo" -- one of them has asked for a new channel assignment (twice -- they were turned down for the first change request by the Canadian gov't), the other has asked for "maximization of signal" i.e. to broadcast at higher power than they were originally permitted. Neither has do do ANYTHING regarding DTV until the permitting process works its way through -- which shows NO sign of happening on a timely basis.

This is what the FCC told me regarding those stations (facilitated by Rep. Mike Michaud):


{regarding WPME-DT's maximization request and WPXT-DT's rule making petition to change its channel assignment}

Because of the proximity of WPME and WPXT to the Canadian border, a treaty between the United States and Canada requires that the Commission obtain the consent of the Canadian government before approving the changes requested by the television stations. The Canadian government, unfortunately, has objected to both of the proposals.

WPME and WPXT are aware of the obejections raised by the Canadian government and are re-evaluating their technical proposals to determine appropriate modifications that may address Canada's concerns. Once the concurrence of the Canadian government is obtained, the Commision's Media Bureau will complete its review and issue a decision as expeditiously as possible.

Roy Stewart
Chief, Office of Broadcast License Policy

You won't BELIEVE (or maybe you will) how difficult it was to get this non-commital response to ask how long this process would be allowed to draw out. I specifically asked at what point the FCC would deny their requests and make them build their DTV facilities. Note, he did not answer the question. The process has been going on for at least 4 years.

If it is this hard to change a channel or increase power, how much harder must it be to get a new assignment?


Joe

Do these obstacles also prevent WPFO from broadcasting Fox Widescreen? That would be better than nothing.......

Yes -- Fox's 480p, widescreen broadcast is an ATSC format (digital television). So is their 1080i broadcast. NTSC, analog television, is 4:3. Without digital TV, no widescreen, 480p or 1080i.

I suppose if they really wanted to they could broadcast in letterboxed 4:3 -- with black bars on the top and bottom of their widescreen material -- but then there would be a second set of black bars around the miniature 4:3 material. Can you imagine the uproar? Then again, I'm not sure that they have the hardware to receive the widescreen satellite feed from FOX.

Joe

I was delighted several days ago to come across this thread for Southern Maine. I live in Farmingdale and can't believe the effort the posters have made to encourage digital television in this State. You have been extremely active and resourceful. I commend all of you.

I am on the Augusta Adelphia cable system and waiting for enough programming to purchase a TV. About a week ago Adelphia began offering the Red Sox on NESN in HD. This has stirred my interest, but not enough to make a move.

I look forward to your future posts.

Just hit TWC with another e-mail on NESN HD. It was as follows:

Hi Laurie,

Just checking in to see if there is any progress on NESN HD. I read all these forums that say how fantastic the picture was this weekend of the Red Sox and Yankees on InHD, but we were blacked out and relegated to watching that damn SD picture on NESN (Channel 27). Just thought I would continue to push the issue. Thanks again for any information you might have.

Her response was:

I did just discuss with marketing and they haven't made a firm decision at this point. I'll let you know if I hear differently.
Laurie

and my response back was:

Thanks Laurie,

But how can a firm decision not be made for all the HD folks out there now and growing!! I'll keep checking back. The Home team in HD is a must, especially if they keep blacking out on InHD when they are on. Thanks again

I just don't understand the thought process behind marketing. You would think they would want the most enticing product available out there. Maybe NESN is asking too much money, but so is ESPN and WGME (Sinclair). I can't believe they are holding out on everything. Maybe a bandwidth issue? I don't know, just frustrated, I guess!!

If you feel the same, let's flood TWC with e-mails on these HD Channels.

I would definitely through it in TWC face that Adelphia beat TWC to the punch on NESNHD. That is just sucky marketing on their part. Why dont they send out a survey to all TWC HD customers and ask them what they want?? I would think that most of you, if you had a choice between INHD and NESNHD that everyone most likely would choose NESNHD??? I cant imagine staring at the channel listing for INHD and then being blacked out from a SOX YANKS game in HD. That would make my blood boil. I have refrained from going back to TWC because of the ESPNHD, CBSHD issue. I do have Directv and have the OTA tuner built in to my receiver, so I am fortunate enough to get ESPN and receive a strong OTA signal for WGME. I would love to go back to TWC, but until these issues are resolved, I will stay with Directv. TWC has made some generous offers for me to switch back but HD is a top priority for me and they are just not cutting it. ESPNHD, NESNHD are on the top of my list. If and when this happens I just might switch back.

I live down in York and we have had CBS in HD on TW since the week before the superbowl. It is the Boston affiliate WBZ.

Don't rub it in!! :)

I'm in Gorham, only 10 or 15 miles from the York line and have been a Pats fan since the mid 70's. I think it's time for the FCC to get rid of this archaic law protecting the local boys. If there was some competition between affiliates of the same network, we'd probably get better local programming.

OK, am I understanding this correctly? Is there another HD STB available for us in Maine. Mine is the old 3100. TW just gave me a 50% discount for the next 4 months so I don't switch to VOOM. I also complained about the SA 3100, but the rep didn't know anything about another box being available.

[edit] I just called TW and will pick up my new box tomorrow morning.

Gary: The rep was just plain ignorant. TWMaine's latest HD box is the 3250HD, which provides four Picture Setting options plus DVI compatibility. And what did you have to threaten to do to get the 50% discount?

Well that's just great. How long has the 3250 been available? Is the PQ as good with the HD DVR box and what's the model number?

I had a feeling they'd want to keep as many customers as possible, so I called as if to inquire about the current price of the LifeLine package in case I needed it to get FOX when I switched to VOOM (which I may do). He asked what the problems were, and I told him TW didn't have enough HD programming, 10 bucks for the extra 4 was too much and the SA3100 was junk. At first he didn't get the hint, so I said the price for my TW package was a little steep, too. He still didn't bite, so I told him VOOM was half the price, had over 21 HD channels in their basic package and they included an OTA antenna so I could get channel 13 in HD. After hinting around a bit, he finally got it and offered me a 'special program' they were running for the next 3 months. My current bill was due and they'd cut it in half and my next 3 months would be 1/2 price, too, including RR. So I'm going down from $122 to $61 a month for a little while.
I uderstand marketing, but it still angers me when they offer RR or CTV for 1/2 price for new customers, and don't reward their loyal, existing customers.

I picked up the SA 8000 HD DVR box on Saturday. So far the PQ seems pretty good.
I had a couple issues with the box at first. The coax output didn't work. The s-video output didn't work. There was no composite output (though the manual shows it). At the time, I didn't go through the setup, so I didn't realize there were options for HDTV resolutions that would work with my RPTV stretch modes.
I thought my box was defective, so I called TW tech. The guy told me the coax and s-video were disabled and I had to use the stretch options on the 8000 (which are terrible). He wasn't much help.

I finally found the setup and set it up for all the HD modes except 720, which my Toshiba doesn't use. I also set it so it would go to the last channel on startup instead of channel 1. Now I use 480p normal when I want to use my RPTV stretch modes and 1080i when watching full screen HDTV.
The manual says there is a composite output (with audio outs as well) for archiving recorded shows to VCR (though the box shows it as an input). Does anybody know if this works? It doesn't work as a normal output, but is it activated for archiving as the manual says? If so, how do you do it?

Gary:

I need to do a little more checking on my 8000HD, but my understanding is that the archiving feature is (supposedly) to be activated in the future through a software upgrade, and that the vcr composit outputs on the back are not currently working. I spoke to Time Warner about this, and the tech I spoke to said he would check, but I have not heard back yet.

Originally posted by GTX_SlotCar
I'm in Gorham, only 10 or 15 miles from the York line and have been a Pats fan since the mid 70's. I think it's time for the FCC to get rid of this archaic law protecting the local boys. If there was some competition between affiliates of the same network, we'd probably get better local programming.

OK, am I understanding this correctly? Is there another HD STB available for us in Maine. Mine is the old 3100. TW just gave me a 50% discount for the next 4 months so I don't switch to VOOM. I also complained about the SA 3100, but the rep didn't know anything about another box being available.

[edit] I just called TW and will pick up my new box tomorrow morning.


Gary,

Gorham is not 10-15 miles from York. According to yahoo maps York is 47 miles south of Gorham. You are correct about the old Laws, they need to be changed. I think the reason we get CBS HD in York is because we are considered part of the Boston market not Portland.

Now if we could just get TW to add ESPN HD, FOX HD, and ABC HD we would be in good shape.

Originally posted by dchayer
Gary,

Gorham is not 10-15 miles from York. According to yahoo maps York is 47 miles south of Gorham.

I meant York County, not the town. I believe TW Cable brought the Boston signal to York County. As the crow flies, I'm probably 4 miles from the line (Buxton/Hollis area).

This doesn't mean that I'm not otherwise geographically impaired, however.

..ah, York County, That makes sense. So they use old laws and an outdated system of municipal organization, the county, to screw people out of an HD signal.

That's about it. I suppose it was OK in the 1950's when they were trying to entice people to start up local stations, but it's ridiculous for the current state of communications. Everything is national now. Local stations with the right programming will still survive (the networks only control programming from 8 to 11PM, as far as I know). I should have the right to watch any network affiliate station I choose. If I like the programming on channel 4 in Boston better than channel 13 in Portland (and I do), I should have the right to watch it without the local station's permission.
You have to know that this regulation is going to change sooner or later. I can't imagine it being this way a hundred years from now. I'd like to see it change sooner.
I've been a Patriots fan for 32 years. I couldn't watch them in the SuperBowl in HD because of a stupid, archaic FCC regulation and a stubborn local TV station.
I haven't watched channel 13 since (not that I watched it much before).

This has to do with FCC rules and reception -- the FCC "grades" signal reception strength (A, B, C) tied to antenna height and reception strength. If you can get reception over the air at the grade B level, a station is considered "local" from the point of view of cable "must carry" and has a monopoly on the local network broadcast rights. Where there is overlap (as in York County), a cable company must carry both the Grade A (Portland) and Grade B (Boston) stations (and both share local rights).

This is why Time Warner carries WENH out of New Hampshire in Cumberland County, and why Adelphia Cable in Androscoggin County carries both Portland and Bangor network stations.

This is also why DBS subscribers in grade A CBS O&O station market but are also in a grade B zone to an adjacent non-CBS O&O CBS station need to get waivers from the grade B station in order to get the East/West Coast HD CBS feed over satellite (i.e. the grade b station also has local rights).

For whatever reason, Time Warner has chosen to break the reception block by county (I think this is fairly standard practice). It may be that this was the most practical way for them to do so for programming/billing reasons. Or it may be built in to FCC regulations.

Anyways, Time Warner can provide the Boston signal to York County (because it is "local"), but not to Cumberland County (because it is not "local").

Later

Joe

Originally posted by GTX_SlotCar
That's about it. I suppose it was OK in the 1950's when they were trying to entice people to start up local stations, but it's ridiculous for the current state of communications. Everything is national now. Local stations with the right programming will still survive (the networks only control programming from 8 to 11PM, as far as I know). I should have the right to watch any network affiliate station I choose. If I like the programming on channel 4 in Boston better than channel 13 in Portland (and I do), I should have the right to watch it without the local station's permission.
You have to know that this regulation is going to change sooner or later. I can't imagine it being this way a hundred years from now. I'd like to see it change sooner.
I've been a Patriots fan for 32 years. I couldn't watch them in the SuperBowl in HD because of a stupid, archaic FCC regulation and a stubborn local TV station.
I haven't watched channel 13 since (not that I watched it much before).

First, I have to think that most local programming would go the way of the Dodo Bird and the Passenger Pigeon if this were the case. Local stations survive on advertising revenue -- and as soon as you flip to the Boston channel, the Portland channel loses its revenue. I don't think it could survive on local news revenue alone. As I understand it, the 8 to 11 ad revenue is the lion share of their income. They also get a lot from sporting events such as the NFL and other local sporting broadcasts.

This does not even take into account the fact that the owners of 13 have paid CBS and the FCC for the local rights to CBS programming.

If the local monopoly is taken away, we will end up with a few regional superstations out of the megaopolises, and that's all. Local news may not be worth it to you, but it is to a lot of people.

Second, not being able to watch CBS HD at your location is purely your own fault: all you need is a tuner and an antenna -- and you can probably get by with an indoor antenna at that. If there is any other blame it is with Time Warner who is not willing to carry CBS-HD in the Portland market -- they don't want to pay for it. They won't even pass the cost on to you directly and let you decide if it is too much.

Disclaimer (before I am flamed for being a shill) -- I am not affiliated in any way with any broadcaster, but I will admit I have a deep dislike for cable companies.

Later

Joe

Usually I enjoy reading your posts, but I'm trying to find something in this one that I don't find short-sighted, and I just can't.
First, I have to think that most local programming would go the way of the Dodo Bird .... if this were the case.
On the contrary, I think it would go the way of local radio. With the right programming, it would trive. Many of our local radio stations, AM and FM, are doing quite well despite the competition from satellite and Boston stations.
A few years back, ABC had the rights to the USFL games. Channel 8 refused to show the Boston Breakers. I (and apparently several other people) called to find out why. The station manager's response was that he didn't like football and there was too much of it on TV anyway. WGME (channel 13) wouldn't carry the Patriots pre-season games (unless they had to during network time). The reason I was given is that people in Boston don't even care about the pre-season games, so people in Portland won't, either. Of course, he admitted that they didn't do a marketing study to back this up. When I asked why the network thought local pre-season games were worthy of being broadcast nationally at prime time (proving the audience is there), I was just told that I had the entire regular season to watch football and that should be enough for anybody.
The point is, we're being held hostage to the local program managers' ideals. With competition, they might think twice about this type of decision. Or, we could just go elsewhere.

Local news may not be worth it to you, but it is to a lot of people.
Well, of course it's worth it to me. Not channel 13 news, but I watch 8 in the morning and 6 at night. It is important to a lot of people, and this is one of the reasons why local TV would survive. Newspapers survived radio and they both survived local TV. Local TV survived TBS and all the Superstations. The pattern is certainly established. Channel 13 could certainly survive competition from WBZ in Boston. They've got local news, events and mindless masses on their side, and all they'd have to do is offer better non-prime time programming to keep viewers like me. It is, after all, a business; and when businesses compete, it's good for consumers. I said I'd prefer WBZ to channel 13. I didn't say the same for the NBC or ABC affiliates. If my friend, 4 miles away, can watch WBZ, I'm sure it won't break channel 13 if I watch it, too. And that brings us to.....

.....not being able to watch CBS HD at your location is purely your own fault: all you need is a tuner and an antenna.....
Wow. I should have thought of that. I could go through life buying 2 of everything, you know, as a backup. One reason I pay for cable TV is so I don't need an antenna. Although, I suppose $250 for an antenna and OTA box is cheaper than owning another house 4 miles down the road.

..... If there is any other blame it is with Time Warner who is not willing to carry CBS-HD in the Portland market .....They won't even pass the cost on to you directly.....
But, Time Warner is willing to carry CBS-HD in the Portland market. So much so, that they even brought it in from Boston to some it's subscribers (primary market, right?). As for Cumberland county, TW Cable is completely set up, right now, to carry channel 13 in DTV and HD. All they need is the OK from WGME. They could pass the cost on to viewers, but their position is that consumers shouldn't have to pay for local programming. The DTV signal shouldn't be any different than the analog in this respect. Apparently, WBZ, WCSH, WMTW, PBS and lot's of other stations agree. With or without the regulations, sooner or later channel 13 would have had to go with HDTV simply to compete with other stations. The cost is part of doing business.
You seem to think that local stations get no benefit from being carried on cable. As a former antenna user on the outskirts of town, I assure you this isn't true. Channel 8 is a regional station and has a different broadcasting pattern than 6 and 13 (local stations), so it's easier to get good reception on the outskirts without too much noise. Cable offers good local channel reception to many people who would otherwise be stuck with noisy reception (or only channel 8).

It's my opinion that it should be up to WGME to entice me not to "flip" to WBZ. They've got everything in their favor as far as competing with the Boston station. It shouldn't be out of their reach.

Originally posted by GTX_SlotCar
Usually I enjoy reading your posts, but I'm trying to find something in this one that I don't find short-sighted, and I just can't.

*grin* I'll take this as a complement -- we can't all spout pearls of wisdom all the time... However, this is an interesting discussion.

[Quote]On the contrary, I think it would go the way of local radio. With the right programming, it would trive. Many of our local radio stations, AM and FM, are doing quite well despite the competition from satellite and Boston stations.

Interesting you should bring this up... My second favorite station just went off the air -- WTAM's All News FM/AM/AM station (my favorite is NPR news programs). Apparently there was a rather major buyout of a dozen or so stations. Now, instead of a 24 hour FM news station, we have seventies rock. Just what we needed. They actually had a story on it on Maine Things Considered yesterday.

A few years back, ABC had the rights to the USFL games. Channel 8 refused to show the Boston Breakers. I (and apparently several other people) called to find out why. The station manager's response was that he didn't like football and there was too much of it on TV anyway. WGME (channel 13) wouldn't carry the Patriots pre-season games (unless they had to during network time). The reason I was given is that people in Boston don't even care about the pre-season games, so people in Portland won't, either. Of course, he admitted that they didn't do a marketing study to back this up. When I asked why the network thought local pre-season games were worthy of being broadcast nationally at prime time (proving the audience is there), I was just told that I had the entire regular season to watch football and that should be enough for anybody.
The point is, we're being held hostage to the local program managers' ideals. With competition, they might think twice about this type of decision. Or, we could just go elsewhere.

Well, letters to advertisers actually do work, cc'd to the manager of the station (I'm a Cleveland Browns fan by birth -- we all have Crosses to bear -- and went through some of that when the team was moved to Baltimore. It is surprsing how effective threatened product boycotts can be...) But this sounds like there was an idiot at the local level involved. I'd point out again that you do have a choice -- you can get the NFL Season Ticket on DirecTV (of course, you might also disaprove that DirecTV has a lock on this). You might also consider that the NFL has specific contracts with the networks as to what they may play and when, just to increase the value of their transmission agreements. I, for instance, would much rather get a Cleveland affiliate and watch the Browns than watch the Patriots. But I'm not willing to pay the price of the Season Ticket to watch them.

Local TV survived TBS and all the Superstations.

But these superstations don't have CBS/NBC/ABC programming, so they aren't direct competition.

Channel 13 could certainly survive competition from WBZ in Boston. They've got local news, events and mindless masses on their side, and all they'd have to do is offer better non-prime time programming to keep viewers like me. It is, after all, a business; and when businesses compete, it's good for consumers. I said I'd prefer WBZ to channel 13. I didn't say the same for the NBC or ABC affiliates. If my friend, 4 miles away, can watch WBZ, I'm sure it won't break channel 13 if I watch it, too. And that brings us to.....

WGME's owners have paid for the right to be the station to provide CBS programming to you through licensing and franchise fees. Unfortunately, you would have to change several laws and the industry as a whole to change that. I'd also point out that you generally don't have two McDonlas accross the street fromm each other. McDonalds is careful when it sells affiliates the rights to open restaraunts to keep them from competing with each other. I would think CBS would take a similar view here.

Wow. I should have thought of that. I could go through life buying 2 of everything, you know, as a backup. One reason I pay for cable TV is so I don't need an antenna. Although, I suppose $250 for an antenna and OTA box is cheaper than owning another house 4 miles down the road.

*grin* There is always a bright side. An indoor antenna is only ~ $25 (radioshack makes quite a few nice ones). In Austin (from where I moved last summer) we had the same problem with NBC and the WB (Lin, not Sinclair) and Time Warner -- but I found it easy to pull them in OTA. My set has an internal DTV tuner, so I didn't have any extra cost involved other than the $25.


But, Time Warner is willing to carry CBS-HD in the Portland market. So much so, that they even brought it in from Boston to some it's subscribers (primary market, right?). As for Cumberland county, TW Cable is completely set up, right now, to carry channel 13 in DTV and HD. All they need is the OK from WGME. They could pass the cost on to viewers, but their position is that consumers shouldn't have to pay for local programming. The DTV signal shouldn't be any different than the analog in this respect. Apparently, WBZ, WCSH, WMTW, PBS and lot's of other stations agree. With or without the regulations, sooner or later channel 13 would have had to go with HDTV simply to compete with other stations. The cost is part of doing business.
You seem to think that local stations get no benefit from being carried on cable. As a former antenna user on the outskirts of town, I assure you this isn't true. Channel 8 is a regional station and has a different broadcasting pattern than 6 and 13 (local stations), so it's easier to get good reception on the outskirts without too much noise. Cable offers good local channel reception to many people who would otherwise be stuck with noisy reception (or only channel 8).

There is a lot here, and I should probably break it up to address it, but that would result in a very fractured response.

1) Local stations not only receive no benefit for having their DTV station carried by cable, it loses them money. Stations benefit by a wide viewership, however, advertising prices are determined by the numbers that are counted by Neilsen Ratings -- and DTV is not counted. So for every viewer who watches HDTV that would have otherwise watched the NTSC broadcast, there is one less viewer counted. I have been very surprised how many stations go beyond the lowest requirements and provide HDTV for us OTA let alone over cable. It costs them a lot of money and it gives them no immediate benefits. Local stations benefit by having their NTSC broadcast carried on cable(those additional viewers DO count in the Nielsen Ratings).

2) Cable companies show a large benefit by providing local HDTV that the DBS companies don't have the bandwidth to provde. If I could get local HDTV over cable I'd jump from DirecTV in a second.

3) I'll point out -- one of the benefits of DTV is no static. Of course, you can pull it in or you can't.

4)As I understand it, if a station drops the "must carry" requirement from the cable company, they can charge them for the NTSC rebroadcast. The rules are the same for DTV and Analog in that respect. See http://www.fcc.gov/mb/engineering/digital.html

The "must carry" rules allow the local station to determine whether their station is "must carry" or carried only for payment (i.e. retransmission consent). There are local stations that charge cable companies for carriage. As I understand it, quite a large number of the smaller broadcasting groups (LIN TV, Scripps, Sinclair, etc) have waived their analog "must carry" rights, and have negotiated "retransmission consents" for carriage of their NTSC stations, as well as doing so for the the non-must carry digital transmissions.

There are also battles over this for the bigger media groups -- didn't DishNetwork and Viacomm have a fight over the cost of CBS/Viacomm O&O? Was it Fox that was dropped for awhile by Time Warner last year in Houston? Sometimes payment isn't directly charged -- the larger companies may require the cable company also carry (and pay for) additional programming channels. It works out to the same thing.

6) Time Warner is "willing" to carry CBS in the Portland market only if they don't have to pay for it. I'd be "willing" for that too.


It's my opinion that it should be up to WGME to entice me not to "flip" to WBZ. They've got everything in their favor as far as competing with the Boston station. It shouldn't be out of their reach.

Well, when you compare station budgets, maybe not. However they have the right to avoid that particular competition.

Maybe we could get together for a bear after work some evening to discuss the DTV state of the world.

Take care,

Joe

As a former Radio Shack manager (early to mid 70's), I've sold hundreds of antennas. My reception here, for analog, is terrible. Hopefully, digital will be different. I'm at half price for TW cable and RoadRunner for the next 3 months, but I'll probably go with VOOM after that. I've had Dish, too. I'm not a TW fan, but in this case I think they're right.

CBS, NBC and ABC compete with the superstations. For network programming, there's no reason to watch WBZ in Boston instead of WGME. They would only have to compete with local programming choices, and as you've pointed out, people want to watch local news and events. They would do just fine. Of course, they don't have to compete. They're protected by FCC regulations that would have you believing we're still in the 50's. The regulations will change. In less than 100 years, my grandchildren will be watching movies on TV Peking (TV Pe) and the Korean Network International - KorNI :-)
Frankly, local network affiliates are buggy whips (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buggy_whip) (link for those not familiar with marketing terms). Sooner or later, the 3 networks will drop the locals and go the way of the superstations. They needed locals with the technology of the 50's, but not now. The local stations will provide area news / event coverage and other programming. Those that adapt will survive. The others won't.
When I stop to think about it, aside from sports events (like Nascar and football) and news, I don't remember the last time I watched a show on these networks. I do watch UPN and Fox, if that counts.

It's going to change. I think now would be better than later.

You know, I think you are right. Things are already changing, and these regulations are only at most going to postpone the inevitable. As you say, we no longer rely on OTA for signal delivery.

It seems a shame to me, though, that one of the outcomes of these changes seem to be more consolidation. It is already beginning in some markets -- look at Sinclair Broadcasting's take on "local" news -- "local news" (http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=15718 ). This only follows "local" radio -- there was a company across the street from where I worked in Austin that did this already Star System Radio (http://www.radiodiversity.com/amfmdjsystem.html) also check out this link CapStar Broadcasting (http://www.beatworld.com/news/25.html).

The second link is interesting -- it seems to describe what happened last month with Radio in Southern Maine very well.

I'm afraid, if we aren't careful, local news will soon head the way of local newspapers and radio -- but that, of course, will only be stopped if we open our wallets -- not if we legislate against it.



Take care,

Joe

Very interesting discussion, gentleman, and one that interests me greatly. As a huge Pats fan, I am going to do what it takes to see them in HD this fall. Based on what we've been able to discern, it looks like I'm going to need an OTA set up to do so. I am purchasing a new TV this summer anyway, so I will be looking for one with a built in tuner. Dr. Joe, you seem knowlegeable on this subject, what should I be looking for in terms of these built in tuners? Also, I live right in Portland, do you think I would be able to pull in CBS with just an indoor antenna?

I live in Lewiston and needed a large outdoor rooftop antennna with a pre-amp but now receive strong signals from CBS,NBC, and ABC. Before that I tried an indoor Silver Sensor and picked up a fair signal but had frequent dropouts. I should think that you might be able to pick up a good signal in Portland with the Silver sensor. It's worth a shot before going through the hassle of an outdoor antenna. Good luck!!:)

Originally posted by meander
Very interesting discussion, gentleman, and one that interests me greatly. As a huge Pats fan, I am going to do what it takes to see them in HD this fall. Based on what we've been able to discern, it looks like I'm going to need an OTA set up to do so. I am purchasing a new TV this summer anyway, so I will be looking for one with a built in tuner. Dr. Joe, you seem knowlegeable on this subject, what should I be looking for in terms of these built in tuners? Also, I live right in Portland, do you think I would be able to pull in CBS with just an indoor antenna?

Drop the station engineer at WGME an email to see what he thinks.
Craig Clark <crclark@wgme.sbgnet.com>
I think you have an excellent shot at it. He told me as an aside that "if you can pull in the analog broadcast you can pull in the digital broadcast."Can you get analog 13 with an indoor antenna?

Most HDTV's come without ATSC tuners. You can either get one at a discount by subscribing to DISH/DirecTV or you can buy one used on Ebay (you'll need to make sure their OTA ATSC tuner works without a subscription -- the RCA DTC100 does; not sure about others). Voom is also an interesting choice if you have a deep pocketbook -- they have lots of HD programming. There are also OTA only ATSC STB's -- I'm not sure what they go for. There are also HD tuner cards you can purchase for your computer. If you already have a home entertainment PC, this might the cheapest way to go (MyHD video card, for instance).

Some HDTV's come with internal tuners. The set I have, an RCA F38310 has an internal DTC100. The set was an excellent value, but is not for the faint of heart -- there are major quality problems with the set. If you purchase one, get an extended warranty or be prepared with a soldering iron.

You'll want to look around for the best value -- the hardware forums here will be a big help for you.

Joe

Thank you for the responses. I have spent countless hours in the RPTV forums and have pretty much decided that my next tv will be the new line of Samsung DLP's (the HLP line) due out later this year. There will be models released with and without internal tuners, and up until recently I thought I had no need for one. I just want to make sure that the standard tuner Samsung uses is suitable to pull in WGME. I suspect it is. Thanks again!

Any tuner that says that it can tune OTA ATSC or "digital television" broadcasts should be able to tune all ATSC formats. There should be no problem with any of the local OTA channels (other than possible local antenna reception interference).

Joe

Hey All. Back in Kennebunkport for six months. Looks like not much has changed. No WMTW HD yet being the disappointment. At least it looks like I don't have to call WGME to remind them to turn on their transmitter at 8PM like I used to.

Make sure the set you buy has a DCR (digital cable ready) tuner. This means "plug and play" ............... no cable box to rent for authorized cable channels. These sets will also contain an over the air tuner. Release begins this Summer and Sony has already announced their line of sets. .................. Just think, television sets with actual plug and play cable and over the air tuners! The rush to digital and high definition digital television begins this Summer.

http://news.sel.sony.com/pressrelease/4439

Are there any ISF video calibrators around? Either based out of Maine, or out of the Boston area who make trips up this way? My set is in the shop for a power surge that blew out the main power supply and fried the eeprom. UUnfortunately for me, this means it will need recalibration down the line.


Thanks,

Joe

Dr. Joe, Greg Loewen of Lion Audio/Video Consultants is local to Maine and comes very highly recommended both here and other forums I have visited. Do a search for him on the Display Devices forums at Home Theater Forums here (http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htforum/index.php). The vast majority of people who use him are thrilled. You can check him out on Lion's website here (http://www.lionav.com/mgreggloewen.html). I can't vouch for him personally as my soon-to-be-replaced set is unworthy of his services, but I will be calling upon him once I get my new one. Good luck!

Looks like TWC is poised to add HD-TNT. I noticed it yesterday on channel 551. No programming yet, but the channel is there.

Good news on TNT! The Grid (new TNT show with Dylan McDermott and Juliana Margelies) will be shown in HD, with some yet-to-be-named original programming, along with NBA (does anyone care about the NBA anymore?). Now, for my "beat the dead horse" rant, if we could just get:

1. ESPN-HD (I'm guessing this summer)
2. CBS-HD (not looking good)
3. NESN-HD (no idea)
4. NFL Network (no idea - not currently carried by any cablecos, just D* and VOOM)
5. HD-OnDemand (coming soon according to the HDTV Progamming Synopsis)

TWC has come a long way in the past year but there's more work to be done!

Let me guess, HD-TNT will be part of the $10 tier, right?
Once I'm off this 1/2 price deal with TWC, VOOM may be real tempting. Looks like I got rid of Dish a month too soon. They have our locals now.

Does anyone know the current status of channels 6, 8 and 13? Are they now broadcasting their digital signals at full power? Does anyone know the quality of their signals in the Augusta area? Is there any new info on channels 23, 35 and 51?

I want to buy a high def set sometime in the next year, but I want to know that 6, 8 and 13 are strong in the Augusta area before I do. I recognize that some of you are on a first name basis with key officials of the companies involved and any new information would be greatly appreciated.

Sorry Stan - nothing new as far as I know. 8 is still not passing through the national HD feed.
On the TWC front, TNT-HD is on tonight. Lots of Law and Order. PQ is pretty good. I haven't search the threads, but I'm guessing this is an Upconvert of some sort. Not bad.
I have the HD package..do those without it get it too?

I don't have the HD package and I'm getting it.

Originally posted by Stan54
Does anyone know the current status of channels 6, 8 and 13? Are they now broadcasting their digital signals at full power? Does anyone know the quality of their signals in the Augusta area? Is there any new info on channels 23, 35 and 51?

I want to buy a high def set sometime in the next year, but I want to know that 6, 8 and 13 are strong in the Augusta area before I do. I recognize that some of you are on a first name basis with key officials of the companies involved and any new information would be greatly appreciated.

I'm reposting this from earlier in the thread as there is some updated information

This is the info I have been able to find out about DTV in Maine. Any additions or corrections would be appreciated -- it looks like I am relocating this summer.

Where someone at the station replied to me I listed their name and title (if known), and italicized what they told me.

ERP = effective radiated power
OTA = over the air
STA = special temporary authority
Where I give two numbers for ERP, the first is the special temporary authority (usually a lower power than) the second in parentheses is the full rating

WPME-DT UPN 28 ERP 215 kW not OTA
WPXT-DT WB 4 ERP 10 kW not OTA

Roy Oulette (unknown position)

Our frequencies and power levels did not pass Canadian Coordination so we do not have construction permits for either station. I'm not sure when we will be able to put a digital carrier on the air. We have now entered goverment "red tape" land with the proviso of cross-border relations.(2/03)

As of this past fall, I reconfirmed this with the help of my congressman, Michael Michaud. He was able to get a response from the FCC about the status of these applications -- basically, the FCC is sitting on their thumbs.


WGME-DT CBS 38 500 kW ERP STA (1000 kW ERP) OTA

38-1 Simulcast Analog
38-2 High Definition Channel

Craig Clark (Chief Engineer)

38-2 is active from 12:00PM to 12:30AM


WMTW-DT ABC 46 501 kW ERP STA (1000 kW ERP) OTA

Amy Picucci (Program Coordinator)

Programming on WMTW-DT channel 46 is currently a digital simulcast of the ABC 8 WMTW analog signal from 8-11 pm Monday through Saturday and 7-11 pm on Sundays. These hours will increase in April 2003 to 12 noon to 12 midnight, seven days a week.

We anticipate providing HDTV (High Definition Digital, 720p) pass through of ABC network programs sometime in 2004. (2/03)

Latest news here is that the Hearst-Argyle group is purchasing WMTW. The chief engineer says he expects that they will be very supportive of investing in the equipment it takes to pass throough network HD. The sale was supposed to pass the approval process this past April.

http://www.hearstargyle.com/index2.html is their website; drop them an email to let them know you are excited they are moving in and encourage them to upgrade the DTV tech here to allow HDTV passthrough.

WCSH-DT NBC 44 500 kW ERP STA (1000 kW ERP) OTA

On air 24/7, passing high definition feed when available

WCBB-DT PBS 17 27.9 kW ERP OTA
WMEA-DT (PBS) 45 50 kW ERP OTA

Broadcast on 4 subchannels, now carry PBS network HD content.

WPFO-TV (Fox) Not OTA -- No digital assignment

Analog only, no digital assignment.

Cable Television:

Adelphia Cable does not carry High Definition at this time.

Time Warner Digital Cable carries the following high definition channels: Showtime and HBO (East and West), INHD 1 and 2, HDNet, HDNet Movies, Discovery HD, TNT-HD, NBC (WCSH) and Maine PBS. In York County, they also carry CBS (WBZ -- out of Boston).


I'm adding to the list the stations in Bangor from Jay Ireland's Bangor Post (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=233668):

Bangor ME

WVII-DT (ABC) 14 1.85kW ERP STA (532kW ERP) OTA
Simulcast Analog
Contact: engrabc6@wvii.com

WABI-DT (CBS) 19 235kW ERP STA (363kW ERP) OTA
Now in High Definition, active 12:30PM to 12:30AM
shilz@wabi.com

WLBZ-DT (NBC) 25 500kW ERP STA (1000kW ERP) OTA
HDTV
lgilbert@wlbz.com

WMEB-DT (PBS) 9 15kW ERP OTA
HD/SDTV Multicast Analog

I'm also adding two additional channels to the list -- please confirm if they can be received from New Hampshire in Southern Maine:

WENH-DT (PBS)57 589kW ERP OTA

From University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire. In HD.

WPXG-DT (PAX)33 100kW ERP OTA

From Concord, New Hampshire

Thanks DrJoe. I contacted WMTW's new owners to get an HD update. I'll let you know.

Actually, Adelphia is offering HD as of 4/2004. I live in Lewiston and receive WCSH, PBS, HBO, SHO, STARZ, MAX, and NESN in HD via Adelphia cable. I hope we can start receiving ABC in HD before Monday Night Football and the new fall season starts!! (OTA or otherwise)

any updates on NESN HD for time warner. Every time I watch a sox game they mention a different system that is now carrying the HD signal. Charter, Adelphia, Cox.

does anyone here get Sunday Ticket from DirectTV? I am wondering if Pats games are blacked out here in Southern Maine due to local CBS coverage.

I'm new here and earlier posted info on the main programming forum. I live in Brunswick. My cable company is Suscom. They called today to tell me I'm going to be a beta tester for HDTV. To be installed on Tues. the 8th. The channels are :
ESPNHD
HBOHD
SHOWTIMEHD
CINEMAXHD
DISCOVERYHD
HDNET
HDMOVIES
WCSH.
I have a 51in. Phillips HDTV Monitor.
The benefits of being a tester is free installation and HD free for a month.

My friend who lives in southern Maine is excited about DirecTV offering local channels starting June 10th at 3.30am. all channels will be on there OTA channel numbers. DirecTV should have everything, including the WB and UPN. he says Dish already offers locals but they are missing ABC still.

Adelphia just started broadcasting HDNET & HDNET Movies on 6/9. (Ch 770 & 771). INHD1, INHD2 and ESPN-HD (Ch 772, 774, 775) are also listed in the channel guide for my ZIP (Lewiston). I'm hoping that those channels are added any day now. Will keep you posted! Keep it up Adelphia!

My friend informs me that he is now receiving all locals from DirecTV. so they are all up and running now.

Locals in HD or just the SD? I've assumed you can't get a local channel (like ABC) in HD if the local affiliate isn't up and running yet with HD. Am I wrong?

All the locals are in SD. Directv has said that they will broadcast HD locals to the top 30 markets within 2 years. That won't be us. I guess we'll have to trust our faithful antenna or.... wait for Cable. :rolleyes: I'm just worried about getting ABC and Fox in HD by this fall. WMTW is in the process of being sold and WPFO isn't even broadcasting a digital signal yet!:mad:

My question would be has Direct TV picked up the analog signal or the digital signal of these stations? Sometimes people refer to SD when they mean analog and there is a big difference between that and an SD digital signal. I'm guessing that it is the analog signal they are providing.

It would also seem that it will be a big problem for Direct and Dish if they don't furnish local HD over the next several years.

By the way, channel 8 told me by e-mail that they will start passing along the network HD feed this summer. This is not news on this thread, but the info came in about a week ago so it might be fresher.

Does anyone have word on the scheduling of power increases from the Maine stations? This would be a big step forward in generating interest in the general population.

DirecTV is only providing the analog, standard definition, NTSC, 4:3, 480i signal from each of the local stations. They do not have the bandwidth to do anything more. This should be as good as the signal can get as it will be high quality to DirecTV and then transmitted digitally (unlike cable TV locals which are generaly transmitted analog), but it is not the ATSC DTV broadcast.

WPFO (Fox) will not broadcast digitally until the analog/digital switch is flipped and analog broadcasts cease. Your guess is as good as anyone as to when that will be. On a long shot, they could invest in the equipment to send a DTV signal over cable TV, but I don't expect they would make that investment before they have to.

Don't expect any increase in power until the stations are forced to do so. They are operating under special temporary authority at lower than rated power. Until the FCC recinds that, they have no reason to increase their operating costs beyond what they already are.

There is an EXTREME long shot chance, that when the Fox network HD feed is carried by DirecTV, that WPFO might grant waivers to receive it. Most stations in the past have not. Short term, only folks who live in network O&O markets, or stations who are "local" to the network feeds, will be able to get HD over satellite. Because the local stations are not O&O, and are broadcasting HD (or like ABC soon to), I am fairly sure they will not grant waivers.

FYI: DirecTV says they are providing locals free for two months. If you subscribe to them, they charge you right away. So don't subscribe to them until August.

Later,

Joe

I think that if our local Fox affiliate can't offer even an SD signal that we should be able to receive the Fox HD signal from Directv. It's ridiculous that with Fox HD coming this fall that we can't watch any because our local affiliate is so far behind! I don't believe that the stations are mandated to go digital until 2006 or later. We should be allowed to get waivers if they don't offer a digital signal! Something in the laws needs to change.

Well, there have been discussions on this matter before (see the discussion on WGME CBS DTV and Time Warner Maine). WPFO "owns" the local market, and because they stand to go down in the Nielsen ratings if we watch the network feed, they have the right to refuse waivers.

It really isn't WPFO's choice not to provide us with DTV: they were not on the air when the extra channels for DTV broadcasts were handed out. Because of this, they can broadcast in analog, NTSC or in digital ATSC -- one or the other and not both. Which do you think gets them the most viewers?

I believe that the FCC mandate is to happen in 2006 or when 85% of homes "in an area" are able to watch DTV programming. This could mean that it will be 2008, 2010, or beyond before the switch occurs.

Later,

Joe

It must take place by 12/31/06. The FCC has just decided to count cable subscribers as having digital availability and many people believe this will speed up the transition regarding the 85% requirement.

This is what a friend of mine who is an engineer at a television station said regarding the FCC deadlines:

I asked him if a Dec. 31, 2006 deadline had been set. He replied:

No, not yet. There is a proposal that the FCC has put forward that is getting good reviews from Congress and others and looks like will happen. It is this, on a date, yet to be determined but assumed to be 12/31/06, the FCC will look at the viewers who receive TV via NON OTA and they would count ALL cable/sat subscribers as digital viewers, even if they don't own a digital TV. If the number is 85% or higher, the market turns off analog. If it is lower than 85%, then Jan 1 2009, they cut off analog. Congress has also put into the mix a proposal of using proceeds from the auctioning of the spectrum to pay for STB's for those who can't afford new TV's. Estimated cost, $30 million out of the estimated $80 billion in the auction. None of this has passed yet, it is all still proposals. Best guess is it will be passed before the election, but that is no sure bet.

You don't happen to know what the cable/sat pentration is for Maine, do you? How far from Portland is considered the Portland Market? It may be that there are enough folks out in the boonies without cable to keep us from hitting the 85% mark by whatever date they finally hit on, which might mean there would be an additional two years before the switch is pulled in the Portland/Bangor markets.


Joe

Please excuse me. I should not have said that it has been decided to count cable / sat subscribers. This proposal is currently BEING CONSIDERED FAVORABLY. I knew better, but must have been tired. You are entirely correct. It is good news, though.

I have a friend in Maine that tells me about these issues. he told me that he contacted the local Fox station, as they call themselves FOX-23 or WPFO. it took a long time but the station manager told him that they simply didn't have the money required to broadcast a digital or HD signal alongside their analog one. it does cost a lot to do so, and they are for most part a low income-low budget station that doesn't even offer local news. he is very dissapointed with them becasue he wants the Fox HD feed for his new Sony HDTV. he asked me if there was anyone who knew if they could receive the digital channel 57 NH PBS feed OTA in the Portland area or any other out of state digital/HD broadcasts. does anyone know?

Thanks for the info, miniz. I wonder what the solution is eventually going to be for FOX 23. There is going to have to be one. Better sooner than later.






















ox

just noticed on my tuner that wmtw had remaped itself from 46-1 to 8-1 and wonder of wonders, its hd, no sub-channel either. alan

I'm contemplating putting an anntenna up and was wondering if anyone from Vermont is receiving any OTA Hd from the Maine stations.

I live right on the Connecticut River (05033) and used to get the analog of channel 8 WMTW crystal clear when they were on Mt Washington a few years back. I know they broadcast from further East now so I don't know if I can get them. Anyway, that was on a rusty old tangled bent thing that I tore down when Dish Network got the Vermont locals and I have not replaced yet.

I am able to get an HD signal from the NH PBS in Littleton, NH with just a Silver Sensor sitting in my front Lawn. Just trying to see if it's worth investing in a decent anntenna. My house is at almost 800 ft elevation with views to East & South.
Thanks,
WaltinVt

Regarding WMTW....
really HD or just DTV? Their mappings have been periodically turning on and off over the last few months. One day its 46-1..the next its 8-1.
I'd be surprised (but very happy!) if they had finally put the equipment in to pass on the national HD feed.
I guess I'll just have to check for myself tonight!

WMTW told my friend that should be online in HD very soon, by the end of July at the latest. They should also be on channel 508 on digital/HD cable, he tells me.
~again is there anyone who can receive channel 57 digital form NH PBS in the Portland area, or any Boston digital/HD local stations?

anyone?

Originally posted by miniz
WMTW told my friend that should be online in HD very soon, by the end of July at the latest. They should also be on channel 508 on digital/HD cable, he tells me.
~again is there anyone who can receive channel 57 digital form NH PBS in the Portland area, or any Boston digital/HD local stations?

that would be good news indeed, in time for the Pats first game of the season on Sept. 9th! :D

sorry, miniz, i don't recieve any OTA signals yet so I'm no help answering your question...thanks for the good news re: WMTW though!

anyone at all? there must be someone who posted earlier in this thread who does or has?

well, i'm not crying wolf this time. channel 8 is up and passing hd, and 5.1 is lighting up. but we gain one and lose another, whats with cbs 13? anyone know? no hd since saturday. someone tell me that their not passing hd because their working on getting 5.1 up. alan

Just curious how far away WMTW's HD signal is reaching ? I live in Bradford, Vt (05033) which is right on the Vermont side of the Connecticut River.

I used to get the old channel 8 crystle clear when it transmitted from Mt Washington a few years ago before the fire. Since then my old antenna system went kaput. I would consider installing a new one if I thought I could get the signal.

Does anyone know if any other Maine channels (HD) are reaching Vermont.

WaltinVt

I'm reposting this from earlier in the thread as there is some updated information.

This is the info I have been able to find out about DTV in Maine. Any additions or corrections would be appreciated -- it looks like I am relocating this summer.

Where someone at the station replied to me I listed their name and title (if known), and italicized what they told me.

ERP = effective radiated power
OTA = over the air
STA = special temporary authority
Where I give two numbers for ERP, the first is the special temporary authority (usually a lower power than) the second in parentheses is the full rating

WPME-DT UPN 28 ERP 215 kW not OTA
WPXT-DT WB 4 ERP 10 kW not OTA

Roy Oulette (unknown position)

Our frequencies and power levels did not pass Canadian Coordination so we do not have construction permits for either station. I'm not sure when we will be able to put a digital carrier on the air. We have now entered goverment "red tape" land with the proviso of cross-border relations.(2/03)

As of this past fall, I reconfirmed this with the help of my congressman, Michael Michaud. He was able to get a response from the FCC about the status of these applications -- basically, the FCC is sitting on their thumbs.


WGME-DT CBS 38 500 kW ERP STA (1000 kW ERP) OTA

38-1 Simulcast Analog
38-2 High Definition Channel

Craig Clark (Chief Engineer)

38-2 is active from 12:00PM to 12:30AM


WMTW-DT ABC 46 501 kW ERP STA (1000 kW ERP) OTA

Amy Picucci (Program Coordinator)

Programming on WMTW-DT channel 46 is currently a digital simulcast of the ABC 8 WMTW analog signal from 8-11 pm Monday through Saturday and 7-11 pm on Sundays. These hours will increase in April 2003 to 12 noon to 12 midnight, seven days a week.

We anticipate providing HDTV (High Definition Digital, 720p) pass through of ABC network programs sometime in 2004. (2/03)

Latest news here is that the Hearst-Argyle group is purchasing WMTW. The chief engineer says he expects that they will be very supportive of investing in the equipment it takes to pass throough network HD. The sale was supposed to pass the approval process this past April.

http://www.hearstargyle.com/index2.html is their website; drop them an email to let them know you are excited they are moving in and encourage them to upgrade the DTV tech here to allow HDTV passthrough.

They may now be providing an HDTV pass through -- there are reports of dolby digital 5.1 audio. The may eventually be on 508 on Time Warner digitalcable.

Their STA is still listed on the FCC website as being in effect, so I don't know if they will be upping their output power any time soon.

WCSH-DT NBC 44 500 kW ERP STA (1000 kW ERP) OTA

On air 24/7, passing high definition feed when available

WCBB-DT PBS 17 27.9 kW ERP OTA
WMEA-DT (PBS) 45 50 kW ERP OTA

Broadcast on 4 subchannels, now carry PBS network HD content.

WPFO-TV (Fox) Not OTA -- No digital assignment

Analog only, no digital assignment.

Cable Television:

Adelphia Cable in Androscoggin County is offering HD as of 4/2004. WCSH, PBS, HBO HD, Showtime HD, Starz HD, Cinemax HD, HDNet, HDNet Movies, INHD1, INHD2, ESPN HD and NESN HD.

Time Warner Digital Cable carries the following high definition channels: Showtime and HBO (East and West), INHD 1 and 2, HDNet, HDNet Movies, Discovery HD, TNT-HD, NBC (WCSH) and Maine PBS. In York County, they also carry CBS (WBZ -- out of Boston).

Suscom in Brunswick carries ESPNHD, HBO and Showtime HD, Cinemax HD, Discovery HD, HDNet, HDNet Movies, and WCSH.


I'm adding to the list the stations in Bangor from Jay Ireland's Bangor Post (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=233668):

Bangor ME

WVII-DT (ABC) 14 1.85kW ERP STA (532kW ERP) OTA
Simulcast Analog
Contact: engrabc6@wvii.com

WABI-DT (CBS) 19 235kW ERP STA (363kW ERP) OTA
Now in High Definition, active 12:30PM to 12:30AM
shilz@wabi.com

WLBZ-DT (NBC) 25 500kW ERP STA (1000kW ERP) OTA
HDTV
lgilbert@wlbz.com

WMEB-DT (PBS) 9 15kW ERP OTA
HD/SDTV Multicast Analog

I'm also adding two additional channels to the list -- please confirm if they can be received from New Hampshire in Southern Maine:

WENH-DT (PBS)57 589kW ERP OTA

From University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire. In HD.

WPXG-DT (PAX)33 100kW ERP OTA

From Concord, New Hampshire

Walt,

Take a look at the list above. The broadcast power is listed. You should be able to guess from that number whether you have a chance of receiving it.

For comparison, WMTW's broadcasting at 501kW ERP. This compares to their analog transmission of 306kW ERP. If you can pull in WMTW in analog now, you probably can pull in the digital signal. When they go full power, 1000kW, you will have a better shot (there is no definite timetable as to when this will happen).

You can go to the FCC TV search page at http://www.fcc.gov/mb/video/tvq.html to check the other stations' analog powers. Type in the call letters in the "call sign" window, click on "TV Query Detailed Output" in the output window, and click "submit data". There are linkable maps so you can see exactly where the transmitters are.


Joe

Anybody else having problems with WCSH? It has been pixelating on me a number of times. Hope it gets worked out prior to the Olympics. Also, any update on WMTW going HD. They have not replied to my email. Thanks.

My friend in Maine told me that WMTW just got back to him today. They said that they are currently in the testing phase of HD, and hope to have the HD when available feed completly done within the next few weeks. He also said the WCSH on digital/HD cable channel 506 is very problematic and cuts out or gets really pixelated alot. Time Warner tells him that it is WCSH's problem since no other channels have this problem. Again, he would like to know is there is anyone is the Portland area who is receiving the Boston local channels in digital/HD OTA? he also still would like to know if channel 57 digital can be received in his area?

Originally posted by alann555
well, i'm not crying wolf this time. channel 8 is up and passing hd, and 5.1 is lighting up.

Just wanted to confirm, I'm getting channel 8 in HD & 5.1 tonight, too. Great news!

I notice the 50" Samsung plasma at Best Buy that I had been drooling over is gone. 3.6K Wow! Just wondering if any one of you bought it?

Originally posted by redinger
Just wanted to confirm, I'm getting channel 8 in HD & 5.1 tonight, too. Great news!

I hope it's only a matter of time before TWC picks up this feed!!

Originally posted by meander
I hope it's only a matter of time before TWC picks up this feed!!

YES!!!! HD tonight too.

I actually spent a night just surfing OTA HD for the first time in awhile. Flipping from Stephen King on ABC, to CSI on CBS, then a show on Submarines on PBS-HD, and finally onto NBC for Casino. Amazing.
Might have to consider going off the grid if this keeps up! :)
I saw a few posts about the quality of NBC, and I can confirm that it is a WCSH issue. They seemed to have lost some power or something, because they certainly the weakest of the 4 signals last night.

A couple of you fellows are on a first name basis with significant people at the local stations. Can you get a handle on when the stations might increase their power levels? There's a lot of folks 50, 60 or 70 miles away that would love to be able to grab their signals. It would be disasterous to Maine HDTV progress if the stations wait until they turn off their analog signals. When people know it is available they will make the big purchase.

Originally posted by jkurlanski

I saw a few posts about the quality of NBC, and I can confirm that it is a WCSH issue. They seemed to have lost some power or something, because they certainly the weakest of the 4 signals last night.

Haven't watched much NBC HD lately, but when I have the signal is barely marginal in K'port. We need to call them Monday to see what's up, esp before the Olympics.

Just talked to WCSH engineering. Today their signal was bouncing from 70 to mostly less than 20 (blank screen). All other stations above 85. They were not aware of any problems. If you have problems please call them during normal business hours at 828-6666 and ask for engineering. Thanks.

My friend in Maine, tells me that he talked to TWC and WCSH about the super poor PQ, including constant pixelation, picture drop outs and loss of signal alltogether for as much as 3 or 4 days at a time. he found that TWC fails to notify WCSH about problems, and leaves it to the customer to do so. The signal problems are most likely caused by TWC receiving the signal, as they do it OTA and not by fiber at this time. He tells me that he will report back to me as soon as WCSH or TWC tells him more info about what is going on.
~Again he would like to know if anyone is able to receive Boston or NH locals in digital/HD in or just outside of the Portland area?

miniz,

Nobody has ever responded positively to the question you are answering. I think that means that nobody is pulling in NH stations in the Portland area. According to TitanTV it may be possible to pull in two NH stations -- WENH-DT (PBS) from University of New Hampshire, Durham and WPXG-DT (PAX) from Concord. The reason no one does may be due to the fact that the Portland broadcast towers are in the opposite direction and no one in the area has a second antenna or a rotator which can be used to position their antennas to bring these stations in. The last I checked, the other stations in NH are broadcasting at too low a power to receive in the Portland area.

Joe

I've rotated my antenna towards NH, but haven't picked anything up. However, my antenna is in my attic, and I live in Yarmouth, so someone from Portland with a rooftop antenna might have better luck than me.

WCSH has just about no signal now (less than 20). They need more phone calls. Try them at 828-6666. Also, before the locals went HD, I could occasionally get the Boston affiliates from Kennebunkport.

seems to be a lot of resistance these days to antennas on the roof. cable co. ads from years ago about ugly antennas did quite a job. p.m. ed miniz a few weeks ago on this issue. pax 33 comes in quite often early morning and late night or at least blinks on the tuner. does not need topo help just a little more kw. but terrible pq for a dt station. n.h. pbs nothing. only 70 miles and lots of kw. analog 11 is just a blank screen not even static, yet 19 in bangor at 80 miles is reliable. you might be supprised just how often boston digitals find their way to poland. especially 30 [4]. their so close but just out of reach at the moment. portland should be better over the water and all alan

Originally posted by alann555
seems to be a lot of resistance these days to antennas on the roof. cable co. ads from years ago about ugly antennas did quite a job.

Nah, I'm just too lazy to hop up on my roof and figure out the easiest way to get the cable into the house. It was much easier to just pop into the attic, drill a hole in the floor and drop the cable down. And things work fine for me from there. :)

Talked with a WCSH engineer for half an hour Monday. My signal had dropped to less than 20 (no picture). He even cranked up their power from 50% to 75%. That didn't help until it knocked them off the air (oops). Signal was a strong 70% yesterday, but freeze pixielations (for 1/2 a second) still occur. Not sure why they can't get it straight. If you get freeze frames from them, please call them at 828-6666 and ask for the chief engineer. thanks

This is great. You are really on the job and working out some of the kinks before more people start using HDTV and becoming discouraged. It's hard to believe that the engineer actually cranked up the power. It would seem to be a violation of their authority, but I'm glad to see this kind of testing getting done.

Thanks for keeping us informed.

From WMTW:

http://www.wmtw.com/Global/story.asp?S=2088815

"Making high definition available signals the first of many significant changes that viewers will see as a result of the ownership change of WMTW to Hearst/Argyle Television."


Later

Joe

My friend says that a technical broadcast manager he has been working with at WCSH told him today, that their Time Warner Cable issues on channel 506 should be resloved. Time Warner over the weekend finnished upgrading their HD OTA system to better receive WCSH-DT. He also says that plans are in works for a direct fiber link for the digital transmission between WCSH and TWC. This fiber link should further help the signal. He says he will let me know if he has anymore problems with that channel, as the only problem left is lip sink audio dubbing, but that may take longer to fix. He also says, his TWC contact has let him know that ABC-HD should be added to channel 508 very soon, as they are working on it every day now.

Originally posted by miniz
He also says that plans are in works for a direct fiber link for the digital transmission between WCSH and TWC.

Wow, what a difference from the deal with WGME. WGME says pay us to rebroadcast our signal. Somebody, somewhere is paying for a fiber link between WCSH and TWC. Okay, I know WE are paying for that link, but it just shows the difference in management.

I think we can all agree that a little more fiber is a good thing.

Originally posted by BL
I think we can all agree that a little more fiber is a good thing.

Mr. Whipple can.

Not much of an update, but Laurie at TWC replied to an inquiry of mine stating that WMTW should be up on CH 508 on or around August 2nd, well in time for the Pats opener on Sept. 9th! I also asked about ESPN (I know, it's stuck in corporate negotiations), CBS (ditto) and NFL Network (they just added a bunch of small cableco's - hopefully TWC will be soon!) - she had no comment on any of those....

Originally posted by meander
....Laurie at TWC replied to an inquiry of mine stating that WMTW should be up on CH 508 on or around August 2nd.....

Well, that's better than the reply I got from Deana.
"HD programming is being offered as it becomes available to Time Warner Cable from the networks. At this time we do not have a specific date as to when additional HD programming will be added. Our customers will be notified as the channels are added."

I'd like to watch the Patriots pre-season game on 8/13 in HD. Even if the feed doesn't originate in HD, it's bound to be better than nothing.
So, according to your news, I can keep my fingures crossed?

Originally posted by GTX_SlotCar
I'd like to watch the Patriots pre-season game on 8/13 in HD. Even if the feed doesn't originate in HD, it's bound to be better than nothing.
So, according to your news, I can keep my fingures crossed?

I'm not sure where you are located, but here in the Portland area, WMTW can only carry the pre-season games on tape delay. Apparently they can only air live in the Boston market per NFL rules. In York county, TWC offers the Boston locals to all subscribers, so I usually head to my friends house in Wells if I want to watch the pre-season live. Also, this is a local broadcast originating from WCVB - ABC Boston, and is not shot in HD.

Channel 508 (ABC) was up on TWC last night. No testing or anything, it just popped up. Not sure about HD because they were showing the Golf Scramble last night. But it was there!

I am happy to report that I was incorrect regarding the Pats pre-season games this year....they are finally going to air them live. The link to the press release is here. (http://www.wmtw.com/Global/story.asp?S=2126231) AFAIK, it will not be shown in HD.

I am now able to receive NBC, CBS, ABC, and PBS via outside antennas and a Samsung T165 HDTV receiver (the PBS channel is channel 45 out of Biddeford, I could not pick up the Augusta PBS channel), and I just subscribed to Adelphia for their HDTV package. They gave me a new Motorola 6200 HDTV receiver, and aside from the fact that it took them until after midnight to figure out that they needed to initialize it first to make it work, everything is working great. :D Keep those HDTV channels coming!

For those of you with TWC - The Red Sox are currently on InHD Channel 530 and not blacked out. What a beautiful picture. Nice to finally see the Home Team in HD.

It wasn't blacked out?!? BAH! I wasn't around last night but that would've been great. Wonder if that was an "oops" or will be a regular occurance.

My guess would be the former. I can't believe NESN-HD would agree to that.

Also, I am motivated for that to be the answer, as I just gave up on the HD tier because I got tired of paying for channels that never have anything on that I want to see.

Hi All,
I'm not getting anything since last night on 6-1 or 6-2 OTA. Did the rain over the weekend do bad things??
I'm in Windham...:confused:

I know there are some football fans here and I wonder if you are aware that ABC will not be showing Monday Night Football in high definition this year. They made an announcement the other day.

Originally posted by Stan54
I know there are some football fans here and I wonder if you are aware that ABC will not be showing Monday Night Football in high definition this year. They made an announcement the other day.

I'm not sure if you are referring to ABC national or our local affiliate (WMTW), but both have been confirmed as HD. The national press release is here (http://www.abcmedianet.com/pressrel/dispDNR.html?id=041404_11#) and the local announcement is here (http://www.wmtw.com/Global/story.asp?S=2088815).

If there was a recent announcement reversing these, please post a link. No offense, but I certainly hope you are wrong, I'm looking forward to the Pats in HD on opening night!

I know the site where I saw the info, so I'll go back and try to find it. It's one of the HD news info sites that lists links to other sites.

Disregard what I said earlier. I cannot find what I read and I really tried to do so.

While searching, I found the announcement in April that all Monday Night Football would be in HD. I learned that MNF was in financial trouble and might go to ESPN. Somehow, this might NBC to have Sunday night games.

Anyway, I have spent a lot of time trying to find what I based my comment on. I apologize and know that I should have been prepared with the link, since the information would concern many people.

We will soon know for sure on this subject and I hope that I am dead wrong. It will be worth the embarassment.

The following is a reply from NESN as to why we don't have NESN HD on TWC in Portland. I couldn't get over the answer!! I have asked TWC if this ia a true statement.

From: Gary A. Roy [mailto:groy@nesn.com]
Sent: Tuesday, August 24, 2004 2:31 PM
To:
Subject: NESN


Dear Sir,

As you probably already know, NESN is on Time Warner Cable in Maine. I am assuming you are asking about getting NESN's HD broadcasts of Red Sox games, which at this time are not available via Time Warner. We want to deliver our HD broadcasts to Time Warner, however they have indicated that they don't see enough demand for this programming in your area. You can help by calling Time Warner and letting them know that you are interested in getting NESN HD.

If you have any other questions, please feel free to call me at (617) 536-9233.

Sincerely,
Gary A. Roy
Promotions/Public Relations Manager

darey1: I think we need to read between the lines, as in "they don't see enough demand for this programming in your area (to pay the extra money we demand for our HD feed)." Eventually, it all comes down to $$$.

It probably is true. It may be the same story as with ESPN and WGME, they do not want to pay more money for a simulcast of what they are already getting in SD. I am still waiting for the response from TWC. I still have aproblem with the fact that all the other MSOs in the state are getting all the channels we aren't getting. We'll see what happens.

Time Warner is a frustrating company to deal with. Their service is terrible and many of the technicians are rude. I'm not at all surprised by their reluctance to provide customers with the best possible service.

FWIW, I'm not sure the WGME, ESPN and NESN situations are exactly similar. Cost, profit and expense are undoubtedly at the center of each relationship. But Sinclair Broadcasting, WGME's owner, is known nationally for playing hardball with cable cos over HD feeds; everything I've heard about ESPN, which is owned by Disney, is that an agreement must come at the TW corporate level, not the local cable co. I haven't heard anything about NESN's reputation with cable cos, but the Sox are NESN's majority owner, and The New York Times Co. is a minority owner -- there's got to be something dysfunctional in there somewhere. :-)

I agree with mainemojo on the CBS and ESPN situations. I guess my problem is that TWC says there is not enough demand in our area to go after NESN HD. I don't ever remember a poll asking how many people would be interested in NESN if it were available. What are they basing their numbers on? Number of HD cable boxes issued? Or the number of HDTVs being sold in the area? or the number of people calling and requesting NESN HD? I just don't get the rational. Still waiting to hear from TWC on this issue. Probably will get the standard answer. Still in negotiations. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the HD they do provide, especially the chance to see at least one NFL game each week in HD. I just think for the money, they can provide more.

Great News – I just received the following E-mail from Time Warner.


Time Warner Cable is pleased to announce we have an agreement to carry ESPN HD! This will be launching soon and will be part of the HD Tier. ESPN HD will be shown on Channel 534. We hope you enjoy the newest addition to our HD Tier lineup.

Just when I was about to throw in the towel....channel is not up yet, but this is confirmed on the other threads in the forum. I was so resigned to this not happening for a couple years that I'm not even sure how to react. WOW.

I am also feeling a little more positive after seeing the Pat's opener on 508 on Thursday--I thought the picture quality was great and a huge improvement over the up-converted SD I have been watching.

Adding NESN HD for the end of the year Sox action would be the icing on the cake. It seems like every game I watch the announcers (admittedly NESN employees) talking about the record number of viewers watching and the records they anticipate to be set with the upcoming Yankees series. I can't believe there isn't huge local demand for NESN.

According to Laurie Russell at the Portland office, ESPN-HD will be added "shortly" to the HD Tier, Channel 534. Great news indeed! They literally pulled me back in just as I was on the brink of switching to D*. I am now fully back on board with TWC, but still wish we could add the NFL Network, CBS-HD and NESN-HD. Overall though, I'd say they just filled a HUGE void with the addition of ESPN.


p.s. Just curious, but does anyone know why this thread title was changed?

Funny...I just sent Laurie an email as well regarding ESPN. I gave another pester about NESN too. We've got to be the last cable co. in New England without NESN-HD!
No clue about the thread change...it must've just happened.

Is anyone here using the SA8000HD DVR box? I'm wondering if TWC has activated the DVI input yet. Last I knew the SA3250HD was the only cable box available locally that had an active DVI port....

I've been wondering the same thing....Got my DVI cable ready!

DVI is not active on the SA8000HD box. Still waiting on a firmware upgrade I guess.
BUT there is a new HD DVR box coming about either this week or next the SA 8300HD but tech was unsure about additionally functionality.

Originally posted by sagecounsel
BUT there is a new HD DVR box coming about either this week or next the SA 8300HD but tech was unsure about additionally functionality.

Thanks, sagecounsel. Based on your findings I looked and found a thread with info and impressions of the new 8300HD from the HDTV Recorders forum here. (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=431185)

It seems as though the 8300 is just rolling out across the country and, as such, is working through some bugs. FYI, someone on this same thread states that the DVI port activation for the 8000 is coming in October.

One Tech I spoke with said that the new 8300 does not have a DVI port but the new HDMI port, so you may want to start pricing out the HDMI to DVI converter plugs.

Also, at this point I wouldn't think that SA would bother activate the 8000 DVI ports, when they can up-sell the new 8300's.

But hey, that part is just a guess. Stranger things have happened. :)

*edit* well, i guess i shoulda read the above link first, cause i really didn't say anything new !) *goes and stands quietly in the corner*

Did the tech mention whether the 8300 activated the SD out (through RCAs) for taping, Tivo, etc.?

From what he said it appears that the SD out through RCA's is active.

Looks like ESPN HD is up on ch 534

Got an email from Laurie indicating it was live today. Whuhoo! Now, what's on? :)

On a whim I emailed the Chief Engineer at Fox to see if they had a status on HD. He replied:
"Good Morning Joe, WPFO is scheduled this October to have the Fox High def gear installed with couple of problems. One this station was purchased from Paxson and Paxson did not apply for a Digital Channel assignment. WPFO will apply for one when the FCC opens the next window for accepting applications. The other problem is we will be lacking two pieces of equipment to allow us to get the signal to Time Warner which has agreed to carry our HD signal on their cable system. I am working with corporate folks to fix this. I am sure that this will be posted on our web site fox23me.com when we come on line with any HD programming."
Atleast we know they're moving forward! Anyone have an idea when the next window for digital assignment is?

Originally posted by jkurlanski
Anyone have an idea when the next window for digital assignment is?

Looks like the freeze is on "until further notice."

Filing Freeze (http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-04-2446A1.doc)

My understanding is that there will be no new digital channel assignments until the plug is "pulled" on analog service. Then, WPFO will go digital on channel 23. This could be as soon as Dec 31, 2006, but there are extensions allowed for local market conditions (the failure of one or more of the largest TV stations in a market to begin broadcasting digital TV signals due to causes outside the broadcasters control, or if fewer than 85% of the TV households in a market are able to receive digital TV signals off the air either with a digital TV set or with an analog set equipped with a converter box or subscribe to a cable-type service that carries the DTV stations in the market).

On August 3rd, 2004, the FCC put a freeze on the filing of petitions for things like signal maximization, channel assignment changes, etc. They say, "The Commission is in the process of developing a channel election and repackaging process that will assign to eligible television broadcasters a post-transition DTV channel in the core television spectrum (i.e. channels 2-51). This freeze is a necessary first step to ensure a stable television database prior to the commencement of the channel election process."

See http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-04-2446A1.pdf for details.

I see. What the engineer at FOX was actually saying was they will be giving TWC the HD/Digital feed before they can broadcast it OTA, correct? (Once they get the two pieces of equipment in first.) I didn't occur to me that they could do that.

So, is there anything on ESPN-HD? I notice that they stuck it on the "HD Tier" which I got rid of after finding that virtually nothing was on the four channels.
When ESPN HD first came on, I checked and saw that although regular ESPN was carrying Red Sox/Yankeees, that HD was not (I think it was rodeo).

Has the content been better than that since?

I'm not sure if he is saying that or not. You might ask him for clarification.

It would be very generous of the station to do so.


Joe

I just heard from Amy at channel 8 that the chief engineer just said that the digital station will go to full power early in 2005.

I heard from channel 13 recently that it has not been determined when the digital station will go to full power.

They are currently digital 24/7.

FOX has shown up on TWC at channel 507. No programming at this time. I can only assume they're testing
ITS KILLING ME...RED SOX ARE ON!

It's killing me too!!! This could be the last chance to see them in HD this year!! I hope not!!

Its gone tonight...guess they jumped the gun. Or we're being lurked by TWC and/or PFO :) Wouldn't mind that a bit!
Go Sox.

Maybe it will come back on in time for us to watch the Sox in the World Series!! Go SOX. Keep that lead!!

Hello everyone. My friend in Maine, around the Portland area-who you have answered questions for before has just sent me new question to post here. He wants to know if anyone with DirecTV in the area can post a review of their reception (such as: when it comes in best, worst, if winter- snow, rain or ice hurts the signal) ? He would also like to know how well the local channels look, (if any look better than others) and if you subscribe to any HD programming by satellite, how is it effected by the local weather? He would also like to know what local taxes apply to DirecTV, or any out of state satellite service for that matter? He thanks you for your help and I do too!

As far as I can tell there are no taxes.

When I got HD service, I paid:

$39.99 Total Choice Plus Locals
$10.99 HD Program Pack
$04.99 Extra Receiver 1
$04.99 Extra Receiver 2
---------
$60.96 monthly

As far as reception goes, when there were heavy thunderstorms or snowstorms, the signal broke up. HD channels broke up first, and then standard def channels if the storm is bad. Generally light rain wasn't a problem, only heavy storms. However, I would point out that most of us unplug our sets during thunderstorms anyways, and cable is often knocked out by storms as well. The dish is situated at the highest point on the roof so that sun falls on it and last year at least I did not have problems with it filling up with ice or snow -- but I have heard this can be a problem.

I don't really understand your question about local channels -- standard definition locals look fine, and I would say they are actually better than OTA or over cable: cable companies generally send local channels in analog (so that they can be tuned directly by standard definition television sets without a digital set top box). Because they are analog, they pick up noise. This noise is not present via DirecTV (which is an inherently digital transmission). As far as OTA digital locals, reception will bepend on any number of things including the local terrain and your proximity to the transmitter towers.

Joe

For the locals he means the ones you get by satellite not OTA. So you are saying that even local sales tax doesn't apply to a DirecTV subscription? There is no FCC fee's or anything else? Thanks for your reply! He would still like to hear from a few other people, esp. ones who are closer to the Portland area (and the Ocean).

I'm not sure why proximity to Portland or to the ocean would make a difference. More important is what kind of view of the sky he has (are there trees surrounding his house which might block the view of the dish to the satellite?) The dish points south, so this is the important view. I have heard of people who have poor summer reception (because of leaves) but good winter reception (because the trees are bare).

Joe

He tells me that in the winter Portland and the area's along the ocean can get significantly different weather then further inland. More or less snow, high or lower temps, as the ocean effects the weather and air alot. This may impact sat reception due to the ice, snow, or heavy rain. He would have a clear shot to all 3 sats. there are no tree's or anything blocking the south and southwestern side of the house, just an open field and lots of wetlands. There isn't a house for at least 2 miles on that side of the his house. Sounds great to me.

Dr. Joe - would you be able to get a waiver for FOX-HD via DirectTV since they won't be able to broadcast OTA? I've never quite got into the whole waiver process since I've never gone the satellite way.

It would be up to WPFO.

As I understand it, WPFO would have to give me a full waiver -- so that I could receive the national Fox NTSC as well as ATSC broadcast. They can't just grant a waiver for the HD version. In most markets television stations are loath to grant waivers to give access to the ATSC broadcast because it also grants a waiver for the NTSC broadcast.

I will likely apply for a waiver (or at least inquire at WPFO on the likelyhood of the request being granted) when FOX HD is carried by DirecTV.


Joe

My firend says he would be interested to hear about Dr. Joe's waiver when and if he applies for it for FOX-HD. Anyone else here who has DirecTV near Portland's coast who could answer the above questions I have posted?

anyone?

Originally posted by miniz
My firend says he would be interested to hear about Dr. Joe's waiver when and if he applies for it for FOX-HD. Anyone else here who has DirecTV near Portland's coast who could answer the above questions I have posted?

I am a DirecTV customer in the "mid-coast". I had DirecTV apply for the Fox waiver for me and got it. I now get the national Fox feeds and have been happily watching the Red Sox in HD.

If you go to the Directv website, click on programming, then local channels and find a zip code in Maine that will not be getting locals anytime soon. (go north and east of Bangor)
and enter your zip code, you will see if you qualify for the distant nets. If you qualify for the distant nets you automatically will receive the HD feeds of the same channels that are available. Right now that is CBS and NBC. They are doing a special presentation of the MLB playoffs and World Series on FOX and if you already receive Fox on 388 and 389 you qualify and get the games in HD. Supposedly, Fox is supposed to be on on full time in HD in the near future. To be honest the best way to get all the distant nets is to play the zip code roulette wheel. Find an unserved area in Maine, (there are plenty of zip codes that qualify) and tell them your receiver is located in that location (summer home or camp) and you have a separate billing address. This way you dont ever have to worry about waivers. It works people. It may not be ethical, but it works.:cool:

Here is the link to try zip codes

http://directvdnseligibility.decisionmark.com/app/AddressEntry.asp

Originally posted by Webini
I am a DirecTV customer in the "mid-coast". I had DirecTV apply for the Fox waiver for me and got it. I now get the national Fox feeds and have been happily watching the Red Sox in HD.
Can you answer the other questions which I posted, since you life close to the ocean?

THE RED SOX WIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm crying and laughing. Wow.
Sorry for the quick OT.

"Hello everyone. My friend in Maine, around the Portland area-who you have answered questions for before has just sent me new question to post here. He wants to know if anyone with DirecTV in the area can post a review of their reception (such as: when it comes in best, worst, if winter- snow, rain or ice hurts the signal) ? He would also like to know how well the local channels look, (if any look better than others) and if you subscribe to any HD programming by satellite, how is it effected by the local weather? He would also like to know what local taxes apply to DirecTV, or any out of state satellite service for that matter? He thanks you for your help and I do too!"

As long as you have a clear shot to the satellites, it has to be a very heavy rain in order to have "searching for satellite signal to appear". During the winter time when we have mixed precipitation, the ice can build up on the dish and LNB and cause total signal loss. My solution for this is to grab my kids supersoaker and fill it with hot water and Im back in business again. This rarely happens and in my opinion there is more lost time from someone hitting a telephone pole once with cable than I have all year long with Directv. I have never seen any local taxes or out of state taxes on my bill.

Originally posted by Webini
I am a DirecTV customer in the "mid-coast". I had DirecTV apply for the Fox waiver for me and got it. I now get the national Fox feeds and have been happily watching the Red Sox in HD.

First of all I (along with my friend) would like to thank wingnut1111 for the info!
-Webini did you use your actual address or did you "move" your receivers service location to some other unserved place in Maine? If you used your actual location for the waiver, what does DirecTV list your WPFO fox 23 signal stregth as? (A, B, ect.) click on the link provided by wingnut1111 on page 23 of this thread to see. please post your findings, as it may help us see who fox 23 grants waivers. Thanks!

Originally posted by miniz
Can you answer the other questions which I posted, since you life close to the ocean?

It is true, the weather near the coast is different from inland. You never know. Sometimes we get more snow on the coast due to the track of a storm. Rare, but it happens.

I have only lost D* signal 4 or 5 times due to weather over the past 4 years. Much less than the &^(*&%( Suscom cable would go out!

Originally posted by miniz
First of all I (along with my friend) would like to thank wingnut1111 for the info!
-Webini did you use your actual address or did you "move" your receivers service location to some other unserved place in Maine? If you used your actual location for the waiver, what does DirecTV list your WPFO fox 23 signal stregth as? (A, B, ect.) click on the link provided by wingnut1111 on page 23 of this thread to see. please post your findings, as it may help us see who fox 23 grants waivers. Thanks!

Used my actual address, it grades out as "A". No idea why they granted the waiver. It may be because WPFO plans on rolling out a digital signal about the 12th of never. Seriously, they have no plans at all. Something about an FCC ruling with channel assignments I think.

So there is no hope of HD Fox in southern Maine OTA for years.

The ABC, NBC, & CBS local affiliates all broadcast digital and HD. One is at low power I think, not sure which one (I think there is a listing somewhere in this thread). The quality is great, especially NBC. I can receive them using a Squareshooter antenna mounted indoors with an amp. I am up pretty high though.

As I have mentioned earlier, Channel 8 intends to go to full power early next year. Channel 13 will or cannot say when they will go to full power.

Originally posted by Stan54
As I have mentioned earlier, Channel 8 intends to go to full power early next year. Channel 13 will or cannot say when they will go to full power.

That figures. 13 is the channel I have the most trouble with. For some reason I never have a problem with 8. I didn't realize that was not at full power yet.

I assume 6 is?

Now my firend would like to know " does anyone have anymore information about FOX-HD on channel 507 on Time Warner Cable?" He goes on to tell me that the tech director at fox 23 will not answer his calls and will not respond to voice mail messages for some reason. sounds like a bad station to me.

Nothing more than I posted earlier. He replied to my first inquiry that they were getting the equipment in, wouldn't be able to broadcast due to FCC freeze, but were working the TWC on piping it to them. Confirmed via TWC that they were working on it. Didn't get any replies to follow up emails suggesting he had given all the info he could give.
No MNF tonight! :( Left a message for the engineers, and can't seem to hit the right series 0's to get to a live person. Oh well...its just the Jets and Miami!

Excuse me while I go offtopic for a second. I haven't been getting WPXT OTA for a couple days now. But, I get WPME just fine. Could someone verify that they can get WPXT (WB 51) over the air please? I'm just not sure what's going on.

Thanks!

It has been off the air since Friday. The only thing that my cable co(Suscom) has to say that it is a transmitter problem. If anyone has info it would be appreciated.


Chris

There probably isn't any more info available - but has anybody heard more about the FOX-HD feed? I'm wondering, because I just noticed that the Superbowl is on Fox this year. Is it possible they are going through this exercise just so they can broadcast the SB (and maybe the playoffs)? If that's the case, I might just have to get cable for a couple months. You guys are pretty good at digging up more information, so I'm hoping you might be able to find this one out.

Oh, and thanks to cmaine for the earlier response about WPXT. At least I was able to stop messing around with my equipment. I think a couple days after that message, it started working again.

I just got this message from my friend in Maine. "I called FOX 23 a week ago, (Sorry I haven't had time to e-mail you since then). After lots of calling, I finnally got the broadcast director. Every time I would call (about 10 times over 2 weeks) they would say "I'm sorry, he just left the office, can I take a message?". I would leave a message, and he would never call back. When I did get ahold of him, he said that everyone was calling him on the HD issue and didn't have time to respond to everyone. He said that the only hold-up on HD being on cable is national Fox. since, they will NOT being having an OTA HD feed (TWC exclusive) Fox refuses to give them the free (or low cost) HD broadcast equipment. The broadcast director said he has called Fox several times, and they just refuse to give it to him, even though the station has invested their own money on other non-subsidized equipment to re-broadcast the HD feed to Time Warner Cable. He is very mad at Fox, and is going to really try to get the HD feed up and working by the SuperBowl, or else he knows he is going to have a ton of angry HDTV owners knocking down his door." He also talked to his high level contact at local TWC and they said the same thing, and that they can't wait to actully receive the HD feed.
Hope this helps everyone.

So no OTA Fox in Maine? Ever?

I sent an Email over to our friend at Time Warner and there was nothing new to report from there either.

Originally posted by Webini
So no OTA Fox in Maine? Ever?

I'm not sure why people keep asking this -- the answer keeps getting posted: see this reply (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?postid=4432409#post4432409) on this very page.

It won't be "never" -- but it will be a long time off.

It sounds like the Fox network is tying their DTV investment (the HD reception equipment) very reasonably to WPFO's ability to broadcast the Fox DTV feed OTA. WPFO has a single channel broadcast assignment (they weren't in existance when the FCC gave out an extra assignment to broadcasters for a simultaneous DTV feed). So when WPFO converts their single feed from broadcasting analog to broadcasting digital, then Fox will give/subsidize the equipment to them. WPFO could do that tomorrow if they wanted to -- but it would piss off anyone who receives WPFO's analog OTA broadcast and would not be able to receive it any more.

If you are pissed about it, send letters to Fox.


Joe

Nope, I'll just get Fox HD from Directv in few weeks. Problem solved.

How are you going to get FOX HD from Direct TV? Do they offer it?

They will in a few weeks. They offered it for the ALCS, NLCS, and World Series. Once the final contract is signed it will be on full time. I watched the Sox win in HD!

You would need to have WFPO give you a waiver thru DirecTV.

Wow! Does this mean that we in Maine will be able to receive all of the networks (ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, PBS, UPN, WB, PBS) in HD via Direct TV in a few weeks, if we can not receive them over the air?