Found some Very intresting reading on the FCC Website

[goaliebob99]

http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-06-801A1.doc

This was released yeasterday by the fcc

My question is why is Echostar trying to stop all these stations from going to full power digitally?? It doesnt make any sence. Why would they care?

Reading all of this I feel that its an Embarrisment to echostar.

 

[nitstalker]

What I get out of reading that is that through SHERVA, beginning April 30 if you live in the top 100 markets and you get crappy signals you can request the station to perform an actual test to prove the actual signal at your residence.

But... also SHERVA allows for the same stations to request their own waiver that "would prohibit satellite subscribers from recieving or conducting a digital signal stregnth test."

60 Stations filed for the waivers by the November 2005 deadline.

What Echostar did is contest the waivers. I think they did the right thing. What these waivers do is gives a 'sucks to be you' to the consumer. Say you get crappy signal, there is nothing you could do. "since grant of a waiver will result in some subscribers being unable to recieve any digital signal from the network in question, either by over-the-air station or by satellite."

of the 60 stations that requested waivers, only 23 were accepted.

Now Im sure E*'s minds were on the pocketbook, I still give them kudos for trying to keep the consumer in mind from being shafted by the tv stations...

 

[bxl4]

I suspect that as long as they are in low power mode, the locals aren't reaching much of their potential OTA viewers and are therefore more motivated to cut a deal with Dish for HD LiL service. IMHO.

 

[mike123abc]

Reading it looks like both DIRECTV and Echostar have protested a lot of the waivers. Essentially these are waivers by stations that want to block the importation of distants to their markets if they are not transmitting full power.

The station must claim a valid reason as to why they are not full power (i.e. local zoning issues, international interference, etc). If they get the waiver all those in the DMA cannot receive a digital distant, even if the station is transmitting via a morse code flashing light bulb.

E&D want to be able to sell distant digitals via satellite to people not getting them locally, that is why they are protesting the waivers. Markets like mine where there are stations transmitting 480i standard definition signals at 2kwatt power 20 miles out of town would be blocked from getting distant digitals until the local station got around to upgrading their signal to the fully licensed strength. Fox here broadcasts a 2.1 kwatt signal, they are licensed for 1000kwatt -- they are 1/5% of the licensed power....

 

[HokieEngineer]

What a mess. These stations need to work together on some sort of revenue sharing program. Of course local commericials still get screwed but I don't see a real solution that makes everyone happy. However with the current FCC and industry lobby, I doubt the consumer will win.

 

[mike123abc]

What really needs to happen is that local stations need to either upgrade their equipment to full power, sell the station to someone that can afford the upgrade, or turn off the station and let distants come to the local market.

The TV licenses are public property on loan to the station provided they make the investments to fulfill the terms of the license. Sorry if I sound heartless to the small market stations that are not making money, but I bet 90%+ of the stations would be bought.

Now of course 23 of the stations the FCC agrees that they have a legitimate reason for not being able to do the digital upgrade (i.e. local groups sueing to block a new tower or something tying it up).

If you do not think that it would be possible to justify the upgrade to digital in the next 3 years, then you may as well start looking now for a way out of your license.

 

[MikeD-C05]

I thought ALL of the rest of the market dmas had to be at Full power by July of 2006. The top 100 digital dmas had to be at full power last July 2005. How come any waivers would be granted now.

IN my area I have one full power station CBS at 100 ota strength- full 1080i hd picture. My NBC station is at 86 strength - CRappy 480i over digital full of crackeling ,popping and static just like the analog version. My ABC station is at 480i too but looks pretty good but the strength is only in the high 60's to low 70's. No hd or digital Fox localy, just low powered sd signal not worth trying to receive it since it is all static.

The kicker is that my ABC station is broadcasting from their studio while the CBS /NBC stations are transmitting in the same area far out of town. Making very hard to get a good lock on all three when they are located in two opposite directions. The rumor on AVS forum ota board is that my ABC station will go full power and broadcast in hd by July . I hope so!

I sure hope none of my locals got a waiver to delay going full power.

 

[Barry Erick]

One problem stations are having is filling in bad spots. Problem is, unlike analog, the FCC has NOT done anything for digital translators. Without these, the holes are not filled. But in this area, all cables have the digitals and it is simply left to the satelitte guys to finish this before feb 19, 2009

 

[nitstalker]

Got this in my email this morning... Maybe someone should give them some comments lol

Commission seeks comment on measurement of DTV signal strength
May 3, 2006 12:35 AM, RF Update e-newsletter

The FCC is looking at establishing measurement procedures for determining DTV signal strength at any given spot as a way to decide whether or not households are eligible to receive distant DTV network signals retransmitted by satellite.

On April 24, the commission issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking regarding the matter as required by the Satellite Home Viewer Extension and Reauthorization Act of 2004 (SHVERA). On Dec. 8, 2005, the FCC issued the SHVERA Report to Congress stating it needed to conduct a rulemaking proceeding to lay out procedures for measuring the field strength of DTV signals at individual locations and that it believed the procedures should be similar to those used to determine the field strength of analog signals.


Among the matters the commission is seeking comment on:


Whether or not there are ways to minimize the cost of digital signal strength tests while ensuring the accuracy and reliability of the results;

Whether measurements should be required to be taken using a calibrated gain antenna with a front-to-back ratio consistent with the DTV planning factors or with either a standard half-wave dipole antenna or a gain antenna with a known antenna factor for the channel(s) that are to be tested;

A proposal to require digital signal measurement to be done by measuring the integrated average power over the signal’s entire 6MHz bandwidth and that the IF bandwidth of the measurement device not be greater than 6MHz.

A proposal to require test instruments to be set up with a shielded transmission line between the test antenna and the field strength meter, that antenna impedance be matched to the transmission line at all measured frequencies, that the tester account for line loss and when an unbalanced line is used so must a suitable balun.

A proposal that DTV measurements be made with a horizontally polarized antenna and a requirement that the antenna be oriented so its maximum gain faces the strongest signal coming from the transmitter being tested. If more than one station’s signal is being measured, the antenna must be oriented separately for each station.

A proposal that testing antennas be elevated 20ft above the ground when measuring at one-story buildings and 30ft for buildings higher than one story.
A proposal that tests should not be conducted in inclement weather.

A proposal to require the same recording of DTV signal measurement strength as requirements for an analog signal.

Whether it is possible to develop rules that address the lack of qualified, independent testers to perform the signal strength tests.

The commission released the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking April 28. The deadline for comments is 30 days after publication in the Federal Register. Reply comments are due 45 days after publication in the Federal Register.
For more information, visit www.fcc.gov.

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[David_Levin]

Denver is DMA 18 - no full power.

Local residents (on the hill), are keeping the new tower well tied up in court. It's a mess.

FCC should step in and stomp these people down.

 

[waltinvt]

Any action by the FCC on this matter is nothing more than a facade designed to give the appearence of compliance with SHVERA but in the slowest and least intrusive manner on the tv industry that can appear to be legitmetly justified.

SHVERA is nothing more than a facade created by congress to give the appearence that lawmakers are not unduly influenced and beholding to the National Association of Broadcasters - NAB.

The NAB is nothing more than an organization established to centralize power and control for the television stations. An example of that power is the control of campaign air time for major elections every two years. The money associated with just that one facet is quite staggering.

It's a pretty cozy arrangment that has worked well for quite a while.

Television stations receive billions from advertisers of which a huge chunk finds it's way to the NAB.

Television stations receive billions from congresional candidates every 2 years of which another huge chunk finds it's way to the NAB.

Even if you could organize every single satellite customer in the country into some kind of lobbying effort you wouldn't stand a snowball's chance in Hell of competing against such corrupt and entrenched entities as the NAB and Congress.