FYI: SF Bay KQED DTV update
Philip
their PSIP guide and web site listings, I received this reply. I had not
considered that cable and OTA would be different as I thought cable
simply received and passed on the OTA signal.
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OTA schedules and Cable schedules will be expanding to different hours
within the next 2-3 weeks, and no longer be in sync. We had hoped to
make that change on Wed 2/01, but due to a faulty piece of equipment,
that expansion has been delayed a few weeks.
All of KQED's channels are now running a 24/7 schedule, a service that
will be rolling out to Comcast Cable customers between now and August,
as Comcast does its neighborhood by neighborhood digital upgrades. Due
to the bandwidth limit for transmitting the signals Over The Air (OTA)
from Sutro Tower, 24/7 service is not available to people/companies
which receive their signal that way. DirecTV and Dish pick up the OTA
signal.
Currently, the HD channel is broadcasting 8p-6a, Encore broadcasts 24/7,
and our 3 other SD channels broadcast 6a-8p. Once our new equipment is
in place, the OTA hours will be:
KQED HD (DT9.1): 5pm-6am (currently 8pm-6am)
KQED Encore (DT9.2): 24/7 (as it currently is)
KQED World (DT9.3): 24/7 (currently 6a-8p)
KQED Life (DT9.4): 6am-5pm (currently 6am-8pm)
KQED Kids (DT9.5): 24/7 (currently 6a-8p)
As I mentioned, Comcast will eventually be carrying all our channels
24/7, as they finish their Bay Area upgrades and rebuilds. The new
services will roll out neighborhood by neighborhood over the next
several months. We have no idea which neighborhoods will be upgraded
when. The full schedule is posted with various listings services, as
some viewers will get the 24/7 as early as a couple weeks from now.
All the major listings services were sent an explanation of the new
hours for the 2 different delivery methods at the same time we sent out
February schedules, and again with our March schedules. Unfortunately,
all we can do at KQED is send out the correct info - we have no way to
force them to use it. DirecTV, Dish and TiVo get their listings info
from Tribune Media, which seems to be sending out only a single 24/7
schedule to all its customers, rather than creating a cable version and
an OTA version. DirecTV, Dish and TiVo are Tribune's paying customers,
and only if they demand to be sent the right info will the situation
change. And I imagine they will make that call only if enough of their
paying customers (like you) complain about the erroneous scheduling
info, and demand that it be corrected.
You may wish to sign up as a member of our HDTV Alert list. We
frequently send updates and information about our Digital broadcasting
efforts (and occasional problems) to that list. If you'd like to sign up
to receive those alerts as well, you can do so by visiting
http://www.kqed.org/newsletters/
Red Dana
Manager, KQED TV9 & DT9 Viewer Services
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Want to know how to order a tape? Does a show have a website with more
information? Your answer may already be posted online in KQED TV's "Got
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"A tiny good deed counts more than a huge intention."
--Old Farmer's Almanac
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Alan Figgatt
> In response to my question as to why KQED OTA broadcast did not match
> their PSIP guide and web site listings, I received this reply. I had not
> considered that cable and OTA would be different as I thought cable
> simply received and passed on the OTA signal.
>
> =======================================================================
>
> Currently, the HD channel is broadcasting 8p-6a, Encore broadcasts 24/7,
> and our 3 other SD channels broadcast 6a-8p. Once our new equipment is
> in place, the OTA hours will be:
> KQED HD (DT9.1): 5pm-6am (currently 8pm-6am)
> KQED Encore (DT9.2): 24/7 (as it currently is)
> KQED World (DT9.3): 24/7 (currently 6a-8p)
> KQED Life (DT9.4): 6am-5pm (currently 6am-8pm)
> KQED Kids (DT9.5): 24/7 (currently 6a-8p)
So what they are saying is that they will be butchering their HD
picture quality by having 3 SD sub-channels on 24/7. At least my PBS
stations - WETA-HD - has the sense to go to only 1 SD sub-channel when
they activate the HD channel in the evening. If you see the HD picture
quality go into the toilet for sub-channels that may rarely be watched,
I would suggest you complain loudly and let them know that you will not
be contributing any pledge money (even if you never have) because of the
degraded HD picture.
Alan F
Fred C. Dobbs
No that is not so.
"All of KQED's channels are now running a 24/7 schedule, a service
that
will be rolling out to Comcast Cable customers between now and August,
as Comcast does its neighborhood by neighborhood digital upgrades. Due
to the bandwidth limit for transmitting the signals Over The Air (OTA)
from Sutro Tower, 24/7 service is not available to people/companies
which receive their signal that way. DirecTV and Dish pick up the OTA
signal."
Translation Comcast cable company subscribers have an advantage over
viewers who receive their signal OTA or by Satellite.
Alan
While the original poster was talking about cable, it does not
appear that this poster was talking about cable. In fact, he appears
to be talking about OTA.
Looking at the time periods when HD is on:
old way new way
8pm-6am 5pm-6am
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9.1 HD 9.1 HD
9.2 SD (Encore) 9.2 SD (Encore)
9.3 SD (World)
9.5 SD (Kids)
So they go from HD + 1 SD to HD + 3 SD.
That is what it appears he is talking about. Not how it appears on
cable. (KQED's license from the FCC is for over the air transmission.)
Now, why they need to run the Kids channel all night is rather
puzzling. How many kids of the age that this channel is targeted
at are up from 9 pm to 6 am?
Alan