Cedar Rapids, IA - HDTV [Text View] - Page 17

CR_Client

11-07-09, 11:30 AM

That was for our H1N1 phone bank that went until about 11 PM on Thursday night. I believe it had a local number and a sponsor so taht people could call in and ask their questions. This will be going on for the next three Thursdays as well. We still have our local station bug... but this was a special circumstance.
-Jarrett

It had a local number, for sure, and a sponsor, but it didn't say anything about what it was for, just a bug that said "click on KWWL.com or call 1.800.xxx.xxxx", with a Covenant Health Systems sponsor. No mention of H1N1 information, etc. In fact, when I went to KWWL.com to see what it was about, there was nothing on the home page for KWWL.

If the station wants people to call the number for H1N1 information, they would probably be better served explaining what the bug is for within the bug itself, since I would venture to guess that a significant number of people who watch Conan don't actually watch the KWWL 10 o'clock news, and would therefore have no idea why there's a number on their screen.

ivorygate

11-07-09, 12:40 PM

KWKB was back on the air around 10:50. I wonder if they will replay Smackdown as I am sure it is one of the highest rated shows on that station, if not the highest rated? And I am not saying that just because it is the only thing I watch on that station once baseball season is over.

It looks like Smackdown is usually around a 1.9 rating, while Smallville is around 1.2. That station really can't afford not to air either of those shows, but with most of us having DVRs and the guide data providers never being known for being the most nimble when it comes to last minute scheduling changes (like how most TiVo users, such as myself, didn't get the new episode of Fringe recorded 11/05, because apparently Zap2It was confused about the fact a World Series game 7 wasn't being played), I don't know how any of us are going to find out about it. The KWKB web site doesn't have any mention of anything.

bassdog65

11-09-09, 09:11 PM

KWKB was down again tonight for One Tree Hill. My wife is going nuts. What's their deal? Anyone have a number for the station?

iowahawkeye

11-10-09, 12:14 AM

KWKB was down again tonight for One Tree Hill. My wife is going nuts. What's their deal? Anyone have a number for the station?http://www.switchboard.com/results.htm?cid=&MEM=1&ypcobrand=1&PR=&ST=&inputwhat_dirty=1&KW=kwkb&initial=&inputwhere_dirty=1&LO=52240&SD=-1&semChannelId=&semSessionId=&search.x=34&search.y=11

XythAdar

11-11-09, 10:51 PM

i almost forgot, here is a fairly accurate list of cedar rapids QAM channels, does anyone know if medicom really has this many free unencrypted QAM channels ? imon does not even have kwwl.. its pathetic.

silicondust.com/hdhomerun/lineup_web/US:52402#sidebyside

Thanks for the link, that's exactly what I was looking for. Anyone know if Mediacom has their ESPNHD in clearQAM or if that is encrypted?

CR_Client

11-12-09, 12:00 AM

Thanks for the link, that's exactly what I was looking for. Anyone know if Mediacom has their ESPNHD in clearQAM or if that is encrypted?

As far as I know, it's encrypted, but that depends on what package level you have, I suppose. On Broadcast Basic, it's definitely filtered out and/or encrypted.

ivorygate

11-12-09, 10:48 AM

As far as I know, it's encrypted, but that depends on what package level you have, I suppose. On Broadcast Basic, it's definitely filtered out and/or encrypted.

In CF/Waterloo, all HD stations other than the broadcast stations are encrypted, even if you pay for the channels, so one needs one of their converters/DVRs or a CableCARD.

sgarringer

11-12-09, 06:59 PM

Anyone else having issues with KFXA tonight?

Haley1966

11-13-09, 09:19 AM

KFXAChief

11-13-09, 09:38 AM

Anyone else having issues with KFXA tonight?

What issues?

Haley1966

11-13-09, 10:17 AM

KFXAChief,
I was getting no signal strength last night. I am in a less than good location for KFXA( Southern Marshall county), so I am never sure if its just weather ect. I usually get KFXA pretty well, last night though between about 730-800pm I didnt have anything. I assume it was on my end?:) Mike

KFXAChief

11-13-09, 10:48 AM

Haley1966

11-13-09, 11:32 AM

As far as I know, it could have been longer, I quit trying after 800pm. The signal is coming in around 70-75% this morning, still watchable though. Mike

KFXAChief

11-13-09, 12:50 PM

As far as I know, it could have been longer, I quit trying after 800pm. The signal is coming in around 70-75% this morning, still watchable though. Mike

I was not aware of any issues last night.

ivorygate

11-13-09, 05:08 PM

I record the broadcast channels OTA and although I haven't tried to watch Fringe yet from my DVR, Bones recorded from 7pm-8pm and I didn't see a single glitch in the recording as I watched it.

Haley1966

11-13-09, 05:39 PM

I am not sure what happen last night for me. KFXA usually has a decent signal for me. On a side note, I picked up one of these new AUVIO 3.5 inch digital/analog TVs from radio shack today. I am sitting hear on the computer with KFXA coming in strong.This thing only has about a 6 inch antenna , and only have about 3 inces of it out! Pretty neat little item. Catalog number is 16-972 if anyone is interested. And no I dont work for radio shack:). Mike

Haley1966

11-13-09, 07:21 PM

Ok guys its been a long day. Spelling is one of my pet peaves. I meant to say here----not hear. Mike

East Iowa 01234

11-13-09, 07:42 PM

KWKB was down again tonight for One Tree Hill. My wife is going nuts. What's their deal? Anyone have a number for the station?

Ok
I just thought I had programmed the DVR wrong.....................I lost 10 minutes of it with a black screen. Then it came back.
I think it was off @ 7 pm last Friday night during Smallville too.

CR_Client

11-14-09, 12:11 AM

sgarringer, I thought it was just me. I didnt have any signal last night from them. No problems with any other locals. You are talking about ch.48 ION right? I guess I should say I normally get them OTA, but not last night. Mike

KFXA is the Fox affiliate, 28.1 and 28.2.

48.1 - Ion is KPXR, not KFX-Anything. KFXB 40 hasn't been a Fox affiliate since 2004.

And, I find it ironic that you misspelled "peeve" in your post about how spelling is a "pet peave (sic)" of yours. :p

Haley1966

11-14-09, 09:26 AM

CR Client,

Like I said its been a LONG day for me!:p

I realized the spelling of my "corrected post", and just gave up at that point,:)

Also of course you are right about FOX and ION, dont know what I was thinking. FOX 28 from my location, is the strongest signal I get! Even better than the DSM/AMES market(which is closer). Mike

sgarringer

11-14-09, 10:25 PM

Yeah, KFXA was out Friday night for at least 15 minutes around 7:00. I was just trying to switch to whatever is on during the 6:30 as it was the most interesting. I have a UHF antenna mounted up 30 feet pointed directly at the transmit site, *always* get 99% SNR on my tuner, and it was at 0. Checked 4 other ATSC tuners.

I don't get locals with Dish so I couldn't check there to confirm the outage there.

KFXA was back by 8 I know, and it's back now, no problems each time, signal was back to 99% and is rock solid.

http://gallery.planetcr.com/gallery2/v/shawn/things/radiotower/Image243.jpg.html

http://gallery.planetcr.com/gallery2/v/shawn/things/radiotower/Image235.jpg.html NNW

hdtvincr

11-15-09, 09:22 AM

The OTA graphs available from CFU shows an outage last Tuesday for a bit, but nothing else for the week from KFXA....

http://www.cfu.net/CyberNet/HD/index.php?station=kfxa

Wayner3

11-16-09, 08:39 AM

I noticed that KCRG had graphics on the sidebars of it image this morning on the news. Is this what they meant as their upgrade to HD that was suppose to happen in September? It was sort of comical. They started each half hour of newscast without the graphics then on one you can hear on one half hour beginning, Noelle saying "Remember..." then the graphics appear on the screen. I hope they have some sort of automation to make these things happen.

KFXAChief

11-16-09, 11:05 AM

Deleted

hdtvincr

11-16-09, 12:02 PM

Wasn't trying to say otherwise. Just trying to say that the OTA signal graphs on CFUs web site did not confirm some of the others reports of an outage Thursday or Friday night.

The graph does show no signal last Tuesday around Noon for a period, but that very well may have been on their end.

KFXAChief

11-16-09, 03:11 PM

Deleted

sgarringer

11-16-09, 04:16 PM

Of course when the FCC takes the broadcasters spectrum away to give to wireless companies, my job will be much easier.

It's not YOUR spectrum it's pubic spectrum. For the sheer amount of profit broadcasters make from this spectrum (advertising and extortion fees from the cable companies like what KFXA/KGAN is about to pull with Mediacom) you shouldn't be complaining at all. I'd love to see the FCC get tough with the broadcasters for a change... like that'll happen!

I guess with a parent company like Sinclar now that the democrats are in power it's the evil FCC trying to pull all these things to the innocent little television station, right?

dline

11-16-09, 05:01 PM

Syndicated HD note:

Oprah airing in HD on KCRG as I write this.

Trip in VA

11-16-09, 05:12 PM

It's not YOUR spectrum it's pubic spectrum.

When it's all been given to the wireless companies, it won't be too public any more.

- Trip

KFXAChief

11-16-09, 05:13 PM

Deleted

n0cf (Chris)

11-16-09, 05:27 PM

Syndicated HD note:

Oprah airing in HD on KCRG as I write this.

Don't know that I would watch Oprah if I wasn't at the office, but Nightline/Kimmel and other syndicated shows in HD is a nice add :-)
KCRG web announcement: http://www.kcrg.com/news/local/70199147.html

KFXAChief

11-16-09, 05:54 PM

Syndicated HD note:

Oprah airing in HD on KCRG as I write this.

Congrats to KCRG. It will be a long time before we can do that.

CR_Client

11-17-09, 01:17 AM

Hopefully that list of programs will grow down the road, though it depends on the reasons that only certain programs are listed. I know that most of According to Jim was shot in HD, as are/were a few other syndicated shows on KCRG, but the current list of shows (including JKL, which I wasn't aware was syndicated) is pretty impressive.

Kudos to Kirk, et. al. at KCRG for making this happen and putting pressure on the competition to step their game up!

oldsyd

11-17-09, 09:30 AM

:D

Congrats to the engineering team at 9!

Syndicated HD note:

Oprah airing in HD on KCRG as I write this.

DLPDA

11-17-09, 10:53 AM

I know that most of According to Jim was shot in HD, as are/were a few other syndicated shows on KCRG, but the current list of shows (including JKL, which I wasn't aware was syndicated) is pretty impressive.

Kudos to Kirk, et. al. at KCRG for making this happen and putting pressure on the competition to step their game up!

The availability of some syndicated shows in HD depends on whether the syndicator is offering an HD version and how the agreement for the syndicated rights are structured. Just because a show was shot in HD and ran that way during its network run doesn't necessarily mean it is offerd that way in syndication... Now that HD is becoming the expectation instead of the exception as it was just 5-6 years ago when many current agreements were entered into...that will change.

Jimmy Kimmel Live is an ABC show (not syndicated). Kimmel and Nightline have been time-shifted in Eastern IA since it began airing several years ago. Now that TV9 has the ability to record HD they can do the same for the time-shifts of NL & JKL.

I second the kudos to Kirk and the KCRG enginering staff! More HD = :-)

tlniec

11-17-09, 04:51 PM

CR_Client

11-18-09, 12:20 AM

I wonder if there are any plans at KCRG to do local news in HD? I understand there is probably a whole lot of non-trivial stuff, beyond what was already just implemented for HD broadcast of syndicated programming, required for that to happen. But I am curious if it's coming at some point.

The short answer is: Yes. The recording equipment has been in beta-test in the field for a while now.

The long answer is longer than I care to get into. But, no, I don't work at KCRG.

oldsyd

11-18-09, 08:20 PM

Being able to record in HD does almost nothing for a local station regarding HD news.

To have a true HD newscast they would need to purchase several HD studio cameras, even more HD portable camcorders, an HD capable switcher and possibly a new weather computer.

I'm guessing this would probably set the station back about $500,000-$1,000,000

I wonder if there are any plans at KCRG to do local news in HD? I understand there is probably a whole lot of non-trivial stuff, beyond what was already just implemented for HD broadcast of syndicated programming, required for that to happen. But I am curious if it's coming at some point.

CR_Client

11-18-09, 10:39 PM

Being able to record in HD does almost nothing for a local station regarding HD news.

To have a true HD newscast they would need to purchase several HD studio cameras, even more HD portable camcorders, an HD capable switcher and possibly a new weather computer.

I'm guessing this would probably set the station back about $500,000-$1,000,000

They already have at least one HD camera in the field, as I mentioned above, if not more. They are also building a new all-digital station/studio, as has been mentioned before on this forum.

Local HD news should be up and running no later than June, 2010, as far as I know, but likely sooner.

courtrrb

11-22-09, 12:39 PM

Does anybody know what happing with the audio on CBS and Fox lately? It started with Medium a few week ago I recored it with my Dish DVR and half way through the show I lost all of the dialog. All I had was Music.

So as a precaution I started to record the the same shows with my PC thru my antenna, The same thing happed with NCIS LA and Bones on both the Dish DVR and my PC. I tried 4 different video players before I found one that I could actually hear the dialog. The weird thing is the dialog was only absent during the show itself, the commercials play with all dialog.

bobgpsr

11-22-09, 02:39 PM

Does anybody know what happing with the audio on CBS and Fox lately? Seems like someone at KGAN is slow at throwing the switch to get the center channel audio with a CBS AC3 5.1 audio feed. Was gone for me a few minutes ago with both cable (ImOn) and OTA HD sources. Then it got fixed after a few minutes. Funny getting just music but no dialog for the NFL halftime hi-lites.

prairillon

11-22-09, 07:07 PM

We're a bit late to the discussion, but I'd like to ask for your help. We have DISH at the house with locals, so haven't been in any big hurry to deal with OTA but we finally bought a small HDTV and hooked it up to a Phillips antenna, UHF/HDTV digital, supposedly handles channels 14-69. We get everything I think we possibly could get -- KCRG, KWWL, FOX on 15 and everywhere else, IPTV, a bunch of channels I've never heard of -- except no KGAN. I don't get it -- aren't the KGAN and KCRG transmitters for most intents and purposes co-located? And FOX is affiliated with KGAN -- how do I get them and not KGAN? Very confuzled and would appreciate a redirect to any dates in this thread or other articles that might help.

Secondly, just to clarify for myself -- if I direct-tune the TV using the remote to 2.1 (or to 51, for that matter), should it show me the channel if it's coming in? I see urges to rescan all over the place and I understand you'd need to do that to put the channel in the channel memory map, but when DH is up there, moving the antenna around, we don't have to rescan every time to see if we've got it now, do we?

Sorry for the much-belated ignorance, and we appreciate your help!

4lids

11-23-09, 09:50 AM

We have DISH at the house with locals, so haven't been in any big hurry to deal with OTA but we finally bought a small HDTV and hooked it up to a Phillips antenna, UHF/HDTV digital, supposedly handles channels 14-69. We get everything I think we possibly could get -- KCRG, KWWL, FOX on 15 and everywhere else, IPTV, a bunch of channels I've never heard of -- except no KGAN. I don't get it -- aren't the KGAN and KCRG transmitters for most intents and purposes co-located? And FOX is affiliated with KGAN -- how do I get them and not KGAN?

It could be an issue of overdriving your tuner. I assume there is a huge amplifier built into that and KGAN is one of the more powerful UHF stations out there. KCRG is on the same tower, but is also a VHF signal, like KWWL. With the antenna you are using (UHF only), you are fortunate to be seeing those, especially with the amp I believe is in your unit. Typically, there is a lot interference in homes and amplifiers on those will exacerbate the problem. If you can locate the signal quality meters, that may offer some clues. Check how the stations are coming in, and perhaps you can peak things a little differently.

oldsyd

11-23-09, 09:53 AM

As you know, KGAN 2 is actually UHF 51.

So, first make sure your UHF path is good.

Those new HD antennas that look like books or blocks really aren't that great. A UHF/VHF HI Yagi would be your best bet, if you were in a fringe area, you could add a preamp on the antenna end. Make sure the UHF and VHF signals are combined, or get a combiner to do it yourself. Some antennas have 2 lead outs for both UHF and VHF.

Make sure your antenna is pointed correctly using a compass and a TVFOOL map:

http://www.tvfool.com

Make sure your feed line is good. I recommend RG-6 with solid copper core conductor. Use as few splices as possible.

Most good quality antenna products won't be found at your local WalMart or Radio Shack. Most of that stuff is junk. You will have to order it online.

The good thing about using high quality products is that you most likely wont need to replace it for many years.

Hope that helps.

Jay

oldsyd

11-23-09, 09:58 AM

It could be an issue of overdriving your tuner. I assume there is a huge amplifier built into that and KGAN is one of the more powerful UHF stations out there. KCRG is on the same tower, but is also a VHF signal, like KWWL. With the antenna you are using (UHF only), you are fortunate to be seeing those, especially with the amp I believe is in your unit. Typically, there is a lot interference in homes and amplifiers on those will exacerbate the problem. If you can locate the signal quality meters, that may offer some clues. Check how the stations are coming in, and perhaps you can peak things a little differently.

I totally forgot about the overdrive problem. If there is a power plug for your antenna, try unplugging it and seeing if KGAN comes in. He's dead right that those will overload your tuner. And, unfortunately most built-in tuners only show signal level, not signal quality. You can have 100% signal strength, but if the signal is overmodulated or too strong, it might not decode.

prairillon

11-23-09, 10:19 AM

Wow, you guys are good! You figured out which crappy antenna I was using :-) without my saying. I guess I should have known better than to go discount store, but, as I said, we're not entirely enthusiastic about all of this; mostly, we're still mourning the loss of the TV band audio on our little shower radio, which should give you some idea of how ambivalent we are about improvement in picture quality <g>.

As I was looking at the box this morning, I remembered that it did say it was amp'd -- dh hooked up the TV side -- and wondered about that. It is sure counter-intuitive (possibly un-American? <g>) to think you need LESS power to make it work, but I will give that a shot when I get home.

We are good to go on the coax quality, at least. The antenna is on the west peak of a metal shed, the metal being the problem with an indoor antenna and the shed being the problem with just sharing our satellite feed.

Here's my TVFool data

KPXR-DT 47 (48.1) ION 15.2 LOS 60.9
KFXA-DT 27 (28.1) Fox 17.9 LOS 60.3
KGAN-DT 51 (2.1) CBS 16.4 LOS 60.0
KCRG-DT 9 (9.1) ABC 16.4 LOS 59.3
KRIN-DT 35 (32.1) PBS 16.4 LOS 58.3
KWKB 25 (20.1) CW 32.5 LOS 57.3
KIIN 12 PBS 33.0 LOS 50.5
KWWL 7 NBC 21.7 1Edge 43.0 <- end green. All ok except KGAN
WHBF-TV 4 CBS 75.0 2Edge 16.2 <- start & end orange (don't get this channel)
KWWF-DT 22 Ind 15.2 LOS 8.9 <- start red. Get this one
KFXB-DT 43 (40.1) Ind 64.3 2Edge 3.9 get this one
KGCW-DT 41 (26.1) CW 81.9 2Edge 3.6 get this one
WOI-DT 5 ABC 98.3 2Edge 1.9 don't get this one
KYOU-DT 15 (15.1) Fox 63.5 2Edge 0.9 get this one
KCCI-DT 8 (8.1) CBS 98.6 2Edge -5.8 don't get any from here down, I think
WHO-DT 13 (13.1) NBC 98.3 2Edge -6.7
KWQC-TV 36 (6.1) NBC 88.3 2Edge -7.4
WQAD-DT 38 (8.1) ABC 88.3 2Edge -7.6
KDIN-DT 11 (11.1) PBS 98.3 2Edge -7.9
KDMI-DT 19 MyN 98.0 2Edge -8.8
KLJB-DT 49 (18.1) Fox 88.3 2Edge -10.9
KFPX-DT 39 (39.1) ION 98.0 2Edge -11.1
KDSM-DT 16 (17.1) Fox 98.0 2Edge -12.9
KCWI-DT 23 (23.1) CW 98.0 2Edge -14.8

THANK YOU!!!

Haley1966

11-27-09, 09:35 AM

Does anyone know who/ or what the audio is being broadcast on ch.35-99?
Sounds like NPR , or IPR. I dont get it on all the PBS channels, also it doesnt show up on my converter boxes either. It DOES show up as radio channel on one of the new Auvio Tvs (7 inch and 3.5 inch) from Radio shack. I DO NOT work for Radio Shack, but I picked up the 7 inch one this morning for $119.99. It comes with a car adapter, ext. antenna, remote, av cables , ac adapter, runs on lithium ion battery. I have it running on my indoor antennas right now, does a very good job, if anyone is looking for a small portable. The case has a very nice rubber type coating, wont slip out of the hands. Anyway, nice little tv , oh the reg. price is $169.99, just a black Friday deal I think. Mike

n0cf (Chris)

11-30-09, 04:58 PM

CFU has added channel 17 for KWWL and KRIN programming. Unlike phys. channel 107, 17 is sending out PSIP info: 7-1, 7-2, 7-3, 32-11, 32-12, 32-13.
107-1 through 107-6 was still in place when I found 17 this morning, but who cares when I can have program information on my bedroom Samsung TV (which once again went into a endless reboot cycle on 106: that is 2-1, 2-2, 9-1, and 9-2 currently - but used to do this when 106 had 7-x and 9-x on it... hence my rescan and discovery of 17 this morning).

dline

12-03-09, 03:57 AM

Gazette Online: Another Sinclair/Mediacom retrans dispute brewing?

And will this one involve KGAN and KFXA, the latter of which Sinclair doesn't technically hold the license to?

http://gazetteonline.com/local-news/2009/12/02/mediacom-asks-fcc-to-intervene-in-sinclair-retransmission-dispute

bobgpsr

12-08-09, 09:04 PM

No CBS hi def (or even 5.1 audio) tonight (NCIS, GoodWife) due to the snow storm crawl on KGAN. :(

iowahawkeye

12-08-09, 11:26 PM

No CBS hi def (or even 5.1 audio) tonight (NCIS, GoodWife) due to the snow storm crawler on KGAN. :(At least they were all repeats. Do you suppose $inclair will buy kgan a hd crawler next month after they force mediacom to sign a new retrans agreement?

CR_Client

12-09-09, 10:49 AM

I'm not entirely pleased with KCRG's crawl, even if they kept things in HD. They still squished everything on the screen vertically and put their crawl at the bottom. Granted, their crawl is 100% opaque, so it's not like you'd be able to read anything on the screen (the names of speakers or locations during news spots, etc), but, seriously, they LOVE to just "squish" stuff on KCRG. They've been doing it to their own newscast for their sports ticker, and it really looks pretty second-rate when they do it.

It's nice that they're trying, but it doesn't seem like they're trying any smarter, just harder.

It's also good to see that ServiceMaster 380 still has plenty of money in this economy, since they're the "wee-sa peeple gon' die?" sponsor on BOTH KCRG and KWWL again.

j lehner

12-09-09, 02:38 PM

KCRG hasn't been "squishing" sports scores for 2 or 3 months now. They have a single line on the screen that fits over their other titling and doesn't interfere with it.

VintonShellsburg

12-10-09, 12:10 PM

If anyone from KCRG is reading this, I've noticed a tiny little glitch with 9.2.

I do not know if it is occurring during the day, but late at night when 9.2 is silently showing the various weather maps in the larger box on the left...the national satellite image hasn't changed for about a month or so. The local and regional satellite maps are ok, but the national map has been frozen, showing the exact same image since sometime last month.

Just a heads up to whoever manages the computer that runs 9.2.

n0cf (Chris)

12-10-09, 11:56 PM

Announced on 10pm local news: KWWL's studio upgrade will be completed in March and local news will be in 16x9 HDTV (I assume that means 1080, and not the 480p 16x9 that many local news are broadcasting in and referring to as HD) starting in April 2010.

I don't see any text of the story - but video from 10pm sans the advertisements:
http://www.kwwl.com/global/video/flash/popupplayer.asp?ClipID1=4375642&h1=KWWL%20is%20going%20HD%20April%202010

...Now Jerrett - will the new switching and studio upgrades include the ability to show syndicated and time-shifted network programming to be in wide if not HD? Congrats either way (or is it sympathies, if you have to work OT to get all this stuff working?)

dline

12-11-09, 04:40 AM

(I assume that means 1080, and not the 480p 16x9 that many local news are broadcasting in and referring to as HD) ...
I'm not sure who you're talking about, but I occasionally watch WHO when visiting Ames. I saw a promo which described what they did as "widescreen," but occasionally they do produce a news package in actual HD and mention it as such. In fact, they've run the occasional HD package even before they went widescreen. KCCI also quietly went to widescreen just days before WHO did, but it didn't look like they promoted the change.

GaryP2

12-11-09, 10:39 AM

4lids

12-11-09, 12:57 PM

Announced on 10pm local news: KWWL's studio upgrade will be completed in March and local news will be in 16x9 HDTV (I assume that means 1080, and not the 480p 16x9 that many local news are broadcasting in and referring to as HD) starting in April 2010.

...Now Jerrett - will the new switching and studio upgrades include the ability to show syndicated and time-shifted network programming to be in wide if not HD? Congrats either way (or is it sympathies, if you have to work OT to get all this stuff working?)

This will be a full 1080i HD upgrade (at least as the studio is concerned). There will still be legacy items that will be upconverted, but we'll work those as time goes forward. Heck, there is stuff on the national news that isn't HD yet either. The syndicated side is not included in this round. Master Control is happening later (hopefully soon)... but Production Control is finally in full motion. Should be exciting and great for the this market to have some HD newscasts.

hdtvincr

12-11-09, 02:46 PM

Congrats! Looking forward to it!

iowahawkeye

12-12-09, 03:06 PM

Good to see KWWL & KCRG are moving forward in local HD. :)

Interesting is the fact that $inclair/KGAN haven't done anything....... except start running drags on the screen telling Mediacom viewers that kgan is going off the mediacom system 1/1/2010........ unless Mediacom ponies up much more money for the start of a new retrans agreement on 1/1/2010 :(

oldsyd

12-13-09, 02:24 AM

I'm not sure who to root for, Mediacom or Sinclair?

dline

12-13-09, 05:06 AM

I'm not sure who to root for, Mediacom or Sinclair?Potentially, this could be even messier for viewers than the last go-around.

Remember when Mediacom just handed out antennas to viewers so that they could get KGAN even though they weren't on cable? Well, that isn't going to work for viewers who still have their analog sets and didn't get their converter boxes, thinking the cable company was going to take care of all that digital transition stuff. I haven't checked to see how readily available the converters are now that June 12 is way behind us, but the $40 coupons are definitely long gone.

The only question is whether Sinclair or Mediacom is hurt more..

hdtvincr

12-13-09, 09:56 AM

tsduke

12-13-09, 02:03 PM

Stop screwing with the hd picture and let me watch the vikings game in hd.

I really don't care about your scroll for the mediacom dispute. Run the scroll during commercials!

ivorygate

12-14-09, 12:38 AM

Stop screwing with the hd picture and let me watch the vikings game in hd.

I really don't care about your scroll for the mediacom dispute. Run the scroll during commercials!

:mad:

You'd think there should be some law against a TV station telling people to switch their cable company to a competitor during a TV broadcast. They should use up all of their own station commercial time and scroll during their news broadcasts with that nonsense, not screw up the real content they are suppose to be showing that real advertisers are paying for.

Forget global climate change, someone needs to study the real global threat of the never ending increase in stupidity in this world.

dline

12-14-09, 02:40 PM

Until Congress passes a law that allows an open market, this will continue. I wish it would drive them BOTH out of business!

I don't care for either company, but do believe this nonsense would stop if cable companies were allowed to "shop" around neighboring markets for competition.Unfortunately there's only so much you can do with material you don't own.

BTW, for those just tuning in, the FCC shut down the CBS4 work-around Mediacom used in Johnson County during the last dispute. In a way, that's kind of ironic -- enough people turned their antennas toward the Quad Cities that the FCC considered WHBF "significantly viewed." Now that such a huge swath of the area is wired -- success for the cable company! -- Sinclair was able to make the case that it isn't anymore.

iowahawkeye

12-14-09, 04:23 PM

:mad:

You'd think there should be some law against a TV station telling people to switch their cable company to a competitor during a TV broadcast.
There should be a law that says the tv station SHOULD TELL THE WHOLE STORY. Funny $inclair/kgan left out the part about Mediacom is negotiating with the blood/money suckers.
I also find it interesting KWWL & KCRG never stooped this low.

iowahawkeye

12-14-09, 04:30 PM

Mediacom should be contacting kgan's/$inclair's ADVERTISERS and tell them to demand an ad rate reduction of AT LEAST 35% if $inclair/kgan pulls the plug.

But don't forget:

"Thomas Larsen, Mediacom vice president of regulatory and public affairs, said Mediacom customers have no reason to become concerned about the dispute."

http://gazetteonline.com/local-news/2009/12/02/mediacom-asks-fcc-to-intervene-in-sinclair-retransmission-dispute

tsduke

12-14-09, 04:32 PM

uhf

12-14-09, 09:49 PM

There should be a law that says the tv station SHOULD TELL THE WHOLE STORY. Funny $inclair/kgan left out the part about Mediacom is negotiating with the blood/money suckers.
I also find it interesting KWWL & KCRG never stooped this low.

Oh, but KCRG did! Only it was for re-trans on Dish Network. For a long time they were the only local station in the market not available from Dish. I simply stopped watching them during that time (I don't recall exactly when it was, but somewhere in the '03 or '04 timeframe). Even though I could get them OTA, when every other channel I got was listed in the EPG, I more or less forgot that KCRG even existed.

oldsyd

12-14-09, 10:43 PM

CR_Client

12-14-09, 11:03 PM

ImOn is finally going to start providing unencrypted QAM for KWWL-HD/NBC and KFXA-HD/FOX beginning January 16.

The following HD locals will be available without needing a set-top box.

802 KGAN-HD (CBS)
807 KWWL-HD (NBC)
808 KFXA HD (FOX)
809 KCRG-HD (ABC)
812 PBS-HD

They will also be adding HGTV-HD, Speed-HD, and Food Network-HD.

Details on all of this along with rate increase details were provided in this month's bill insert.

According to ImOn's website, they only currently offer CBS Digital and PBS Digital for free with their basic package. The quote above indicates that they are adding KWWL and KFXA-DT.

KRIN-DT + KGAN-DT + KWWL-DT + KFXA-DT != the new channel list shown above (KCRG isn't mentioned as being added).

Also, you can't tune channels in the 800 range without a set-top box. QAM channels are generally in the 80.x - 119.x range.

So, can anyone scan the insert from ImOn and post it on here? There is no information on the ImOn website regarding this change, only an asterisk that the price list is valid as of Jan. 16th, 2010.

With this price increase, there is only a $5/month difference between ImOn and MediaCon's pricing for basic cable. If ALL of the local digital channels aren't provided at that price, it's not worth the hassle of switching service over and still needing an antenna for random channels.

GaryP2

12-15-09, 12:04 AM

ImOn has had both KCRG-HD and KFXA-HD unencrypted for over a year now (I mistakenly indicated that KFXA-HD hadn't been available). So of the big five networks, only KWWL-HD/NBC hasn't been available in HD for free. The information on their site hasn't been updated.

I only have one QAM tuner in a Samsung 19" set and only periodically scan for channels, but there was a time about a year ago when they had some of the unencrypted channels showing up in the 800 channel range on that set. 802 was KGAN-HD, 808 was KFXA-HD - so it's possible to have channels presented to these high numbered channels without needing a set-up box on at least some QAM-capable sets. I called ImOn the other day asking about how this was going to work and the they indicated that anyone would be able to receive the channels on any set that was capable of channel numbers that high, so apparently not all sets will be able to do this.

I just did a channel rescan a few minutes ago and here is what is currently available. The bill insert is also attached as a PDF file. Hope this helps.

KGAN-HD (CBS) 109.3 1080i
KFXA-HD (FOX) 48.1 720p
KCRG-HD (ABC) 110.3 720p
IPTV-HD (PBS) 92.3 1080i

KGAN 109.4 480i
KFXA 48.2 480i
KCRG 9.2 110.4 480i
IPTV 92.4 480i
EWTN 48.4 480i
QVC-HD 94.2 1080i

iowegian3

12-15-09, 12:44 AM

Since when has negotiating pricing and trying to convince the public become unethical? Nobody ever guaranteed the public that they have the right to watch CBS over cable TV. Being polite and civil is not a law.

Do what people do when they don't like the price or service from a retailer. Go somewhere else, speak with your wallet.

Get a good antenna rig and stop paying the lease for Mediacom or Dish Network.

Think of all the money you would have if you never paid a cable/satellite bill.

10 years @ $40 a month = $4800

Hear, hear! I refused for years to pay for cable/satellite when OTA was readily available. (it's nearly impossible at my present location) Too many people look at the up-front cost to install a decent outdoor antenna and miss the point about the $40 sucking noise/mo.

I'd even install an antenna to pick up locals to bypass the local pkg. on satellite. It wouldn't be a significant savings, but quality would be better.

dline

12-15-09, 04:16 AM

Oh, but KCRG did! Only it was for re-trans on Dish Network. For a long time they were the only local station in the market not available from Dish. I simply stopped watching them during that time (I don't recall exactly when it was, but somewhere in the '03 or '04 timeframe). Even though I could get them OTA, when every other channel I got was listed in the EPG, I more or less forgot that KCRG even existed.As I recall, KCRG wasn't the only station having trouble with Dish during that general period. There was a time when Dish didn't carry any of the Citadel stations (WOI, WHBF, KCAU and KLKN), and the Sinclair stations were nearly dropped from Dish as well.

ivorygate

12-15-09, 02:01 PM

Unfortunately there's only so much you can do with material you don't own.

Obviously, there are two sides to the old argument that has been around for years and there is no point in getting into a hundred posts back and forth on it again (although I guess I'm going to stir the pot right now, so maybe we will!)
My point of view is that broadcast stations (e.g. KGAN) and non-broadcast stations (e.g. ESPN) are not at all the same beast. Broadcast stations are allowed by our federal government to send their signal out on the airwaves for which people are freely able to tune in if they have the proper mechanisms to do so. By being a regulated broadcast station, there should just be a set fee our government sets that the cable and satellite companies have to pay if they want to rebroadcast any broadcast station's signal. On the KFXA news it was said last night that Sinclair wants 50 cents per Mediacom subscriber. I suggest our government should just set it to 10 cents per subscriber per broadcast station and that would be that.

Tommymack

12-15-09, 03:00 PM

I would suggest that the cable/satellite companies be allowed to carry any major network station they wish in order to cut the monthly cost to consumers. Local stations would be given precedent as long as they match the lowest bidding network station. That way the public, who actually own the airwaves, would receive the benefit- fair pricing. The public would no longer be the dupe of the greedy TV station owners, who's revenue should be coming from advertisers or the cable/satellite owners, who pass the cost on to the consumer. Remember how it used to be?

dline

12-15-09, 03:22 PM

I don't think anybody's mind is getting changed here.

I'm still interested to see how the FCC rules on stations like KFXA. Despite appearances and their shared studios in Broadcast Park, Sinclair does not hold KFXA's broadcast license, and Second Generation of Iowa has not filed any application to transfer it. Yet unlike the last go-around, management is putting both stations at stake, and the FCC is probably not going to be as friendly as it was during the last administration.

CR_Client

12-15-09, 09:49 PM

ImOn has had both KCRG-HD and KFXA-HD unencrypted for over a year now (I mistakenly indicated that KFXA-HD hadn't been available). So of the big five networks, only KWWL-HD/NBC hasn't been available in HD for free. The information on their site hasn't been updated.

I only have one QAM tuner in a Samsung 19" set and only periodically scan for channels, but there was a time about a year ago when they had some of the unencrypted channels showing up in the 800 channel range on that set. 802 was KGAN-HD, 808 was KFXA-HD - so it's possible to have channels presented to these high numbered channels without needing a set-up box on at least some QAM-capable sets. I called ImOn the other day asking about how this was going to work and the they indicated that anyone would be able to receive the channels on any set that was capable of channel numbers that high, so apparently not all sets will be able to do this.

I just did a channel rescan a few minutes ago and here is what is currently available. The bill insert is also attached as a PDF file. Hope this helps.

Gary-

Thanks for the clarification and the scan of the insert. It's very intriguing, indeed.

I'll have to call them to find out about these HD Set-top boxes. It almost reads as if the $10 is a one-time fee, rather than a recurring fee. In that case, $20/month, plus a one-time rental fee of $20 is a pretty impressive price for the ability to watch WGN-HD, ESPN-HD, etc, along with basic channels in standard def.

Maybe you should ask ImOn about a finder's fee, because your information was significantly more valuable than anything they have on their website! :) (much to their own detriment, I might add... I would have switched over to ImOn months ago if I had known they had KCRG-HD and KFXA-HD via QAM)

Thanks again!

GaryP2

12-15-09, 10:28 PM

I'll have to call them to find out about these HD Set-top boxes. It almost reads as if the $10 is a one-time fee, rather than a recurring fee. In that case, $20/month, plus a one-time rental fee of $20 is a pretty impressive price for the ability to watch WGN-HD, ESPN-HD, etc, along with basic channels in standard def.
No, I'm pretty sure it's $9.98 per month per HD set-top box, and the only way you will be able to watch anything in HD other than the big five network locals is to have an HD set-top box from them. The five HD locals will all be unencrypted QAM, but to get WGN-HD, ESPN-HD, etc., you will need to rent a box for each set you want them on.

That section in the insert on HD service was confusing enough to me be what I called them last week for clarification. It used to be you paid something around $10 a month for their "HD service" and the first box was free with subsequent boxes costing somewhere I think around $6 a month. Now they are saying that HD service is "free", but you can't really get it without their box (except for the five locals). So for someone that only had one box in the past, the cost is the same ($9.98). For someone that had two boxes, they were paying around $16, they will now be paying around $20.

I'd suggest giving them a call to confirm this. I'd much rather give a local company my business than a regional or nationwide company - provided they stay competitive.

oldsyd

12-16-09, 10:19 AM

Broadcast stations are allowed by our federal government to send their signal out on the airwaves for which people are freely able to tune in if they have the proper mechanisms to do so. By being a regulated broadcast station, there should just be a set fee our government sets that the cable and satellite companies have to pay if they want to rebroadcast any broadcast station's signal. On the KFXA news it was said last night that Sinclair wants 50 cents per Mediacom subscriber. I suggest our government should just set it to 10 cents per subscriber per broadcast station and that would be that.

<begin rant>

I don't think it's a good idea to give any government agency any more power or duties.

I can't think of a business where you create an original product, give it away for free, but others are allowed to collect the free (or regulated price) product and sell it to the public?

If we think 50¢ per viewer is too high, why aren't people barking about ESPN's rate? Football/Basketball/Baseball games all used to be free years ago. Why not make it fair for everyone and regulate all cable channels?

The locals should be able to charge Mediacom whatever they want. Mediacom should have the right to tell Sinclair to stuff it. And, I see no reason why FOX or CBS shouldn't be able to offer programming directly to cable companies for a fee.

As long as you aren't price gouging for a life sustaining product (water, housing, gas, etc.) let the market sort out the differences.

<end of meaningless rant>

CR_Client

12-16-09, 10:43 PM

No, I'm pretty sure it's $9.98 per month per HD set-top box, and the only way you will be able to watch anything in HD other than the big five network locals is to have an HD set-top box from them. The five HD locals will all be unencrypted QAM, but to get WGN-HD, ESPN-HD, etc., you will need to rent a box for each set you want them on.

That section in the insert on HD service was confusing enough to me be what I called them last week for clarification. It used to be you paid something around $10 a month for their "HD service" and the first box was free with subsequent boxes costing somewhere I think around $6 a month. Now they are saying that HD service is "free", but you can't really get it without their box (except for the five locals). So for someone that only had one box in the past, the cost is the same ($9.98). For someone that had two boxes, they were paying around $16, they will now be paying around $20.

I'd suggest giving them a call to confirm this. I'd much rather give a local company my business than a regional or nationwide company - provided they stay competitive.

I'm glad I'm not the only one confused by their language on the insert.

I might call them later this week, and get an install appointment before the clusterfrak that is sure to occur with MediaCon/$inclair in January...

bobgpsr

12-16-09, 10:59 PM

The locals should be able to charge Mediacom whatever they want. Mediacom should have the right to tell Sinclair to stuff it. And, I see no reason why FOX or CBS shouldn't be able to offer programming directly to cable companies for a fee.I think that you are almost there. Medicom should be allowed to carry WHBF, Quad Cities if an arbitrator agrees that Sinclair is gouging Mediacom a lot more than KCRG or KWWL.

BTW the more people that watch the commercials on KGAN the more money they get -- it ain't free. Mediacom carrying KGAN in hi def does not cost KGAN anything -- instead they get more $ from the advertisers.

Sinclair comes across as unjustly jacking up the price. It would be interesting to see what ImOn gets charged. Or what KCRG and KWWL charge to be carried on cable in hi def.

dline

12-17-09, 04:08 AM

New Gazette Online article:

Satellite companies weigh in on Sinclair/Mediacom dispute; Sinclair exec claims a reported 50-cent-per-subscriber asking price -- allegedly broadcast on-air by its own station, KGAN -- is false:

http://gazetteonline.com/breaking-news/2009/12/16/satellite-providers-side-with-mediacom-in-sinclair-dispute

ivorygate

12-17-09, 09:53 AM

<begin rant>
I can't think of a business where you create an original product, give it away for free, but others are allowed to collect the free (or regulated price) product and sell it to the public?
The locals should be able to charge Mediacom whatever they want. Mediacom should have the right to tell Sinclair to stuff it. And, I see no reason why FOX or CBS shouldn't be able to offer programming directly to cable companies for a fee.
<end of meaningless rant>

My argument is that non-broadcast stations (such as ESPN) and broadcast stations (such as KGAN) are not the same animal and should not be lumped together. ESPN isn't broadcasting their unencrypted television content out on the radio waves, into the world and space, for free, but instead they made a (smarter) market decision not to do that. Sorry, CBS affiliate KGAN, you are a broadcast station, you created your business on broadcasting your signal for free way back when and I say once you do that, you lose the right to dictate how the market profits on your content.
Obviously, the law doesn't agree with me, but the logic escapes me why not. If I shout out my window and someone records me and then plays it back for profit to people they find that are willing to pay to listen to it, why on earth would it be my right that I should get a cut of that money? I'm the one shouting out the window, instead of recording it myself, setting up a distribution channel, and managing my own content for profit.

Also, don't *we the people* "own" the radio waves, so why should we be paying the broadcast stations indirectly or directly anyway? If anything, shouldn't the broadcast stations be paying *us* for the right to broadcast?

iowahawkeye

12-17-09, 10:57 AM

If anything, shouldn't the broadcast stations be paying *us* for the right to broadcast?I've always thought station owners sholud be paying cable companys for the local stations that are carried via cable/fiber to OUTLYING FRINGE AREA CUSTOMERS that can't reach/see the station via OTA.

oldsyd

12-17-09, 12:23 PM

Also, don't *we the people* "own" the radio waves, so why should we be paying the broadcast stations indirectly or directly anyway? If anything, shouldn't the broadcast stations be paying *us* for the right to broadcast?

Isn't that what they do when they pay the FCC for license fees? The FCC works for the public, right? Protects us from Janet Jackson's tata's :rolleyes:

twashade

12-17-09, 02:26 PM

ivorygate

12-17-09, 05:29 PM

Isn't that what they do when they pay the FCC for license fees? The FCC works for the public, right? Protects us from Janet Jackson's tata's :rolleyes:

How much are the fees? They must not be enough, since they act like they literally "own the air".
I say the FCC should charge the broadcast stations 10x what they charge each cable company to rebroadcast each year and then we'll see how the so-called negotiations go. Want to pay less to the FCC, great, then charge the cable companies a lot less.

KFXAChief

12-18-09, 10:16 AM

Deleted

KFXAChief

12-18-09, 10:21 AM

Deleted

kevincburns

12-18-09, 10:26 AM

"Cable dispute could cost Iowa fans the Orange Bowl"
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/football/ncaa/12/17/tv-dispute.ap/index.html

even making Sports Illustrated news wire...

ivorygate

12-19-09, 02:25 PM

Given that I watch and record broadcast channels OTA, despite also being a Mediacom customer, this fiasco doesn't directly impact me other than obviously I don't want to see my monthly cable bill increase. However, if the FCC or congress were to pass down a flat, mandatory fee for broadcast station retransmissions, so that this sort of station-by-station haggling was ended once and for all across the country, even if meant a slight increase in my cable bill, I'd accept that. However, I still think 50 cents, or more, is too high, for content one is already giving away for free over the air.

hdtvincr

12-19-09, 03:12 PM

Ditto here....

I say give them their .50, BUT terms of contract is 25 years!!!!

iowegian3

12-19-09, 11:23 PM

For those of you who are looking to get us over the air, or are helping other people do that, please tell them, depending on where they live, they may have to tweak their antenna to a location between the 2 major locations for broadcast tv in Cedar Rapids. KGAN, KWWL, KCRG, IPTV are close to Walker, IA. KFXA is south of Vinton, IA.

If I could ask, did Second Generation choose to put a tower near Vinton for KFXA, or was it a case of going where American Tower wanted? It does seem odd not being in the general neighborhood of 2, 7 and 9.

KFXAChief

12-20-09, 06:07 PM

Deleted

hdtvincr

12-21-09, 12:29 AM

I am still waiting to see how Sinclair will respond to channels 7 & 9 going HD in the near future. I would like to see our stations move forward.

How bout starting with a frekin HD crawl........

KFXAChief

12-21-09, 07:01 AM

Deleted

CR_Client

12-21-09, 08:42 AM

It's somewhat refreshing to see what various broadcasters really care that about with respect to their end-user experience that something like the capability to keep their broadcast in HD while putting up a weather crawl or Amber Alert or Operation Quickfind, or to even remain on the air, is of varying degrees of importance to them; it sure takes a lot of the guess work out of wondering whose interests the various broadcasters are looking out for.

KFXAChief

12-21-09, 09:55 AM

Deleted

uhf

12-21-09, 10:37 AM

I do not know the reasons behind the location.

One thing I do know is that when the tower was sighted for its location, there was an attempt to move the building to the high part of the pasture it sits in. That, according to the surveyor and contractor put it too close to another TV antenna. No, I do not know what station that was.

Someone told me it had to do with proximity to channel 32. What that has to do with anything is beyond me, but that's what I was told by someone supposedly in the know.

tsduke

12-21-09, 12:08 PM

hdtvincr

12-21-09, 01:12 PM

KGAN should have theirs soon. KFXA will have to wait until our master control is upgraded. KFXA will always be second here at broadcast park.

Edit.

You know. To me there are many more important items that I would like to have than "a frekin HD crawl". Until the money is freed up by corporate, we have to live with what we have right now.

Yes, I am jealous of the other stations. Am I tired of working at the 3rd/4th place station in a 4 station market? Yes, I am. However, until we have the capital to put forward some station improvements, we have what we have. Also, we have to fight with other departments to the limited resources that we get.

So let's see, those 1st & 2nd place stations have invested in their product (even with a tanking economy and one being a locally owned station) and put forth a pretty darn good HD/DTV product with more around the corner...

The 3rd & 4th place stations can't even manage a "frekin HD crawl", knock primetime out of HD to run SD crawls, often forget to switch back into HD, etc, etc....

And yet...... As I understand it, Sinclair wants compensation equivalent (if not more) to those 1st & 2nd Place stations.....

I'm not a Mediacom fan, but you've got to be kidding!!! With Sinclairs lack of commitment, they should be paying Mediacom to carry them!!!

tsduke

12-21-09, 01:32 PM

So let's see, those 1st & 2nd place stations have invested in their product (even with a tanking economy and one being a locally owned station) and put forth a pretty darn good HD/DTV product with more around the corner...

The 3rd & 4th place stations can't even manage a "frekin HD crawl", knock primetime out of HD to run SD crawls, often forget to switch back into HD, etc, etc....

And yet...... As I understand it, Sinclair wants compensation equivalent (if not more) to those 1st & 2nd Place stations.....

I'm not a Mediacom fan, but you've got to be kidding!!! With Sinclairs lack of commitment, they should be paying Mediacom to carry them!!!

Well put hdtvincr!

KFXAChief

12-21-09, 02:09 PM

Deleted

flyingvee

12-21-09, 04:04 PM

KFXA chief (and whoever is at KGAN) - fwiw, you have my sympathies. I know (and I'm pretty sure we know) that you're more than stuck in the middle here, yet since you've been kind enough to come here and help us out from time to time, you're getting the grief.

Me - I could scarcely be happier - I find the whole thing ironic, in that I have a working outdoor antenna, I have OTA tuners that will pickup whatever I want, but since I have CFU, I get to watch the game regardless.

OTOH, I wish MC would let me watch the Cyclone BB games - since they won't, I'll wish a curse upon their house, and that of all their customers. :rolleyes:

afaik, ain't nobody blamefree, and ain't no one gonna come out of this smelling like a rose.

now if someone will just tell me how to pickup the Cyclone games, I'll be happy!

tsduke

12-21-09, 04:37 PM

I have no idea of what Sinclair wants. That is between Sinclair corporate and Medaicom corporate.

Just to be clear....No negative remarks I've made towards the stations or Sinclair have been directed at you. I'm sure most of us in here believe you are in the dark with this.

On the other hand, if you got any pull to stop that crawl from killing the viewers experience while wathing NFL or prime time shows that would be great.

hdtvincr

12-21-09, 04:50 PM

KFXAChief

12-21-09, 05:40 PM

Deleted

iowahawkeye

12-21-09, 08:28 PM

What really needs to be done here is for all the LOCAL ADVERTISERS TO WAKE UP AND STOP ADVERTISING ON THESE 2 GREEDY TV STATIONS, even if your getting some kind of under the table deal from $inclair. There's TWO other local tv stations that know how to BALANCE their financial needs with the VIEWERS needs.

iowahawkeye

12-21-09, 08:31 PM

CR_Client

12-22-09, 02:15 AM

Ditto here.... Obviously the local folks are caught in the middle of this. The Chiefs comments just irratated me a bit in that I get the feeling that little 'ole Eastern Iowa market is way down on the totem pole for upgrades to keep pace with others.

Can anyone tell me, from a viewers point of view, since the last round of disputes when MC caved in to SBG demands, what VISIBLE signs we have seen in this market as far as DTV/HD improvements by KGAN????

I just figured out tonight, while surfing through late-night programming, what $inclair has provided to Eastern Iowa that will allow them to force MediaCon to cave in to their demands for premium pricing compared to the other locals in the market.

It's because of all of the extra sub-channels (5 on each station) and premium content that KGAN and KFXA run in addition to their normal network programming. Unfortunately, sub-channel 2-3, the Halloran Slumber Watch, will be defunct as of 2010, and 28-5, Weather Warrior Live!!!!! is also in jeopardy as gas prices continue to fluctuate.

The loss of either of these premium sub-channels will significantly reduce $inclair's revenue streams for these stations while it continues to lose billions (or trillions) of dollars fighting the City of Cedar Rapids because someone at Broadcast Park was too myopic to properly fill out a sign ordinance variance for their jumbotron ad banner / simulcast screen on Collins Road.

:rolleyes:

iowahawkeye

12-22-09, 01:57 PM

redhawk

12-22-09, 02:10 PM

I have noticed several out of state Direct trucks in my area lately. I am guessing Direct"s business has picked up with the Mediascum vs Sinclair fight.

iowegian3

12-22-09, 06:46 PM

Someone told me it had to do with proximity to channel 32. What that has to do with anything is beyond me, but that's what I was told by someone supposedly in the know.

That's probably it, the old UHF taboo channels (http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/cfr_2008/octqtr/pdf/47cfr73.698.pdf). Same-market analog UHFs were ideally spaced 6 channels apart, such as 17, 23 and 29 in the Twin Cities, 19, 25 and 31 Peoria. Analogs 28 and 32 needed to be 19.5 miles apart. I'm guessing that's close to the current spacing of KFXA and KRIN.

uhf

12-23-09, 08:41 AM

That's probably it, the old UHF taboo channels (http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/cfr_2008/octqtr/pdf/47cfr73.698.pdf). Same-market analog UHFs were ideally spaced 6 channels apart, such as 17, 23 and 29 in the Twin Cities, 19, 25 and 31 Peoria. Analogs 28 and 32 needed to be 19.5 miles apart. I'm guessing that's close to the current spacing of KFXA and KRIN.

That's it. I had forgotten all about the taboo channels.

Brew

12-23-09, 12:33 PM

OTOH, I wish MC would let me watch the Cyclone BB games - since they won't, I'll wish a curse upon their house, and that of all their customers. :rolleyes:

now if someone will just tell me how to pickup the Cyclone games, I'll be happy!

Mediacom only has one more game of Cyclone BB yet this season, but just so you know, Mediacom has released all of their games to ESPN360.com and ESPN Full Court. You can watch them online through ESPN360, or you can purchase the ESPN Full Court package and watch them on there.

However, from here on out, looks like a few ISU games will be on the following outlets:

* Mediacom: these games are also on ESPN360 and ESPN Full Court

* ESPN and ESPN2: these games will also be on ESPN360

* ESPNU: these games are on ESPNU only

* Cyclone Television Network: these games are also on ESPN360 and ESPN Full Court. KCRG picked up the first CTN game (although that involved Iowa, too), so I'm guessing they're going to do the rest of the CTN games as well, but I don't know that for sure. If anyone knows if KCRG is going to pick up the rest of the CTN games for sure, I'd love to know about it.

* Big 12 Network Syndicated package (Formerly ESPN Plus): these games are also on ESPN360 and ESPN Full Court. WOI picks up all these games in the Des Moines / Ames market, but I'm not sure what the current status of these games is for the CR market. I think KFXA broadcast these games recently -- is that still the case?

(Looks like it is: http://www.big12sports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?&DB_OEM_ID=10410&ATCLID=1523659)

Will KFXA do only the weekend games, or also the weeknight games? Will they be able to get the feed in HD should it be available? (Big 12 Network says they will do "several" games in HD this year) Still don't know the answers to these questions.

* FS Southwest: These guys will be doing the Baylor game from Waco. Usually, even if you subscribe to the Sports Pack on DirecTV / Dish, these games get blacked out. However, Cyclones.com says this game will also be available on ESPN360 and ESPN Full Court, so that's a great option.

That's the latest on the rest of the Cyclone Basketball TV schedule as far as I know. I'd love some confirmation on the plans for the CTN and Big 12 Network games here in the CR market, but ESPN360 fills in the gaps nicely for me.

sebenste

12-23-09, 03:04 PM

Weather spotters I know have just reported to me that the studio, office and transmitter facilities of KGAN/KXFA have been completely evacuated due to an unstable tower as a result of the ice!

uhf

12-23-09, 04:51 PM

Weather spotters I know have just reported to me that the studio, office and transmitter facilities of KGAN/KXFA have been completely evacuated due to an unstable tower as a result of the ice!

Is anyone able to receive a signal? The transmitter is located at the Walker tower farm with KCRG and KRIN, and it IS making full power. My tuner won't tune in a signal, but that's typical for me here. I'll try it again when I get home later.

Edit: FWIW NWS is not showing any record of this report at this time.

sebenste

12-23-09, 05:01 PM

Is anyone able to receive a signal? The transmitter is located at the Walker tower farm with KCRG and KRIN, and it IS making full power. My tuner won't tune in a signal, but that's typical for me here. I'll try it again when I get home later.

Edit: FWIW NWS is not showing any record of this report at this time.

They haven't reported it yet to them via phone, just through Facebook. Two separate storm chasers reported it within minutes, including one of their stringers.

Haley1966

12-23-09, 05:05 PM

Both are coming in here (Marshalltown). KFXA is the strongest station I receive here----even better than the Des Moines market. KGAN is normally pretty strong also----I am getting more of a broken signal though. Mike

East Iowa 01234

12-23-09, 05:18 PM

Is anyone able to receive a signal? The transmitter is located at the Walker tower farm with KCRG and KRIN, and it IS making full power. My tuner won't tune in a signal, but that's typical for me here. I'll try it again when I get home later.

Edit: FWIW NWS is not showing any record of this report at this time.

1614 hrs (4:14 pm) Watching KGAN and KFXA over the air that this time

iowegian3

12-23-09, 06:14 PM

1614 hrs (4:14 pm) Watching KGAN and KFXA over the air that this time

Is WMT radio still in the same building w/KGAN-KFXA? If they are, they're surely talking about having to bail out...

uhf

12-23-09, 08:22 PM

pdruff

12-23-09, 08:37 PM

in marshalltown and game not on mediacom ch 22 (rebroadcast from KWWL 7.2)
currently showing NBC feed on ch 22.

Anyone know if game will be on?

:mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad: :mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad: :mad::mad::mad::mad:

:cool:

pdx77

12-23-09, 11:52 PM

sebenste

12-24-09, 12:10 AM

Collins Road would have to close as well.

These must be the same "spotters" that called in a tornado that didn't exists, causing millions of dollars in lost resources when several major factories shut down for no reason at all. A trained spotter will report it to NWS before posting it on fecesbook.

Not necessarily (posting to NWS first) if they can't get through or hampered by the storm. And, the people in question do post stuff like that with integrity, normally. Hopefully, KXFAChief can hop on here when chunks of ice aren't falling off his guys or tower and clear things up...

And you'd be surprised how a number of reports never get called into the NWS. A storm chaser I know called in a tornado to the NWS, with hundreds of chasers watching. He was the only one who called in. What happened was everyone else had assumed somebody else called it in. It happens more than you know.

And sometimes things look like tornadoes when they aren't at all; they aren't malicious reports. Many spotters need more training, and most importantly, real-world experience and thinking before sending out a report. But when you only see a few storms a year (if that) worthy of producing a tornado...

KFXAChief

12-24-09, 07:25 AM

Deleted

KFXAChief

12-24-09, 07:29 AM

Deleted

KFXAChief

12-24-09, 12:02 PM

That and I'm sure it would of been on the news as that would be a major story having an unstable tower close to shopping centers, houses and a major highway.

That is what happens when the state builds a highway under an existing guyed broadcast tower.

sebenste

12-24-09, 02:03 PM

KFXAChief,

Thanks for the confirmation, but...

The tower was twisting pretty good. We could even see the tower twist and sway near the base.

:eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek:

I hope it didn't weaken the tower. Stretching metal is NOT a good thing...

dline

12-24-09, 03:45 PM

Sinclair's Problem

Sinclair Broadcast Group faces possible bankruptcy

http://articles.latimes.com/2009/jul/15/business/fi-ct-sinclair15

and another old one

http://www.eschatonblog.com/2004/10/sinclair.htmlThese are from several months ago and I haven't seen anything since.

At the time, they warned it was possible due to their relationship with another broadcaster which was also in trouble, but it appears things have improved since then or I'd certainly be hearing more about it.

iowegian3

12-24-09, 08:40 PM

... trained spotter will report it to NWS before posting it on fecesbook.

"fecesbook":D lol!

iowegian3

12-24-09, 08:45 PM

diggerg56

12-24-09, 09:06 PM

Strange time to get a call but I got a robot call on behalf of Mediacom late this afternoon basically telling me that Mediacom was doing everything it could to get the dispute with resolved. Of course the dialog made Sinclair out to be the "bad guy" in the dispute.
I'm in Iowa City. Guess the PR war continues.

dline

12-25-09, 05:12 AM

Report: Talks next week?

The Des Moines Register's website reports mediation talks between Mediacom and Sinclair could begin next Monday.

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091224/BUSINESS/91224025

kps246

12-25-09, 04:38 PM

Did anyone have their DBS system installed by any of the local companies in the Iowa City area (Big Dog, Dynamite, or Capital City Satellite)?

Did you go with Direct TV or DISH, and where you satisfied with the installation
and any follow-up service you received? I have decided to drop Mediacom for my TV service, and just have HSI and basic cable with them.

Kevin

tsduke

12-27-09, 01:13 PM

Why isn't the Steelers game on KGAN in HD??

oldsyd

12-28-09, 10:57 AM

iowahawkeye

12-28-09, 12:39 PM

Why isn't the Steelers game on KGAN in HD??
kgan/$inclair probably figured it's just easier to stay in "SD".........so they don't have to flip/flop between SD & HD to jam their mediacom cut off drag across the screen every 5 min.

iowahawkeye

12-28-09, 12:49 PM

The Mediacom CEO is named Rocco? Seriously?That's correct. And with all the other retrans agreements Mediacom signs every year, it's interesting when it comes time for "Rocco" to pony up to $inclair........ on the other hand, I don't really see $inclair having big retrans fights with other cable companys......... which leads me to believe there's just bad blood between the 2. Wonder if "Rocco" would pony up if $inclair only wanted 5 cents extra/sub? 5 cents or 50 cents extra...... mediacom will still raise rates $4/month. Now if mediacom would just pass along the rate increase without jacking it up ...... Let's see, Im paying $125/month for "family cable & DVR service along with 12/1 internet. An extra 25 cents isn't going to bother anyone, but I do know there's 50-60 other channels that will want more in the future.

oldsyd

12-28-09, 04:13 PM

I'd really be interested to see what Rocco is offering versus what $inclair wants. Don't these backdoor deals go on all the time in TV/Radio/Movies?

dline

12-28-09, 09:00 PM

Register online report: No deal today

Sinclair and Mediacom, of course, each have their own spin on what this means.

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20091228/NEWS/91228026/1001/Cable-TV-flap-Sinclair-Mediacom-fail-to-come-to-agreement

319 Sports Fan

12-29-09, 08:19 AM

There isn't much on those stations, outside of sports, I watch anyway. And what little I do watch I can give up as they are shows that have been on a few years too many (American Idol, Survivor, The Simpsons).

If people really want to see these shows, they can do so with or without an antenna. As they say, you can't stop the Internet.

ivorygate

12-29-09, 10:47 AM

Here is a very interesting AP news article (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091229/ap_on_hi_te/us_free_broadcasters_in_peril) about the issues of broadcast TV, cable, and fees (oh my).

The idea that we are at the beginning of the end for broadcast TV, as we've known it, would usually would sound like yet another 'yeah, whatever' piece, but the facts are the facts and as it is said, we live in interesting times.

uhf

12-29-09, 10:53 AM

Now if mediacom would just pass along the rate increase without jacking it up ....

I sort of agree. However, the problem with the situation is that if they agree to 50 cents (or whatever the number is), then some other local will say "gee, you gave Sinclair 50 cents more, we want it to". And then the next guy wants it. And then Disney and ESPN, and everyone else says "gee, you gave the locals 50 cents more each, we want it too". Pretty soon the bill goes up by 30 bucks a month. :mad:

So the cable (and DBS) providers always want the lowest possible price to try to prevent setting a precedent with one station that snowballs into huge increases to the customers.

But then I've always felt that cable should be allowed to carry free stations for free. Cable pays for the infrastructure and maintenance to get a quality signal to the viewer that otherwise may get a poor or no signal. Many of these folks have cable because they don't want to mess with over the air reception for any number of reasons. Cable was invented for the very reason of providing broadcast signals to viewers in poor reception areas. I bet the locals LOVED cable back then.

From a stations point of view, and I was told this by the GM of a local station once, they want to get paid to be on cable because they claim that while they gain some viewers by being on cable, they also lose a lot of viewers to the other channels on the cable system, and the retrans money helps make up for that.

Anyway, that's my personal 2 cents on the subject, take it for what it's worth.

Haley1966

12-29-09, 11:26 AM

KFXAChief

12-29-09, 12:11 PM

Deleted

Haley1966

12-29-09, 12:40 PM

Thanks for the reply KFXAchief, I knew they applied for more power in Sept.,just didn't know if it was already being used. I am not always home this time of day(due to the holidays),but strength is decent. Of course might just be the clear day helping. Mike

iowahawkeye

12-29-09, 02:57 PM

FCC Preserves Retrans 'Good Faith' Provision

http://www.multichannel.com/article/441853-FCC_Preserves_Retrans_Good_Faith_Provision.php

John Eggerton -- Multichannel News, 12/29/2009 1:11:10 PM
The Federal Communications Commission has amended its rules to extend the good faith requirement in retransmission-consent negotiations until March 1, or longer if Congress moves a related sunset date. But the FCC had to work fast.

That provision [325(b)(3)(C)(ii) of the Communications Act for those keeping track] prevents broadcasters "from engaging in exclusive contracts for carriage or failing to negotiate in good faith."

It is not exactly clear what the FCC defines as good faith, but the issue has been heating up of late due to retrans fights between a number of Fox broadcast and cable properties and Time Warner Cable and Sinclair Broadcast Group and Mediacom Communications, respectively.

The good faith/nonexclusive bargaining rule had been expected to be extended, along with the satellite copyright license to import distant network TV station signals, as part of the reauthorization of the Satellite Home Viewer Extension and Reauthorization Act (SHVERA).

But a revised satellite bill got hung up and Congress extended the SHVERA bill until March 1 as a stop-gap measure. That came as an amendment to the Defense Appropriations Act, which only passed Dec. 19. The FCC then needed to move the retrans bargaining sunset date to March 1 or it, too, would have expired.

Without that extension the requirement that TV stations not enter into exclusive contracts for carriage (say cutting out satellite operators in favor of cable) or that they negotiate in good faith would have expired on Dec. 31.

That, in turn, could have had major implications for future retrans fights Mediacom, for example, has argued that Sinclair is not bargaining in good faith, and Time Warner has taken aim at Fox.

If a new satellite bill has not been agreed to by that March 1 date and Congress again extends the SHVERA sunset date, the FCC sunset of the good faith/nonexclusive bargiaining rule will autmoatically move right along with it.

The FCC said it was not providing time for comment on amending the sunset date because it didn't have the time.

"We are amending these rules without providing prior public notice and comment because prior notice and comment would be impracticable in this case," the FCC said in an order released Tuesday. " Section 1003(b) of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2010 was enacted on December 19, 2009, less than two weeks before the sunset date of January 1, 2010. This provides the Commission with an insufficient amount of time to publish a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in the Federal Register, to allow time for meaningful comment, and to consider those comments before taking the necessary actions..."

4lids

12-29-09, 06:38 PM

Does anyone know if KWWL has increased their power from 30 to 49Kw yet? I don't normally get them until primetime---but today they are coming in very well. I live in Southern Marshall co, just using an indoor antenna with amp. Just kind of curioius. Thanks mike

Eric is correct... KWWL has been at 49 KW for quite a while now (since October 9th). I'm impressed you are getting us there with an amplified indoor antenna, which typically are awful when trying to receive VHF signals.

4lids

12-29-09, 06:43 PM

We went out and tied down 2 of the 4 guy wires on each anchor point. To our surprise, there was almost an immediate effect to slow the oscillation in the wires. The tower was twisting pretty good. We could even see the tower twist and sway near the base. This tower, like most, is rated for 90mph wind with 1/2" of ice on it.

We will look at any improvements that may be needed for tower support/stability.

Eric,
We had similar fun in La Crosse with galloping in certain conditions until we installed guy dampeners (or snubbers). Very scary to be underneath a tower that had guys whipping like that! You and Randy have some guts going out to tether those things down when they are galloping!

If anyone wants to see what I'm talking about, check out www.arproducts.org and click on the Video of AR Snubber link. Please note the terrific voice talent :cool:

Haley1966

12-29-09, 07:48 PM

4Lids, I am as surprised as you are. For whatever reason you are coming in great here. I have had one of my TVs tuned to you since 9am. Very good signal strength. I need my RTV fix, and I can not get WOI on ch. 5 or 50 no matter what I do! So this has been great. I am lucky ,I get every station(except WOI), in the Des Moines and CR markets. I actually use two indoor antennas, one pointed your direction, and the other for DM-Ames, seems to be working! Mike

oldsyd

12-30-09, 01:34 AM

........ on the other hand, I don't really see $inclair having big retrans fights with other cable companys......... which leads me to believe there's just bad blood between the 2.

I guess the MC/$ battle isn't the only one happening. Looks like FOX and Time-Warner Cable are having the same public fight.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/29/business/media/29cable.html?_r=1&scp=2&sq=time%20warner&st=cse

KFXAChief

12-30-09, 05:54 AM

Deleted

dline

12-30-09, 09:31 PM

GazetteOnline: Iowa AG Tom Miller petitions FCC on Sinclair/Mediacom dispute

Miller calls on commission to grant Mediacom "interim carriage rights" until it can hear the cable company's complaint against Sinclair Broadcast Group:

http://gazetteonline.com/breaking-news/2009/12/30/iowa-attorney-general-to-fcc-don%e2%80%99t-let-sinclair-yank-its-stations

iowahawkeye

12-30-09, 11:52 PM

Mediacom: FCC Pushing Parties For New Years Retrans Resolution
Media Bureau and Chairman's office urging parties to resolution
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/442080-Mediacom_FCC_Pushing_Parties_For_New_Years_Retrans_Resolutio n.php

Iowa Attorney General Sides With Mediacom Interim Carriage Request
Sends letter to FCC supporting request for interim carriage of Sinclair stations
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/442087-Iowa_Attorney_General_Sides_With_Mediacom_Interim_Carriage_R equest.php

I'll guess we'll find out in about 25 hours.

iowahawkeye

12-30-09, 11:54 PM

Time Warner Agrees to Interim Carriage Or Binding Arbitration
Britt agrees with Sen. Kerry that impasse shouldn't disrupt consumers
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/442041-Time_Warner_Agrees_to_Interim_Carriage_Or_Binding_Arbitratio n.php

KFXAChief

12-31-09, 08:02 AM

Deleted

KFXAChief

12-31-09, 08:12 AM

Deleted

4lids

12-31-09, 10:01 AM

Is that your voice?

Yepper! I sent a photog out with a camcorder and then I edited it together for our corporate people and for WHLA (the galloping tower). WHLA immediately ordered snubbers after that and ARProducts asked to have the video posted on their site.

tsduke

12-31-09, 10:01 AM

15 hours to go.

I have no opinion on the subject. However I never watch the networks on cable. I prefer the picture that is over the air.

Let me ask you this...

What has Sinclair added to either of these stations in the last 3 years that warrants more money from Mediacom?

KFXAChief

12-31-09, 10:08 AM

Deleted

KFXAChief

12-31-09, 10:09 AM

Yepper! I sent a photog out with a camcorder and then I edited it together for our corporate people and for WHLA (the galloping tower). WHLA immediately ordered snubbers after that and ARProducts asked to have the video posted on their site.

That is what our supports were looking like. And this is only a 600 foot tower here.

iowahawkeye

12-31-09, 11:46 AM

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20091231/BUSINESS/91231006/Mediacom-Sinclair-may-consider-extension
Updated 10:25 am 12/31/2009

Mediacom reports that the cable company is in talks with Sinclair to allow programming to continue past tonight’s midnight deadline.

In a letter to Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., today, Mediacom CEO Rocco Commisso held out the possibility that more than 700,000 Mediacom subscribers nationally, including roughly 250,000 in Iowa, will keep Sinclair programming at midnight tonight.

“I now can report that, most likely as a result of your letter, Mediacom received from Sinclair late last night the first tentative indication that they might consider a very short-term extension of our agreement,” Commisso said in the letter to Kerry. “Hopefully, this will lead to a process that will achieve the objective of protecting consumers’ access to programming while the parties (through FCC-supervised arbitration if necessary) work out a longer term retransmission consent agreement.”

In a letter sent to Sinclair and Mediacom on Wednesday, Kerry, chairman of the Senate commerce subcommittee on communication, asked Sinclair to allow Mediacom to continue transmitting programming into the New Year.

The two companies are at an impasse over how much Mediacom Communications should pay to carry Sinclair Broadcast Group’s channels.

If no deal is reached, Sinclair programming would disappear at midnight tonight. Stations affected include Fox stations — KDSM in Des Moines and KFXA in Cedar Rapids — as well as KGAN, a CBS affiliate, in Cedar Rapids.

Any service interruption to Fox stations could affect viewers’ ability to watch the Jan. 5 Orange Bowl between the Iowa Hawkeyes and Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, as well as four NFL playoff games — including the NFC championship game.

Other Fox programming, such as “American Idol,” “24,” “The Simpsons” and “Cops,” also would disappear from Mediacom.

iowahawkeye

12-31-09, 12:30 PM

Mediacom and Sinclair consider 8-day extension
Updated 10:25 am
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20091231/BUSINESS/91231006/Mediacom-Sinclair-eye-8-day-extension

Mediacom and Sinclair are discussing an extension to allow programming to continue past tonight’s midnight deadline.

“We’re proposing to them an 8-day extension to get through the bowl games,” said Barry Faber, a Sinclair vice president.

In a letter to Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., today, Mediacom CEO Rocco Commisso held out the possibility that more than 700,000 Mediacom subscribers nationally, including roughly 250,000 in Iowa, will keep Sinclair programming at midnight tonight.

“I now can report that, most likely as a result of your letter, Mediacom received from Sinclair late last night the first tentative indication that they might consider a very short-term extension of our agreement,” Commisso said in the letter to Kerry. “Hopefully, this will lead to a process that will achieve the objective of protecting consumers’ access to programming while the parties (through FCC-supervised arbitration if necessary) work out a longer term retransmission consent agreement.”

In a letter sent to Sinclair and Mediacom on Wednesday, Kerry, chairman of the Senate commerce subcommittee on communication, asked Sinclair to allow Mediacom to continue transmitting programming into the New Year.

The two companies are at an impasse over how much Mediacom Communications should pay to carry Sinclair Broadcast Group’s channels.

Faber said he had not seen a letter from Kerry.

“We’re not responding to politicians, we’re responding to request of viewers,” he said.

Faber declined to discuss details of the Sinclair proposal, but he said Mediacom would have to pay the increased fees for the eight-day period.

If no deal is reached, Sinclair programming would disappear at midnight tonight. Stations affected include Fox stations — KDSM in Des Moines and KFXA in Cedar Rapids — as well as KGAN, a CBS affiliate, in Cedar Rapids.

Any service interruption to Fox stations could affect viewers’ ability to watch the Jan. 5 Orange Bowl between the Iowa Hawkeyes and Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, as well as four NFL playoff games — including the NFC championship game.

Other Fox programming, such as “American Idol,” “24,” “The Simpsons” and “Cops,” also would disappear from Mediacom.

uhf

12-31-09, 02:30 PM

http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/John-Kerry-Warns-News-Corp-Against-Fox-Blackout-106194

Phone, cable and broadcast companies can get away with a lot in DC, but they best not stand between a man and his football games. Time Warner Cable and News Corporation are engaged in a retransmission fee fight that could wind up with Fox programming being pulled from Time Warner Cable's channel lineup. This apparently displeases football fan and U.S. Senator John Kerry, who sent a letter to News Corp. warning them that Uncle Sam would step in if Fox programming is disrupted later on today:

“Fox and Time Warner need to strike a deal - millions of football fans are depending on it,’’ said Kerry, chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee’s subcommittee on communication, technology, and the Internet. "Having screens go dark because two parties couldn’t come together in time is no solution. New Year’s Day and football are synonymous in households across the nation. Private industry negotiations cannot disrupt a fundamental American tradition."

It's funny that Uncle Sam often stands dumbfounded as carriers engage in all manner of price gouging and other anti-competitive behavior (be it against consumers or other companies), but rushes in quickly to the rescue of the American consumer when football broadcasts are at stake. As we've noted, Time Warner Cable has used a clever PR stunt and an amusing ransom pic ad campaign to convince consumers that higher TV prices are primarily the fault of broadcasters. In reality, both cable companies and broadcasters make a killing, and consumers wind up paying endlessly higher TV bills no matter who wins these retransmission debates.

iowahawkeye

12-31-09, 03:12 PM

http://gazetteonline.com/breaking-news/2009/12/31/sinclair-mediacom-agree-to-eight-day-extension

Sinclair Broadcast Group and Mediacom have agreed to an eight-day extension of their retransmission agreement that expires at midnight, avoiding the disruption of the Orange Bowl and national football championship games.

“We just decided we wanted to avoid, with such important events coming up, the disruption that it would cause customers,” Sinclair General Counsel Barry Faber said. “I don’t expect there will be a further extension.”

Faber declined to discuss the terms of the extension, but acknowledged that “maybe we’re being compensated for it.”

“We recognize we’re giving up, perhaps, a small amount of (negotiating) leverage,” Faber said. “But we don’t think it’s very much. Our channels are worth so much more than we are asking for.”

Mediacom disclosed the eight-day extension offer in a letter yesterday to U.S. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., expressing appreciation for Kerry’s request that the Federal Communications Commission take a role in the dispute.

Faber said the extension was offered before Kerry made the request to the FCC.

CR_Client

01-02-10, 12:29 AM

Translation:

"We've gotten so many angry calls and know we're in the wrong that we've figured out that we can't strong-arm Mediacom into acquiescing to our demands. We'll give you the Orange Bowl to try and get you back on our side."

That's basically the message I hear in their televised bumps, too, when they say "we realise that it would be extremely inconvenient for our viewers to not be able to watch the Orange Bowl on MediaCom. We've extended our agreement so that you can watch it." As if it was all their idea, and they're doing it out of the goodness of their black hearts...

hdtvincr

01-02-10, 09:33 AM

I agree. But you know they will spin all they can to make themselves look better.

Some poll numbers I saw showed about 2-to-1 in favor of Mediacom from the viewers. THAT, IMO, is the reason they caved for the bowl games.

They aren't bright enough to figure out that part of the reason viewers are ticked at them is that they keep screwing up HD to run their damn scare crawls. Heck, even with the extension, they STILL keep kicking to SD to run their new "You should thank us" crawl.

One thing I can tell you, folks are sick of hearing about this, and seeing all their damn crawls is NOT doing KGAN any favors.....

tsduke

01-02-10, 10:45 AM

iowahawkeye

01-02-10, 01:54 PM

I'd bet if the plug was pulled in the Fox/Time Warner battle, $inclair would have done the same. But since the BIG DOGS decided to play nice for few days, $inclair was smart enough to follow suit, as it didn't want to be the only/lone program provider to pull the plug......and face the FCC alone.

dohnut

01-02-10, 04:16 PM

I'm getting sick of it that's for sure. These 2 stations have done nothing to warrant higher payment for carriage. Sure they have some programming people want to see, but they have invested nothing in the stations tech wise. If anything they've invested a lot less.

Yeah, don't know about that, but is anyone actually working there today? Why has the Cotton Bowl been in SD (OTA) for the last 15 minutes? I keep waiting for a stupid Mediacom scroll but I'm not even seeing that.

tsduke

01-02-10, 04:26 PM

Yeah, don't know about that, but is anyone actually working there today? Why has the Cotton Bowl been in SD (OTA) for the last 15 minutes? I keep waiting for a stupid Mediacom scroll but I'm not even seeing that.

They fail to get the broadcast in HD all the time. And they want more money.:rolleyes:

oldsyd

01-03-10, 01:13 PM

Just wait until this spreads to the satellite carriers. I bet Mediacom could have a few tuned antennas and pick up either DSM or Quad Cities FOX/CBS affiliates. Too bad the FCC won't allow that. Then you would see competition between the affiliates wrangle in those prices.

Brew

01-03-10, 02:41 PM

Pay us more money than the other affiliates in the market even though they have invested in their facilities!

They can run crawls in HD! We can't!
They will have HD newscasts within the first half of 2010! We won't!

But still... pay us more money! Waaaaaaaaghhhh!

flyingvee

01-03-10, 04:39 PM

Pay us more money, even if we can't put on an NFL game in HD.

Really, KFXA Chief, why isn't the Arizona game in HD? there aren't even any crawls. What's the excuse this time?

Seriously - you guys at the station have no control over the politics, but afaik, you DO have control over what goes out over the airwaves.

Pretty low budget - I've been waiting all week to see Kurt and the Cards in HD - and now - nope. good old letterbox 4x3. WTG.

flyingvee

01-03-10, 05:35 PM

tsduke

01-03-10, 08:40 PM

Fixed. back to HD. not bad. does it happen more? - I wouldn't know - if it isn't a sporting event, I don't watch Fox. After this, I can see why, and I'm not that unhappy.

go ahead, Sinclair, Mediacom. Pull the plug. With this kind of service, I really don't care.

Between KGAN and KFXA this happens with sports quite often. Especially on Sunday. Steelers game on KGAN didn't start in HD last week.

Pathetic!!

KFXAChief

01-04-10, 11:08 AM

Deleted

dline

01-04-10, 03:52 PM

Statement from FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, released New Year's Day:

"Fox and Time Warner have granted a New Year's resolution of millions of viewers, and I congratulate them.

"Now it is the turn of Sinclair and Mediacom to respect the wishes of their audience, and resolve their differences before the expiration of their extended agreement on January 8th. The governing statute contemplates that retransmission terms should be and will be resolved by agreement between private companies, and broadcast and cable companies must accept shared responsibility for any failure to reach a timely deal.

"I commend the FCC's Media Bureau for its yeoman, pragmatic, and consumer-focused work in encouraging yesterday's extension of the Sinclair/Mediacom retransmission agreement as well as today's Fox/Time Warner agreement."

Source: http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-295459A1.pdf

sgarringer

01-04-10, 03:59 PM

FOX and Sinclair owned stations just have lots of equipment "failures" and/or issues.

I wonder if they got their HD equipment from the garbage behind another local station...

It's funny, ABC, NBC / KCRG, KWWL can manage to carry things in HD almost always, but Sinclair owned stations have technical issues. And they believe their content is worth "so much more" :rolleyes:

tsduke

01-04-10, 06:34 PM

We had equipment issues. Like I am just trying to piss off some of the people here.

Did you miss any of the game? NO.

BTW, how did Kurt look on the sideline? How much of that sad excuse of a game did you watch?

I got the game back to HD as soon as I could.

How much do you know about how FOX provides their signal to the stations? Not too much I believe.

When there are glitches on both ends, it take a small amount of time to fix. It got fixed. You did not miss any of the game. Move on.

Nice. We can't give what you're paying for when it matters, but screw you give us more money for our poor excuses for tv stations. People might be more willing to let this pass if it wasn't for Sinclair wanting more. You also make it sound like this is HD life and there's no room for improvement. I don't buy that.

I don't think we need to know all the info about how the signal is provided. We just want it to work.

As sparringer said, why is it the 2 Sinclair stations have this problem more than the others. I can't count the number of times I've called and nobody is even aware that your in SD.

Trip in VA

01-04-10, 06:44 PM

I think the point is that this stuff isn't KFXAChief's fault, as flyingvee was stating by personally attacking him. That's really not cool, and is a great way to drive him away from the forum.

Some stations are fully HD plants that upconvert SD. Others are SD plants that inject HD. I get the impression that the latter is more likely to fall back to SD, and that Sinclair stations are more likely to be in that situation.

I'm not one to defend Sinclair, but I am sure they have engineers who would like very much to have the resources of other companies to do things right. I think that Sinclair is not a great company, but I am confident that their employees do the best they can with the resources available to them.

- Trip

iowegian3

01-04-10, 09:25 PM

Well said...

KFXAChief

01-05-10, 01:51 AM

Deleted

uhf

01-05-10, 09:26 AM

While I'm no fan of Fox or Sinclair, this isn't a forum to bash the locals. If you want to do that, go over to redandnater. I personally know KFXAChief and I believe he's making the best of a tough situation. I commend him for his hard work, and for putting up with the recent rash of complaining here.

We have engineers from most of the local stations that monitor and contribute to this forum in order to help their viewers and try to make things better for said viewers. It's a great resource for viewers to provide feedback. But if we bash these engineers, they will go away. I'm not saying constructive criticism doesn't belong here, but when it becomes a constant bitch fest about one particular station or group then it's going too far. That's like telling a cashier that Walmart sucks. They know, but they still have to work there, and that doesn't mean they can't do every little thing they can to make working their a positive experience for themselves and the customers.

The local engineers generally are not paid to be here, they do it on their own, because they love making things better for their viewers. But they can only do so much with so little.

One place I worked had a saying, "We've done so much with so little for so long, we are now qualified to do anything with nothing, and have it done yesterday". And so it goes with broadcast television..

tsduke

01-05-10, 11:21 AM

Since the engineers do read these thread I believe this is the place to complain. Why would I want to voice my frustration about something where it won't be heard by someone who has some ability to fix it. The problems I complain about do exist. Simple as that. If any engineer takes the complaints as personal, I'm sorry.

4lids

01-05-10, 11:40 AM

I know I value the input of members of this forum. It's a great resource to us to have other knowledgeable sets of eyes and ears in the market to catch things that might otherwise go unnoticed; however, I can also understand KFXAChief's frustrations with a lot of the armchair quarterbacks out there. Sometimes there are problems out of our control, but none of that matters to the viewer. It is the fault of the station to either fix the problem or find someone to fix it or correct their problem or set the record straight.

Please don't assume that we don't care about things or don't want things solved in a timely matter. Right now, KGAN and KFXA are battling through some things, just as KWWL did around this time last year with the transition back to VHF (very friggin' low power to start too!) and NBC's new HD downlink gear which was a nightmare for lipsync until NBC got Tandberg to update some software in their receivers. Sometimes things are happening that can't be solved by the wave of a wand or just because a viewer is upset. I guess I'm just recommending that others be careful of their rants and understand we are just trying to do our jobs the best that we can with what we are provided.

dohnut

01-05-10, 12:21 PM

I think we need a little middle ground here.

First, most of us complaining about broadcasting issues are not trying to attack anyone personally. Second, those of you who work for these companies need to show a little empathy and acknowledge that customers/viewers have a right to complain.

I think most people understand what it is like to have to do a job with nonexistent or sub-par tools and/or an unreliable supplier. I also think most people can understand the frustration at not getting the expected performance from a product that they pay for (whether directly or indirectly).

Telling people not to watch a certain channel because they are unhappy with the broadcast is no different than being told if you don't like dealing with customer complaints then find another job. You might not deserve to bear the brunt of the complaints but the customer has a right to complain.

Personally, I will try to make my complaints less, well, emotional I guess going forward. So, I should not have said, "Is anyone actually working there?" when I'm sure in reality someone was working on the problem and doing their best. But I will say, "There hasn't been any audio on KZZZ for the last 10 minutes." Is someone at the KZZZ aware of that? Probably, but I'm just complaining. ;)

uhf

01-05-10, 12:52 PM

I'm not saying there shouldn't be complaints, those I understand and want to see here, as they do create the opportunity for the engineers to find problems they missed and get them fixed.

I don't want to see them turn into continuous rants, such as the Sinclair/Mediacom fight posts. The engineers have NOTHING to do with that, so complaining to them will solve nothing, and only creates bad will. Direct that to station management.

Ken H

01-05-10, 02:04 PM

Keep this discussion civil, or moderator action will be taken.

Feel free to voice your opinions, but show respect for others.

hdtvincr

01-06-10, 01:59 AM

theoryzero

01-06-10, 10:53 AM

I hooked up an OTA antenna last week. It's been working fine so far, but I noticed last night that one of the channels we used to get, KPXR (Ion), doesn't work anymore. My TV says "Poor Signal Quality" although it says it has signal strength of 92%. I checked it again this morning and saw the same issue. I don't have another TV in the house to try it on, anyone else having troubles with this channel?

dline

01-06-10, 02:34 PM

The Gazette is now quoting a Mediacom official as saying negotiations with Sinclair have been "really productive," and that negotiations could be wrapped up soon. Its reporters have yet to hear from Sinclair, though.

http://gazetteonline.com/breaking-news/2010/01/06/mediacom-official-sinclair-negotiations-really-productive

Ken H

01-07-10, 02:21 AM

Wow..... Moderator action???? My quick glance back over the last few posts shows some frustration, but nothing uncivil or unrespectful.

Although he may take it personally, I did not see ANY personal attacks directed at KFXAChief. Channels 2 & 28, or Mediacom & Sinclair maybe, but not at any particular engineer.

I GREATLY appreciate having you local engineers here, but don't take things so personal when we complain about poor service. I and others have stated that we know there are a lot of things out of your hands. But that doesn't give the stations a free pass.....

The local station engineers are here solely because they want to help, and to try and explain as much as they can so we can understand. They are under no obligation whatsoever to do so.

If the tone directed toward them gets hostile, sarcastic, edgy, or any number of negative things, it becomes a personal decision if they want to continue to participate or not. The expression 'throwing pearls before swine' comes to mind, and in many cases these indiviuals simply go away.

Q. How does this benefit anyone?
A. It does not.

The recent comment from dohnut sums it up pretty well:

Personally, I will try to make my complaints less, well, emotional I guess going forward. So, I should not have said, "Is anyone actually working there?" when I'm sure in reality someone was working on the problem and doing their best. But I will say, "There hasn't been any audio on KZZZ for the last 10 minutes." Making them aware of issues and voicing concerns is all well and good. Commenting about their professionalism, or dedication to their job, lack of effort, 'xyz' company sucks, etc., is a completely different matter, and will not be tolerated.

The correct way to voice concerns is to discuss the issue maturely and leave the attitude and frustration out. End of story.

iowahawkeye

01-07-10, 01:53 PM

http://www.press-citizen.com/article/20100107/NEWS01/100107006/1079

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20100107/BUSINESS/100107010/Mediacom-Sinclair-reach-agreement

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Mediacom Communications Corp. and Sinclair Broadcasting Group have reached an agreement, ending a dispute in which Sinclair threatened to pull its stations off the cable company's system.

ivorygate

01-07-10, 02:18 PM

dline

01-07-10, 03:27 PM

Just a one year deal? So, we should expect sometime around the middle of December 2010 we'll hear reports that they are at an impasse for 2011, after supposedly negotiating for nearly the current calendar year. Great.Not necessarily, but as the Register and Gazette both noted, these agreements are usually for three years, not one.

SethB

01-07-10, 10:12 PM

It's been like this for a few years, but lipsync on KGAN continues to be "off" when HD content is being displayed. It seems fine when SD content is displayed, however. I've asked in the past, and the line I got from CFU is that it's a KGAN problem, and KGAN says it's a CFU problem. I do know some people inside CFU, and would like to try to get this resolved if possible, as watching Letterman can be pretty painful at times. Can anyone else tell me if KGAN has these issues on Mediacom or OTA? Or confirm them on CFU? Thanks!

ivorygate

01-08-10, 09:17 AM

It's been like this for a few years, but lipsync on KGAN continues to be "off" when HD content is being displayed. ... Can anyone else tell me if KGAN has these issues on Mediacom or OTA? Or confirm them on CFU? Thanks!

I don't recall this being a problem OTA for at least two or maybe even three years now, although I'll admit I don't watch much CBS content; basically just the Monday sitcoms and The Mentalist on Thursdays. It definitely used to be a problem I would notice a lot in the early days of KGAN's HD feed.

sgarringer

01-08-10, 10:46 AM

What is the point of a forum that does not allow you to make complaints.

These people act as if we are honoring them by watching their signal and we should just be happy we have a picture, expecting HD is above and beyond.

It's not. Other stations can do it. Other local stations can do it. Other stations with shorter budgets that are not attempting to extort money from the incumbent cable provider by holding a popular sporting event over the citizens head can do it.

Thanks for the suggestion KFXACheif I won't bother watching KGAN anymore. I had switched there for my news, but at your suggestion last night I went back to KCRG. And I remembered what a real news cast is like.

Good day.

uhf

01-08-10, 11:17 AM

What is the point of a forum that does not allow you to make complaints.

From my point of view, you can complain all you like, if it is about a technical problem, and not a personal attack on the engineers. Saying that KGAN news sucks, while it could be true, serves no purpose here. The engineers have no control over content. Saying that the video is glitching, the audio has an issue, or the signal strength is lower than normal is perfectly acceptable, AND ENCOURAGED.

Constantly bringing up the same issues over and over, when it's known it's out of the engineers control, serves no purpose. Call station management with those issues.

The comment above about the lip sync is a very valid post. Those are the sorts of posts I love seeing here.

redhawk

01-08-10, 11:29 AM

Are cable companies the worst managed companies in the nation.They had monopolies in most cities. Instead of giving good service and being customer friendly they chose to go after the almighty dollar. Had they been managed better there would be no satellite companies. My town has Mediascum. Everyone I know that has a satellite dish got one because of the way Mediascum treated them.

tsduke

01-08-10, 11:43 AM

From my point of view, you can complain all you like, if it is about a technical problem, and not a personal attack on the engineers. Saying that KGAN news sucks, while it could be true, serves no purpose here. The engineers have no control over content. Saying that the video is glitching, the audio has an issue, or the signal strength is lower than normal is perfectly acceptable, AND ENCOURAGED.

Constantly bringing up the same issues over and over, when it's known it's out of the engineers control, serves no purpose. Call station management with those issues.

The comment above about the lip sync is a very valid post. Those are the sorts of posts I love seeing here.

Saying such is NOT a personal attack on an engineer either. But it is a valid point as to why Sinclair doesn't deserver higher fees. So I don't see where such a comment can't be made.

sgarringer

01-08-10, 12:22 PM

I didn't say KGAN's news sucks, I said KCRG's is better, which is a subjective opinion. I didn't tell the engineer that it would be wiser to just turn off the transmitter during the newscast because the dead air would garner more viewers, or anything else insulting like that. This is a forum discussing Local HDTV Info. Technical discussions may typically be one thing discussed, but I see no reason why the quality of the newscast is "off bounds".

When a station demands more money from it's viewers to continue to receive their signal, and attempts to hold the one program that nearly every person in the market is going to watch as a bargaining chip, I don't see why any part of their operation is off limits for discussion. They're not running a charity at Sinclair (quite obviously) and so I don't find anything wrong with looking at their quality with a descerning eye. According to Mediacom they insisted on more than any other broadcaster, so I think it is only fair that we would expect the quality of their station -- both technically and content wise -- to be better than those other stations. This is my opinion. And my opinion is that it is not. Is that the fault of the engineers that work there? No, it's not. But when those engineers come on here and try to say that we should be satisfied with getting anything from them, and make it seem like wanting to view a broadcast which was filmed and sent in HD is someway asking too much, I'm going to say something. That person opted to make that statement -- NOT Sinclair management.

If this was an isolated event, I doubt anyone would say anything. It's not. And when it is only one set of stations, owned by a company who insists on saying that their quality is "so much better" than anything else in the market (since they're pricing it so high that's what they're saying) I feel like pointing that out.

iowahawkeye

01-08-10, 11:12 PM

KCRG's logo on the 10 pm news right now is showing the outside temp at +12, when it should be showing either -5 or -6 degrees.

CR_Client

01-09-10, 01:11 AM

No, I'm pretty sure it's $9.98 per month per HD set-top box, and the only way you will be able to watch anything in HD other than the big five network locals is to have an HD set-top box from them. The five HD locals will all be unencrypted QAM, but to get WGN-HD, ESPN-HD, etc., you will need to rent a box for each set you want them on.

That section in the insert on HD service was confusing enough to me be what I called them last week for clarification. It used to be you paid something around $10 a month for their "HD service" and the first box was free with subsequent boxes costing somewhere I think around $6 a month. Now they are saying that HD service is "free", but you can't really get it without their box (except for the five locals). So for someone that only had one box in the past, the cost is the same ($9.98). For someone that had two boxes, they were paying around $16, they will now be paying around $20.

I'd suggest giving them a call to confirm this. I'd much rather give a local company my business than a regional or nationwide company - provided they stay competitive.

ImOn updated their website for their new pricing. It appears that the $9.98 for a High Def Set-top box is per month.

Now my only question to confirm is that I can add an HD set-top box to the basic package, and still receive the full HD lineup.

If so, $30/month for basic analog cable plus ImOn's rather impressive HD lineup (for my main TV only... I can deal with OTA-only HD in the bedroom) is almost a steal, and very likely worth switching for, especially since MediaCom's current Broadcast Basic price is only a few bucks shy of that, and doesn't include anything more than locals in HD.

bobgpsr

01-09-10, 07:05 PM

It appears that the $9.98 for a High Def Set-top box is per month.
Sorry ImOn and Mediacom. I'll wait for Tru2way-capable TV's that do not require an extra box with remote control just to get more than local HDTV.

No interest in having an extra box that won't even be an HD-DVR.

Will stay with OTA, local stations in QAM and various internet streaming/downloaded titles (Amazon, NETFLIX, HULU, network sites). Hooking a PC to a TV via HDMI works very well. But would be happy not to have to get a XBOX, PS3, or ROKU for HD.

$10/month per a TV just for HD is too much for many with all the hassle. Keeping it very simple with a well working single remote control is desired by most, IMHO. Harmony RC's are just not easy enough yet with a combination of a cable system STB, an AVR and a TV.

CR_Client

01-10-10, 02:19 PM

Tru2Way still requires a cablecard to authenticate for decryption, etc. My primary (of only 2 total) TV has a cablecard slot and QAM tuner, which obviates the need for worrying about a reliable, high quality antenna setup.

Besides which, $10/month for 14 HD channels (actually closer to 20, but 14 that aren't locals available OTA), without having to pay for more than just the basic $20 package, is well worth it to me. Why pay for the SD versions of HD channels if I don't have to?

I'd rather have HDTV today, and pay a little extra for it, than wait for the mythical day some time in the nebulous future when the majority of TVs sold are Tru2Way capable, and cable companies like MediaCom actually support Tru2Way.

As far as "simplicity", people have been using STBs for 25+ years for cable TV. I'm pretty sure that most people are used to the idea by now and can handle it. And, again, I think that, of all the people in the world, I'm pretty much the one person who can decide what works best for ME.

flyingvee

01-11-10, 11:43 AM

Apologies to Ken H (for making him be involved) and to KFXAChief.

My remarks were not meant to be a personal attack at you; as one who as defended you and Jarrett when you were the target of unwarranted attacks in the past, I was surprised to find that I was the attacker in this case.

There have been enough "switch" problems in the past that simply assumed that was the case again; my mistake.

Let me change pronouns, for clarity. I felt (and still feel) that Sinclair (not KFXA Chief) is out of line, and showed poor timing, with an inability to broadcast in HD while asking for more money. My personal opinion. KFXAC's statement that it wasn't his fault, but that of the equipment he is given to work with, supports my sentiment (if not my exact words - again, apologies to the engineering staff trying to do too much with too little.)

(and uhf - my two posts were also of the "hey, its broken - hey - its fixed" type. simply with added vigor because I had wanted to see the game.)

Chief - no, I didn't enjoy the "pathetic game" - but if you're going to be smart about it, it would have been nice to have the 2 series Kurt participated in broadcast in HD. You're right - mop up in HD is kinda pointless.

That said - yesterday's game between the Packers and Cards was outstanding - great game, great sound, great picture. Isn't it supposed to be?

I trust I don't have to come here and make a positive statement every time the broadcast proceeds as it is supposed to. I do hope next week's game looks as good - one would expect it to.

KenH - I really think there are some pretty strong emotions on both sides. Do you, Mr. H, really think we are holding KFXA to "exalted standards" (Chief's words, not mine) when we ask and expect HD programs to be broadcast in HD? I'm good, KFXAChief - if its not in HD, I do bail (World Series, Super Bowl excepted) - I do have standards. Whether or not they're exalted, that's another argument.

Here's to having MANAGEMENT (bean counters, corporate suits, whatever designation fits) provide sufficient equipment to broadcast the signal in the fashion in which it is supposed to be broadcast. :)

sgarringer

01-11-10, 03:41 PM

Deleted post

CR_Client

01-14-10, 08:03 PM

Aaaaand...

Once again, KGAN is playing an HD, 5.1 show in HD, but without 5.1. Kinda hard to follow the dialogue or anything else on the program without a center channel.

And because of it, my options are to switch to the SD channel over cable, or watch a different network altogether. That's not a good list of options.

Just documenting, not making personal attacks that are intended to drive away uber-valuable members of the AVS community...

ivorygate

01-15-10, 09:33 AM

Once again, KGAN is playing an HD, 5.1 show in HD, but without 5.1. Kinda hard to follow the dialogue or anything else on the program without a center channel.

What show(s)?

dohnut

01-15-10, 11:00 AM

What show(s)?

It happened during the beginning of "The Mentalist". Once the first commercial break happened (about 7:04) the center channel (dialogue) came back and things were OK from there on out.

I don't know about the audio prior to "The Mentalist" because I wasn't tuned to 2.1 at that time.

twashade

01-15-10, 11:17 AM

CR_Client

01-15-10, 07:16 PM

Regarding IMON and the free HD channels, if you do have a device that uses CableCards and can process an HD signal (which is probably only a TiVoHD), you are able to get the entire HD package without needing the $10 set-top box.

I ran through all the channels that I didn't use to get and now have the entire lineup of HD channels.

I'm curious as they add more HD channels if you have to have the SD channel to keep the HD version of it. Otherwise, at some point, I may be able to drop my cable package to a lower tier and just keep the HD versions of certain channels.

Well, twashade, there are some TVs out there that have CableCARD slots that can tune QAM, so it's not limited to just TiVoHD. Also, since the FCC mandated CableCARD be the primary source of security, even for cable company STBs, there should still be plenty of CableCARD devices to pick from, such as HDHomeRuns and other tuner devices. But, you're right, there probably aren't too many TVs out there with them built in any more.

One day I'll take the time to call ImOn and find out all of the details, and post them, but not tonight. Then again, I should probably also check and see if ImOn is even available in my area... I'm not sure I've ever actually looked into that...

sgarringer

01-17-10, 10:32 AM

Also, since the FCC mandated CableCARD be the primary source of security, even for cable company STBs, there should still be plenty of CableCARD devices to pick from, such as HDHomeRuns and other tuner devices. But, you're right, there probably aren't too many TVs out there with them built in any more.

You don't understand CableCard. CableLabs must review every device before they can allow it to be marketed as "CableCard ready". They review "security" and DRM ability. Therefore, there are only a handful of devices on the market that can use CableCard. Windows 7 is supposed to include the necessary DRM but even with that I'm not aware that there is a cablecard tuner you can purchase for a PC, and certainly not for Linux/MacOS. Tivo spent months to get certified and it was a hassle for them. Cablecard is the biggest joke on consumers since Cable TV was invented... letting the cable industry's own shill organization (Cable Labs) review the hardware means that we'll never see anything that can compete with their equipment or give the consumers access with the data to do with as they please.

diggerg56

01-17-10, 03:04 PM

Either no one is manning the controls or there's some technical problem at KFXA today. During the NFL pre-game and now during the Vikings/Cowboys game every time there's a spot for a local cut-in we get nothing but a blank screen for a couple minutes.

ivorygate

01-17-10, 04:19 PM

I feel I have a legitimate complaint with KWWL for showing "Iowa Sports Heroes" on Thursday evening, Jan 14, from 7pm to 8pm, even though NBC had new episodes of 'Community' and 'Parks and Recreation' airing at that time. Don't NBC affiliates have enough problems, with the whole Leno debacle and just generally poor ratings all the way around, without preempting new episodes of their scripted shows?

flyingvee

01-17-10, 06:19 PM

You don't understand CableCard. CableLabs must review every device before they can allow it to be marketed as "CableCard ready". Cablecard is the biggest joke on consumers since Cable TV was invented... letting the cable industry's own shill organization (Cable Labs) review the hardware means that we'll never see anything that can compete with their equipment or give the consumers access with the data to do with as they please.

Dunno about any of that; I do know that I have 2 CC devices, both Sony (of all things) and that the cc works fine in both. Parents had a Hitachi HD set with CC, it worked absolutely fine. (Until the flood of 08 put a foot of water or so into the works.) Son, on my say-so, has a Hitachi plasma with CC - working fine on Comcast cable. So they can and do work; CC rental is cheaper than box rental, and more transparent - just turn on a tv and change channels, like any other cable ready set.

Afaic, I'm sadder that the cable companies killed cable cards. They were great.

KFXAChief - you're slipping again - you let Kurt and the Cardinals lose. Couldn't you do something to fix that broadcast, so the right team would win? :rolleyes::D

diggerg56

01-17-10, 11:37 PM

twashade

01-18-10, 11:56 AM

So they can and do work; CC rental is cheaper than box rental, and more transparent - just turn on a tv and change channels, like any other cable ready set.

I agree! They are a lot more reasonable than a set-top box for cost. I just wish my Series 3 could handle the M card so I only needed to rent one.

That's cool that there are several TVs out there with the capability because it does make things so much cleaner when they work.

CR_Client

01-18-10, 02:55 PM

This may have been commented on already.
I just noticed last night that KCRG was showing Two and a Half Men and CSI:NY in full HD after the 10pm news. NIce to see they're continuing with the HD upgrade.

Mentioned a few times. They went "live" with time-shifted HD (including syndicated shows) back in November or December, but I don't recall the exact date. It's a few pages back in this thread now.

Not sure if you've noticed or not, but KCRG has their own local ad spot produced and broadcast in 16 x 9 HD now, with more local HD spots to come. That, to me, is almost more impressive than the HD time-shifting. Although, as we've seen, KCRG is still the only local in the market to offer time-shifted HD, so it's still a pretty big feat in and of itself.

rcourtney

01-18-10, 11:37 PM

mred53

01-19-10, 10:25 AM

I haven't been here for a month so please excuse me for bringing this
subject up. What is the NAB commercial talking about?

Since they have digital tv are they planning on changing a few bits and making
me "Deposit 25 cents for this show?" (anyone remember payphones?)

http://www.nab.org/documents/newsRoom/pressRelease.asp?id=2158

The TV spot comes on the heels of several third-party filings submitted to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) calling for the reallocation of broadcast spectrum for new wireless broadband devices.

I did a quick google search and found plenty of articles about the potential reallocation, but no info on what frequencies would be reallocated. I assume it'd be the top end of UHF again.

EDIT: There's an AVS thread about the FCC backing down on this here: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1216722

flyingvee

01-20-10, 03:06 PM

mred53

01-20-10, 04:39 PM

Dish Network had a tile on those stations stating that the stations were having technical difficulties.

4lids

01-21-10, 11:55 AM

KWWL (and, I think KCRG and WMT) were gone for a tiny bit today, during the noon news.

Problems with REC power, or ice on the tower giving you fits?

Or - was the storm bad enough that the signal flat went away? That's really the main reason I'm asking - my meter for signal strength and quality went to 0. KFXA was still there, which is why I was guessing it was a transmitter/tower problem. Except, 2,7, and 9 aren't all on the same tower, are they? So likely REC and power outage, I suppose.:confused:

REC outage... 2, 7 and 9 were all done for a few minutes. 2 and 9 (and 32 as well I think) are on the same tower near Walker and 7 is by itself in Rowley. Not sure what caused the outage with REC, but I certainly done with ice. How about a couple 40-50 degree days to get the ice off the towers! So much for global warming :cool:

bobgpsr

01-21-10, 09:58 PM

Well it was after Jan 16th and ImOn did deliver on providing more QAM channels as promised. I did a channel scan on my Samsung UN40B6000 TV and after a few days still see the following.

Digital QAM unencrypted channels on ImOn Cedar Rapids cable.

39-1 HGTV HD 1080i
40-11 Food HD 1080i
41-21 Speed channel HD 720p
47-1 Fox Business News 720p
47-2 National Geo HD 720p
48-1 Fox SD chan 28-2 OTA 480i
48-2 Fox HD chan 28-1 OTA 720p
48-4 EWTN (religious) 480i
75-1 HD Theater 1080i
78-41 WGN HD 1080i
78-42 ESPN HD 720p
80-1 ESPN 2 HD 720p
81-1 TNT HD 1080i
82-1 TBS HD 1080i
89-2 NFL HD 1080i
92-2 HDNET 1080i
92-3 IPTV chan 12-1 OTA 1080i
92-4 IPTV Learns 12-2 OTA 480i
94-1 BigTen HD 720p
109-3 KGAN CBS HD 2-1 OTA 1080i
109-5 KWWL NBC HD 7-1 OTA 1080i
110-2 HDNET Movies 1080i
110-3 KCRG ABC HD 9-1 OTA 720p
110-4 KCRG weather 9-2 OTA 480i
118-1 Disney Channel HD 720p
118-2 History Channel HD 720p
119-3 A&E HD 720p

A nice lineup. Only missing the CW channel HD chan 20-1 OTA.

I hope ImOn keeps the above channels unencrypted so a normal new TV can get them without a $10/month extra STB box.

iowahawkeye

01-21-10, 10:35 PM

I hope ImOn keeps the above channels unencrypted so a normal new TV can get them without a $10/month extra STB box.Good to see there's at least one CC that runs it's HD channels via qam. Never understood why Mediacom encrypts the the HD's, since they never encrypted the analogs in the "family" package.

CR_Client

01-22-10, 11:15 PM

Good to see there's at least one CC that runs it's HD channels via qam. Never understood why Mediacom encrypts the the HD's, since they never encrypted the analogs in the "family" package.

Because Mediacom can restrict customers from accessing the analogs from the "Family" package by installing a filter on their line. The only way to restrict non-subscribers, or lowest-tier subscribers from getting HD versions of channels that they don't even pay for over analog is to encrypt all but the local QAM channels.

I hope that ImOn keeps those channels in the clear via QAM but...

-MediaCom had some of its non-local HDs available over QAM for a week or two (WGN, most notably). That only lasted a week or two, until they "fixed the glitch".

-I can't get ImOn at my house. They seem to still only be serving the West side of town? It's hard to tell, really, since they're not too forthcoming with the size of their service area; they only have an address search feature. So, until I can actually GET ImOn at my house, it's all kind of a moot point.

However, once they're available here, I can't imagine it will take more than a week or two before I switch!

sgarringer

01-23-10, 09:43 AM

-I can't get ImOn at my house. They seem to still only be serving the West side of town? It's hard to tell, really, since they're not too forthcoming with the size of their service area; they only have an address search feature. So, until I can actually GET ImOn at my house, it's all kind of a moot point.

However, once they're available here, I can't imagine it will take more than a week or two before I switch!

ImOn has coverage on much of the NE, NW and SW sides of town. The SE side extends quite a ways along first Ave, but not far to the east, by the time you hit Mt. Vernon Rd their buildout stops.

CR_Client

01-23-10, 10:24 AM

ImOn has coverage on much of the NE, NW and SW sides of town. The SE side extends quite a ways along first Ave, but not far to the east, by the time you hit Mt. Vernon Rd their buildout stops.

From a few random address searches, it appears that they left out my neighborhood when they were building out the NE side. Up on the hills along Wenig, there's service, in Wellington Heights, there's service, and near 29th St. NE there's service, but nothing at all in my neighborhood, which is in the middle of all of that and closer to downtown.

Unless, of course, they have service in my neighborhood but are over capacity or something, but I somehow doubt it.

C'est la vie.

Update: I tried using the new PriceBuilder page on the ImOn website, and it states that you cannot get the HD set-top boxes, DVRs, or CableCards with any package lower than their $63/month "Digital Entertainer" package. So unless all of those channels stay in the clear over QAM, the only advantage that ImOn has over MediaCom is a very slight price break. That also seems to indicate to me that those new QAM channels will likely disappear in the near future. I hope I'm wrong, of course, but if they don't want anyone who is paying less than $63/month to have an HD set-top box, DVR, or CableCard, then I doubt they'll leave their HD programming free and clear for QAM users for very long...

I must say, though, that I'm pretty disappointed that they're not more forthcoming on their "Pricing" page about the HD set-top box requiring a high-end package; it's not until you try and actually put a package together with their wizard that you find out it's a no-no.

KFXAChief

01-24-10, 07:42 PM

Done here.

tsduke

01-24-10, 07:45 PM

Done here.

??

CR_Client

01-24-10, 09:41 PM

Who knows. Maybe he means that he's done posting here, and won't ever be back. Maybe he means that he's done working on some major issue that someone complained about. Maybe he means that the problems with the video quality on analog KFXA on MediaCom have been remedied.

I, for one, was hoping to hear about what happened with the meeting between all of the local engineers and MediaCon regarding the video problems on analog channels 8 and 9 (KFXA and KCRG), especially since those problems are still happening, and it would have been nice to find out what MediaCon is doing to try and fix it.

Or maybe it means he got laid off, which would be a bummer.

sgarringer

01-25-10, 03:51 PM

From a few random address searches, it appears that they left out my neighborhood when they were building out the NE side. Up on the hills along Wenig, there's service, in Wellington Heights, there's service, and near 29th St. NE there's service, but nothing at all in my neighborhood, which is in the middle of all of that and closer to downtown.

You could try calling them and asking them. Short of providing your exact address, if you are in an aerial area look for thick black hardline usually located above Mediacom and below Qwest. There should also be a termination block for twisted pair right next to the cable tap. (which looks like this: http://telecomvisions.homestead.com/files/2_aerial_block_terminal.jpg)

I'm not sure I understand why you would expect to subscribe to basic cable, and rent an HD-DVR box... I am doubtful that any cable company would offer that as a package. I guess they have QVC HD but that is just about the only HD channel you would get.??

CR_Client

01-25-10, 08:25 PM

You could try calling them and asking them. Short of providing your exact address, if you are in an aerial area look for thick black hardline usually located above Mediacom and below Qwest. There should also be a termination block for twisted pair right next to the cable tap. (which looks like this: http://telecomvisions.homestead.com/files/2_aerial_block_terminal.jpg)

I'm not sure I understand why you would expect to subscribe to basic cable, and rent an HD-DVR box... I am doubtful that any cable company would offer that as a package. I guess they have QVC HD but that is just about the only HD channel you would get.??

I didn't say an HD-DVR, I said an HD set-top box, which, according to ImOn's website, is required to be able to receive HD (even though others have found them on QAM). Also, according to ImOn's website, they take a LOT of trouble to point out that HD programming is "FREE", and that all that's required is a $10/month HD set-top box.

I just expect them to be up-front and honest about their pricing and packages.

PismoNate

01-26-10, 12:34 AM

CR_Client

01-26-10, 10:39 AM

Dear KWWL, {sarcasm} Thank you for squishing the picture tonight during Chuck to add a crawl that took up 1/5 of the screen. I had forgotten how awesome it was to watch short fat people on my widescreen tv, because it has been some time since I had to watch stretched 4:3 material. When I catch up on these DVR'd shows later this week, it will be especially helpful for me to know what businesses and schools were closed or cancelled in the past. {/sarcasm}

Please consider running the crawl only on the commercials in the future. This way the people who DVR and weren't going to watch the commercials anyway won't be bothered, and the people who tune in live because they haven't discovered such technology as DVR, the internet, and radio (or looking out the window) might be forced to watch some commercials so that they can get such important weather news.

Respectfully,
PismoNate

P.S. Your competitor KFXA showed at least two shows tonight without any weather crawl interruption... I wonder which channel has happier viewers...

While I agree that KWWL and KCRG should try and find a way to overlay school closings instead of squishing the programming, your ire is misdirected.

Both KWWL and KCRG, with their HD-capable Lower-Third generators, have been slightly squishing their programming for school closings instead of overlaying it. The only reason I can think for doing this is because it involves a multi-line crawl, instead of a graphic and crawl like they have with weather alerts. And, as far as I know, the locals would probably get hand-slapped if they covered up the network logos on the bottom third of programming with a full-width crawl, which is why they squish it instead.

The reason their "competitor" didn't have any crawl interruption during programming is because $inclair doesn't have HD Character generators for either of the stations at Broadcast Park yet, and they've finally listened to the complaints of people who were unhappy that they were showing programming in SD instead of HD just for school closings.

If $inclair had HD character generation capabilities, then your "gratitude" would be directed at ALL of the local stations.

Instead of sarcastically congratulating them on squishing what is otherwise a lackluster programming lineup (NBC's prime-time is hotdog water any more), be thankful that you're still able to watch programming in High-Def when there are weather alerts or school closings.

sgarringer

01-26-10, 02:02 PM

I didn't say an HD-DVR, I said an HD set-top box, which, according to ImOn's website, is required to be able to receive HD (even though others have found them on QAM). Also, according to ImOn's website, they take a LOT of trouble to point out that HD programming is "FREE", and that all that's required is a $10/month HD set-top box.

I just expect them to be up-front and honest about their pricing and packages.

I stand corrected on the HD-DVR but you don't seriously think that "FREE" meant without subscribing to the package that provides the channels. I mean, what would possibly make you think that you could get basic cable, and then just magically all these HD channels for "FREE" even though you don't pay for the package that provides them. I think it is quite obvious that they mean "FREE" for everyone who already gets those channels in SD. I mean, why stop at where you did? They should have to give those channels to everyone! They're free, right? Who cares if you don't subscribe to ImOn at all... they're "FREE"!

guppyman

01-26-10, 04:45 PM

While I agree that KWWL and KCRG should try and find a way to overlay school closings instead of squishing the programming, your ire is misdirected.

Both KWWL and KCRG, with their HD-capable Lower-Third generators, have been slightly squishing their programming for school closings instead of overlaying it. The only reason I can think for doing this is because it involves a multi-line crawl, instead of a graphic and crawl like they have with weather alerts. And, as far as I know, the locals would probably get hand-slapped if they covered up the network logos on the bottom third of programming with a full-width crawl, which is why they squish it instead.

The reason their "competitor" didn't have any crawl interruption during programming is because $inclair doesn't have HD Character generators for either of the stations at Broadcast Park yet, and they've finally listened to the complaints of people who were unhappy that they were showing programming in SD instead of HD just for school closings.

If $inclair had HD character generation capabilities, then your "gratitude" would be directed at ALL of the local stations.

Instead of sarcastically congratulating them on squishing what is otherwise a lackluster programming lineup (NBC's prime-time is hotdog water any more), be thankful that you're still able to watch programming in High-Def when there are weather alerts or school closings.

While I applaud their capability as you state, I think it stinks that they (and the other networks) feel the need to take up screen real estate for primetime shows for cancellations and weather related information. For crying out loud, do they think I can't get this information another way? These days there a multiple sources for this information - internet, email, text messaging and even their own sub channels. Last year when I still had kids in the Linn-Mar district, we'd get an email and a text message when school was canceled or delayed.

I watch TV to watch TV, not cancellations. How about a quick scrolling message to go to KWWL.com or to one of their sub-channels for updates instead of ruining everybody's tv viewing?

iowahawkeye

01-26-10, 05:07 PM

guppyman

01-26-10, 05:16 PM

All crawls except tornado warnings should be on the stations sub channel. To alert the viewer, all the station needs to do is show the word "alert" in SMALL text next to the station logo.
And while I'm on a roll, the viewers DON'T need to see that pulsating "servicemaster" logo on any stations crawl. If that isn't the most distracting piece of crap on a tv screen.... :mad:

I couldn't agree more. It's simply idiotic to scroll this stuff over and over for the WHOLE evening. If I want to find out what's been canceled, I go to any network's website, click on cancellations, scroll through the list and bam I'm done. 30-60 seconds, tops. It's not even useful to do it they way they are doing it. Let's see, do I watch the show or watch the scroll? If I pay attention to the scroll I have to wait, and wait, and wait, and wait for the cancellation that concerns me. It's a waste of bandwith, screen space and time, and I may miss the cancellation anyway because I"M WATCHING THE SHOW!