Nebraska Locals

[bmxcookie]

I have a strange one for you all. I recently started a petition that would allow North Platte DMA locals to be available to several additional counties in Central and Western Nebraska that currently get locals from Denver Colorado. I have contacted the FCC, Neilson Company, Local and Federal Congressmen and Senators. The FCC says it's the Neilson Company that determines the DMA's, The Neilson Company says its the FCC. I had a senator tell me both are responsible. Dish does not have an answer either. I have 230 signatures so far and alot more that will be added to the petition soon since an email is required to sign it and I have a bunch of elderly that do not have a computer.

We have Charter Cable and several smaller cable companies in these effected areas and they distribute the North Platte locals to these communities as well as the North Platte locals. Why can't dish? These communities are only an average of 75 miles from North Platte, they are however 200 or more miles from Denver. North Platte is where they go to shop. It's also where school closings come from and other emergency information. These people are not getting emergency alerts such as winter weather advisories, tornado warnings, amber alerts, etc., Instead these folks get information and weather from over 200 miles away and the HD spot beam doesn't stretch that far either. There are approximatly 16,000 people effected by this and many are rural/farmer. These people need "Local" channels!

DirecTV is not offering locals in the North Platte DMA.

I need help with this effort. Please view our petition and sign if you wish. Please offer any ideas as well, I would appreciate it.

Petition: Nebraska locals for Nebraska residents | Change.org

Thank you!

Brandon McCook
Dish install Manager for Express AVL
Preffered Dish Network Retailer

 

[papalittle]

I have a strange one for you all. I recently started a petition that would allow North Platte DMA locals to be available to several additional counties in Central and Western Nebraska that currently get locals from Denver Colorado. I have contacted the FCC, Neilson Company, Local and Federal Congressmen and Senators. The FCC says it's the Neilson Company that determines the DMA's, The Nilson Company says its the FCC. I had a senator tell me both are responsible. Dish does not have an answer either. I have 230 signatures so far and a lot more that will be added to the petition soon since an email is required to sign it and I have a bunch of elderly that do not have a computer.

We have Charter Cable and several smaller cable companies in these affected areas and they distribute the North Platte locals to these communities as well as the North Platte locals. Why can't dish? These communities are only an average of 75 miles from North Platte, they are however 200 or more miles from Denver. North Platte is where they go to shop. It's also where school closings come from and other emergency information. These people are not getting emergency alerts such as winter weather advisories, tornado warnings, amber alerts, etc., Instead these folks get information and weather from over 200 miles away and the HD spot beam doesn't stretch that far either. There are approximately 16,000 people affected by this and many are rural/farmer. These people need "Local" channels!

DirecTV is not offering locals in the North Platte DMA.

I need help with this effort. Please view our petition and sign if you wish. Please offer any ideas as well, I would appreciate it.

Petition: Nebraska locals for Nebraska residents | Change.org

Thank you!

Brandon McCook
Dish install Manager for Express AVL
Preferred Dish Network Retailer

I believe the Nebraska locals only go as far west as Kearny. So there are a whole lot more people affected my Dish not carrying NP locals.

 

[bmxcookie]

Nebraska Locals go into Lincoln County (North Platte), Logan County (Stapleton), Thomas County (Thedford), and part of McPherson (Tryon). We have NBC and FOX from North Platte,
CBS from Lincoln, and ABC from Grand Island/Hastings.

 

[joelwnelson]

Technically speaking, the North Platte market as offered on DISH is complete as K25KA (CBS/KGIN) and KHGI-CD (ABC/KHGI) are the local affiliates for North Platte. I know KHGI-CD shows up as its own station over the air ("KHGI-CD Digital Television 27.1") but don't know if it airs local ads in North Platte, or if the OTA feed is identical to the satellite feed from Kearney...

I'm in Omaha but I'll sign the petition if I can as the rural Sandhills counties should be grouped with North Platte rather than Denver. The Denver channels don't serve western Nebraska in any way as it is.

 

[bmxcookie]

You are correct sir. They are considered North Platte local, and a few ad's appear but since they are based farther east, most of the commercialism is from Eastern Nebraska. Thats fine because they do cover weather for Central and Western Nebraska as well.

Thank you for your support!

 

[Mr Tony]

I think the main reason those areas have Denver locals go back to the old Denver 4 (then Denver 5 and now Denver 8) stations on C-Band dish. That was the easiest way for cable companies out there to grab some type of network feed.

Below is a map of what DMA is where in Nebraska and most of Western NE is Denver market except for Scottsbluff which is part of the Cheyenne Market

Checking a really good site on TV/radio in the Upper Midwest most of those areas still use Denver as the locals on cable. There are some areas where KNOP NBC is on cable too but mainly its Denver stations. The only one I see where there is more than one NP local on cable is next door in Ogallala.
Broadcast Stations on Cable TV

Dish right now is not allowed to give you a station from another market unless there is a missing network. So significantly viewed is really not an option right now. Directv I bet would do that if they carried NP locals. By the way Nielsen decides who is in what market

 

[bmxcookie]

I have to disagree on one statement you made. I had a pair of techs from Allo Commnications (A new fiber company in the state providing TV, Phone, and Internet via fiber) come in last week with a Yagi antenna that needed fixed. They were pointing it at the KNOP tower and then sending the signal via fiber to Ogallala. They said they also send it t Scottsbluff which is another 140 miles away from Ogallala. They are not pulling from the birds.

 

[Mr Tony]

but fibre is being used now recently. Wasn't really used even 5 years ago much less 25

 

[bmxcookie]

True, I ageee. North Platte locals just became available to dish in 2009. The technology is there to widen the spot beams to cover 6 additional counties in standard def. I feel that if we get 2500 to 5000 signatures we will be able to change those maps.

 

[Mr Tony]

spotbeams usually cant be changed...looking at the spotbeam that the NP locals are on (the imported ones from Lincoln/Grand Island/Kearney etc) are on 110 is real goofy. Runs from Minnesota all the way down through Kansas but doesnt go very far west of North Platte
SatelliteGuys.US_TheList - Dish Network ALL

 

[bmxcookie]

Spot beams are a turn of the dial usually, and there are several people in the sandhills that are giving a false address to a neighboring town just so they can get North Platte locals adn they come in fine, even at 80 miles from North Platte. The main problem is that whomever set up the DMA's messed up. Just look at the map you sent me, there is no rhyme or reason to the DMA's. I think the Nielson Company and the FCC got together with a map and darts and just had a party. The Nielson rating card needs to be updated and they need to take logic into account when assigning DMA's.

 

[bmxcookie]

Here is a good read for anyoneinterested in the issue.

Satellite Television | FCC.gov

I find it hard to decifer some of the legal stuff but it appears to me that the STELA act of 2010 would allow Dish to send the Nebraska Locals just about any where in the state.

 

[Mr Tony]

Spot beams are a turn of the dial usually, and there are several people in the sandhills that are giving a false address to a neighboring town just so they can get North Platte locals adn they come in fine, even at 80 miles from North Platte.

yep its called "moving"....lots of folks here do that (including me)

The main problem is that whomever set up the DMA's messed up.

Nielsen did it

Just look at the map you sent me, there is no rhyme or reason to the DMA's.

sadly some states are like that especially out west
Wyoming's is worse