Denver Waivers - DENIED!!!

[forkboy]

My local ABC station (KMGH) and NBC station (KUSA) are refusing my waivers even though I am too far from their wimpy little antennas they have downtown. I live about 30 miles outside of Denver and the local stations have been trying to put up a full strength tower on a local mountain for about six years but have been unsuccessful due to a community group who thinks the towers will make them sick.

The ABC station has admitted there is no way I can get their HD signal even with the best antenna made, but both ABC and NBC are refusing me waivers because I am in their Designated Market Area. This makes no sense to me. Is there anything I can do?

 

[riffjim4069]

Unless you're willing to hire a lawyer...probably not. You can always file a complain with the FCC. You ABC station will have to acknowledge that you are unable to receive an adequate signal in writing and perhaps explain why they denied your request for waiver. The entire tower/DTV antenna issue makes no sense at all.

Filing a Complaint with the FCC

 

[charper1]

http://www.satelliteguys.us/showthread.php?t=88078

 

[forkboy]

Here's the original replies...

From ABC:
Our HD signal comes from our studios at Speer and Lincoln in Denver and has very limited coverage. I don't think there is an antenna made that would pick it up for you in North Boulder. We hope to have the new tower on Lookout Mountain up soon, which will improve the HD signal.
We are sorry for this inconvenience. Thank you for writing.


From NBC:
You are located in our designated market area and thus you were denied a waiver

Comcast is currently carrying us in HD and we hope DirecTV will do so in the future. DirecTV does offer its customers a converter box that you might want to check into. A UHF outdoor or attic antennae may work for you.

As you can see, ABC has already admitted that I can't get their signal and NBC has their antenna in the same place so I'm confident they know I can't get their signal either. They're just not stupid enough to admit it.

I would like to at least try to reason with these people before I start threatening them with signal test and lawyers. Any recommendations on what relevant parts of SHVERA may apply?

Thanks!

 

[Phil T]

Plenty of information is available on the pathetic situation in Denver at :

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=28456&page=612&pp=20

The final hearing is this week from the new county commissioners who have gone on record saying they are against the towers. Also the city of Golden is stating they will use their power of intimate domine to buy the property that has housed the towers since the early 50's.

The stations don't care because they are saving all kinds of money by not having to convert now.

KMGH in Denver (ABC) is a joke. You need a 6 foot antenna to pick up a signal 10 miles away. I wish the networks would force their affilates to give the wavers.

Fat chance because it is all about the $$$.

Best guess is that Denver will see no high power digital until analog shutoff (2009+)and the stations convert their existing transmitters to digital.

 

[slacker9876]

I had to "move" to get ABC. In Loveland I am able to pull KUSA (NBC), KDVR (FOX), KBDI (PBS), and WB just fine, however, Monday Night Football is God ... especially tomorrow. Rick Craddock is an ass, and denies all waivers even though sCARE has no ground to stand on and just likes the court room. The WY affilates all granted waivers no problem, go figure.

You best bet is to research "moving", I'll help you via PM if I am able. You will not get ABC in HD in Denver for a long time. Heck people in downtown Denver are unable to get thier signal.

 

[x1hdtv]

I also have emailed 7abc several times and keep getting the same canned response as you. I am able to pull all other locals with outdoor antenna, but no abc.
Has anyone been able to get a waiver from them?
Should we all get together and go visit the GM at channel 7?
Till then I will boycott channel 7 except for MNF.

 

[SpringsGuy]

I'm in Colorado Springs and with Dish Network, i am using a Zenieth Silver Sensor antenna and am pulling all 5 digital channels.. PBS, CBS, FOX, ABC which never shows anything in HD, and 1 music channels that shows nothing but 80's and 90's pop and rock video's, pretty cool i guess.. Fox's HD in my area looks great and also CBS-HD is sharp too, wish you guys could see what i see ... As long as their are plenty of people like me that can use a fairly inexpensive antenna to pull in the stations, doubt the major stations will bend over backwards to get service to you folks way up in the hills..

 

[jdcolombo]

Unless you're willing to hire a lawyer...probably not. You can always file a complain with the FCC. You ABC station will have to acknowledge that you are unable to receive an adequate signal in writing and perhaps explain why they denied your request for waiver. The entire tower/DTV antenna issue makes no sense at all.

Filing a Complaint with the FCC

The FCC currently does not have rules in place for doing a DIGITAL signal test; accordingly, if you can receive the station's analog signal, you are out of luck with regard to a waiver. The FCC is apparently working on the digital white area rules, but it likely will be many months before those rules are finalized.

If you really want network HD, the best solution is to get a gray-market subscription to Canada's Bell Expressvu or Starchoice service. Both carry both east and west HDTV network feeds (on Bell, it's Boston and Seattle, though I think there are a couple other choices; on Starchoice, its Detroit and Seattle). My local CBS station STILL does not do HD and has told everyone in our area (Champaign IL) not to expect it until 2007 (!). Our ABC affiliate is unreliable (they often forget to throw the switch); only Fox and NBC are very reliable local HD sources for me. So I have a Starchoice system to supplement my DirecTV system.

Sooner or later this all will get sorted out; DirecTV will put the Denver network HD signals up once it rolls out its LIL HD service, but it may be a while given the delay in launching Spaceway 2 (now scheduled to go up next month). In the meantime, the Canadian option is more reliable and cheaper than a lawyer and more satisfying (at least for TV watching) than bitching & moaning.

John C.

 

[fleetmack]

i've tried about 8 requests to ABC in Denver (live in westminster by the promenade) .... I can pull in every other local channel in HD -- the WB, NBC, CBS, Fox ... even some random weather channel! But no ABC -- I have a $200 antenna and I can't even pull in their analog signal, it's pathetic. I wo'nt be watching that channel any more. Here's a couple of replies from them:

I am sorry to tell you we do not grant waivers to viewers located within our designated market area.
Thank you for writing.

Then I wrote them this email :
After several years of viewing your news every morning as I dress and
every evening, I am writing to bid you farewell and thank you for the
years of service to me.

After receiving waivers to watch the west coast feeds from FOX, CBS, and
NBC on DirecTV -- you were the only station to deny me. I looked
forward every morning to the smiles and newscast that greeted me, but
the fact that you denied me the abillity to watch Monday Night Football
in HD from a west coast feed pushed me over the limit. My apartment
complex is not wired for Comcast, and I'm in a location that even my
$200 antenna cannot pull in your station in HD. With utmost regret, I
am boycotting your station and will be looking elsewhere for my news
from now on.


They replied with:
We are sorry to lose you as a viewer. The option to grant or deny waivers is the choice of each television station. As you know, our policy is to deny waiver requests.
Perhaps when the new tower is constructed on Lookout Mountain and we have an adequate HD signal, you will come back to us.
Thank you for writing.

 

[slacker9876]

They replied with:
We are sorry to lose you as a viewer. The option to grant or deny waivers is the choice of each television station. As you know, our policy is to deny waiver requests.
Perhaps when the new tower is constructed on Lookout Mountain and we have an adequate HD signal, you will come back to us.
Thank you for writing.

Rick Craddok and his superiors are all idiots ... the really lost me as a viewer since I now watch via the NYC feeds. I was PISSED over the Stanley Cup Finals in 2004 ... this year, I'll get it all in living color.

 

[colofan]

Ironically as well since MNF is moving over to ESPN and NBC is pciking up Sunday night Football there is no more reason for me to even try and get the test done.

I did read somewhere that Colorado Springs affilate ABC is going high power in October on channel 24 so hang on to that thought

 

[Thomas P.]

I live in the Denver metro area (Westminster) and tried to receive the HD signal from the local network stations a year or so ago & it’s nearly impossible.

The signal is weak at best and you almost have to move the antennae each time to pick up the signal. The tower situation on Lookout Mt. for a digital HD signal will probably get worse soon, so the outlook for HD networks in Denver is very bleak for us consumers.

I never tried for a waiver from NBC & ABC as the other 2 stations were difficult enough to obtain. It’s frustrating not to have networks in HD and even with Spaceway 2 up soon, I don’t think the future is bright for us HD starved viewers in Denver

 

[jpn]

D* plans to make all of the affiliates' HD signals available... eventually, when mpeg4 is fully rolled-out. Can't really blame D* for the situation.

The local affiliates are within their rights to deny waivers. Watching the national HD feed reduces the affiliates' ability to sell advertisements. You're asking it to voluntarily reduce its earning-potential.

The NAB spends a ton of $$$ protecting its affiliates' ability to show local ads to local audiences. It's all a matter of greed, and you can thank the NAB for it's "screw the viewing public" approach.

I think the best approach is to lobby your congress-people (plus digital-TV advocates like Sen. John McCain) stating your situation. Express the opinion that your affiliates (AND the NAB) are slowing the adoption of digital TV (and by extension HD) by denying your waivers.

Maybe you can ask your Senator/Congressman (or state assembly) to intervene on your behalf... explaining that the waiver is temporary and will last only until D* rolls-out mpeg4 in your area.

 

[kbohip]

ABC has already had a digital sation set up here in the Springs at 24 for a while now. In my program guide it even states shows that should be shown in HD, but they'rre not. As a matter of fact, KRDO (ABC) looks absolutely terrible. You can tell it's just a very low quality analog signal.

I'll wait until November when NBC is supposed to finally get an HD tower up. If they haven't by then I may just "move" to La Junta along with my sister-in-law.

 

[x1hdtv]

Well it looks as if our tower proposal was shot down again for Denver. Check posts over at avs, Denver thread.