Doh. The second link above should be:
http://www.ionmedia.tv/press/press.cfm?id=142
That link lists all markets that ION transmits in. For some reason I can not edit my message above to correct it.

Cheers.

http://tech.yahoo.com/blogs/null/124067

foxfan, That was bound to happen eventually...

http://tech.yahoo.com/blogs/null/124067
As they say on Slashdot RTFA...
I probably needn't tell you which choice a 70-year-old Missouri man selected on Friday, after he couldn't get his DTV converter box to work. According to reports, after the Joplin resident lost his cable and fussed with the DTV box for a bit, he gave up, and eventually turned to the oldest of analog solutions -- good old-fashioned firepower -- to get the television to start working.

Oldster has his cable TV service cut off
Gets roaring drunk
Tries to get his DTV converter box working, but is too drunk to figure it out
Loses it entirely and fires off a couple of rounds at the TV
And people try to blame it on the DTV conversion. Sheesh. A much more detailed story is at http://www.joplinglobe.com/joplin_metro/local_story_049234843.html?keyword=topstory

ION TV digital delaying launch

ION Television in the states has delayed their switch to digital OTA until March 16 in 20 major markets:
http://www.ionmedia.tv/press/press.cfm?id=146



I think you misread that. ION is already digital, it's the HD that's being delayed. In fact, Ann Arbor's (Detroit) station shut off their analog signal on Feb.18/09.

The transition has been painful in large part because the NTIA has had to put millions of consumers on a waiting list for the $40 coupons it is distributing for digital converter boxes, after it spent the $1.3 billion initially provided for the coupon program. The stimulus package President Obama signed into law allocated an additional $650 million (http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-10150995-38.html) for the program.

Thanks to that extra funding, the NTIA should be able to mail out about 2 million coupons per week, McGuire-Rivera said, getting coupons to the millions on its waiting list in less than three weeks. The agency is also expecting to run its coupon program more efficiently now that it has expanded the number of banks issuing the debit card coupons and enhanced its waste, fraud, and abuse checks.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-10189629-38.html

I think the remaining 4 million people on the waiting list should be getting their coupons by the end of March. I see people who were put on the wait list at the beginning of March have an expected mail out date of March 27th.

Since it's a first in/first out deal, that means everybody who has been waiting since January should already have their coupons. The Stimulus deal did approve coupon money. But the coupon money didn't get sent out for about 2 weeks after the Stimulus passed. (procedural issues)

The Stimulus deal did approve coupon money. But the coupon money didn't get sent out for about 2 weeks after the Stimulus passed. (procedural issues)
See, thats where goverment accounting is really screwy. No more money was really needed. The money from expired and unused coupons didnt go back into the "pot" for other converter boxes like normal people would expect. Instead it went back into the general fund, where it could be used for other things.

Wednesday's DTV transition oversight hearing in the House Communications, Technology and Internet Subcommittee showed once again the stark political divide in the view of that transition.

What is a "phased" transition to Democrats was branded "scattershot" by the other side.

Republicans said the delay to June 12 was unnecessary and a waste of $650 million, while Democrats said it was necessary to making sure millions of viewers did not lose their signals and to clear up confusion caused by the previous administration's handling of the program.http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/190730-A_House_Divided_Over_DTV_Transition.php

More useful information for Canadian authorities on how not to do the digital transition.

From this weeks NorthEast Radiowatch newsletter...

And on May 4, religious WNYB (Channel 26) in Jamestown will pull the plug on its analog signal

http://fybush.com/nerw.html#ny

CEA Panel Outlines Last Efforts On DTV Conversion

By Steve Smith -- TWICE, 4/23/2009 1:35:00 PM
Washington

The digital TV transition has been successful, with government and industry members trying to ensure the remaining pockets of consumers who rely on over-the-air broadcasting have the information, converter-box coupons and the boxes themselves to keep watching TV when the June 12 deadline arrives.http://www.twice.com/article/CA6653805.html

It sounds like after the June cutover there will only be a small amount of mopping up to do.

An interesting article in this months EDN magazine.

http://www.edn.com/090514cs

The transition is showing promise in the Rochester area. Channel 8, the CBS affiliate has recently shown a 20% increase in signal strength. I'm getting from mid 80s to 100% for Rochester stations now. The true test of course will be at the end of the week when the temporary channel locations are switched to their permanent channels. I'm also seeing an increase in Syracuse stations although some are not strong enough for a picture with current setup of small outdoor antenna.

Central California OTA channel status.

Here, stations will be cutting over at different times. Some stations will switch at 8am during the local morning shows while some others will switch at 9.

There will also be some switching over at noon. I believe at that point, all will have switched off analog channels after 60+ years.

Provided as a service to our Central Cali. readers. This does not include Modesto/Sacramento, as someone else will have to post that info. I live in Visalia.

ETA: 22 minutes ago, KUVI 45 Bakersfield completely cut their analog signal. The digital channels come in perfectly, they didn't yesterday.
Subchannels are 31.1 and 39.1, two Spanish channels.

Name of the song is 'AirWave'

I think the video best describes the cutover to Digital TV.




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Well it's a good thing that I am close to the station, because they were on Ch. 58 and moved to Ch. 7. This is my first VHF_Hi DTV station. The 10" closed bow tie still works for me.

As of now, all my stations are where they were yesterday.

As of 15 minutes ago. KSEE 24 Fresno stopped regular broadcasts on the analog signal. It now broadcasts a DTV info program, which I believe is a "nightlight" service. What does everyone else see?

As of 2:45, I found 11 new channels (stations that moved).

Saw that in the paper copy when I left a hotel in Chicago this AM

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2009-06-11-analog-digital-tv_N.htm