Jun 15, 2009 7:50 pm US/Pacific
More Changes On The Way Following DTV Conversion
Expect Channel Disruption During Sutro Tower Construction
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS 5) ―
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TV with digital converter box.
CBS
Since the DTV Transition, CBS 5 Chief Engineer Michael Englehaupt has been troubleshooting with viewers and finds one of the most common problems where viewers lose channels can be fixed by re-booting and rescanning the converter box.
And if you still don't see a picture, you may not need to buy that new antenna just yet, because the station is moving the digital antenna higher up on Sutro Tower for better reception. Englehaupt said also keep in mind over the next few months, "There will be some days during construction between now and mid-September when we will have to transmit from an auxiliary antenna that is lower than our main antenna. When that happens there will be some viewers with degraded or no reception."
So don't be alarmed if one day you have a station - the next it disappears. By mid-September when the project is complete, you should be receiving more digital stations than you had before. For the small percent of people who will still have hills or buildings in the way of the digital signal there is the option of signing up for cable.
Comcast Cable is offering a $10-month introductory fee for new customers. That reduced fee covers 34-stations including local Spanish and Chinese language stations. Mark Toney with The Utilities Reform Network isn't impressed. He said it's just a temporary "teaser" rate and wants the cable company to promise those rates won't be raised. "We believe the flat rate should be consistent and should not be used as a marketing ploy to get customers and jack up the rates later," Toney said.
Andrea Michaels refuses to pay for cable or satellite service. Instead, she wrestles with converter boxes. As of Monday she spent 3 hours; one down two to go. "At one point I decided it would be good to never watch TV again but it seemed extreme because I have all my reality shows that I watch," she said.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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