Smoke Signals 3
JANUARY 1,2009
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By Ron Karten
Smoke Signals staff writer
Tribal member and Education
Department employee Chris Bailey
heads one of 13 million American
households that watch free, over-the-air
television.
Like the vast majority of others
who do the same, he plans to get
a converter box in anticipation of
February's switchover from analog
to digital signals.
"We're going to do that this week
end," Bailey said recently. "Eventu
ally, we're going to get a new TV,
but we're not going to get satellite
or cable."
All 13 million households like
Bailey's have to do something when
the television switchover takes ef
fect on Feb. 17.
Anyone living in the Grand Ronde
area that currently watches TV us
ing an antenna and does not sub
scribe to a cable or satellite service
will need a converter box to continue
receiving the new digital signal.
Options for those using an an
tenna include switching TV service
to a cable or satellite company, buy
ing a new digital signal television or
purchasing a converter box for $20
or less after redeeming a government-subsidized
$40 coupon. The
converter box will allow the digital
signal to work on older analog tele
visions. Grand Ronde area residents
whose television reception comes
from a cable or satellite company, or
a telephone company video service,
do not have to do anything. Only
people using antennae must do
something if they want to continue
watching TV.
To learn more about the coupon
and apply, see the National Tele
communications and Information
Administration's Web site at www.
dtv2009.gov. Coupons are free, but
expire after three months of issu
ance. McMinnville retailers BiMart,
Wal-Mart and Radio Shack do not
accept expired coupons.
The 2005 federal legislation al
located $1.5 billion for the digital
TV switchover, and money left over
from expired coupons will be redis
tributed to others seeking coupons,
according to the DTV 888 service
listed on the coupons.
The federal coupon campaign
provides up to two $40 coupons for
purchasing two converter boxes.
They cannot be combined to pay for
a single box.
..-
Graphic created by George Valdez
The television switchover
from analog to digital
signals takes place on Feb.
17. Anyone in the Grand
Ronde area not using a cable
or satellite provider (right)
to receive a signal will need
a converter box to watch
television after that day.
Coupons are granted on a first
come, first-serve basis until the
money is depleted. The funds
come from the $19.6 billion that
the federal government rose
auctioning off the newly avail
able spectrum of high-definition,
digital channels.
Converter boxes are avail
able at many electronics stores,
including Best Buy, Circuit
City, Kmart, Sears and Target,
and have been selling for $40
to $70.
Most believe better pictures and
sound, and maybe even better recep
tion, are advantages to the digital
signal switchover.
Digital TV has several advan
tages. Digital channels take up less
bandwidth, allowing broadcasters
to provide more digital channels,
high-definition service, as well as
non-television services, including
multimedia or interactivity. Digi
tal TV also allows special services,
such as multi-plexing (more than
one program on the same chan
nel), electronic program guides and
additional languages, spoken or
subtitled.
1
3?
2009 Tribal
Marketplace dates
D Jan. 3 & 4
B Feb. 7 & 8
B March 7 & 8
B April 4 & 5
B May 2 & 3
BJune6&7
B July 4 & 5
(Possibly 73 for the three-day holiday weekend)
B Aug. 1 & 2
B Sept. 5 & 6
Dates subject to change due to conflicting Tribal or SAW events.
Located across from Cedar Plank Buffet.
Photo by Michelle Alalmo
However, there are disadvantages
accompanying digital service. Con
verter boxes will make some existing
analog equipment less functional.
For example, television remotes
will no longer change channels
because that function will instead
be handled by the converter box
remote. Similarly, video recorders
for analog signals, including both
tape-based VCRs and hard-drive-based
DVRs, will not be able to
select channels, limiting the ability
to automatically record programs
with a timer or based on downloaded
program information.
In addition, older handheld, porta
ble televisions, which rely primarily
on over-the-air signals and batter
ies, will be impractical since the
converter boxes are neither portable
nor powered with batteries.
Converter boxes also have a pecu
liar problem: unless users manually
change settings from show to show,
either the picture from many sta
tions won't fill the screen or it will be
so big that parts of the picture will be
cut off by the edges of the screen.
Digital signals make picture and
sound much clearer, or as Tribal
member Hope Lafferty, who watch
es via satellite, says, "I don't like
seeing the flaws of newscasters so
up-close and personal. And I only
watch the news. It is added stress
for them as well, I'm sure, as more
and more opt for Botox and facelifts.
It is more obvious who has gotten
'work' done thanks to digital TV.
And I'm totally serious.
"Other than that, the pixels are
good and better, and it makes for a
pleasant viewing experience due to
more detail."
Tribal Elder Lillian Engel won
dered if a digital signal would be
picked up more easily in rural areas
by an antenna with a converter box
than the analog signal is at pres
ent. "We have subscribed to satel
lite service because our reception
stinks with an antenna," Engel
said. "But since the cost of satellite
subscription is ever increasing, I
was wondering if there would be
any improvement in the reception
once the signal being sent is digital
rather than analog."
Unfortunately, according to Or
egon Public Broadcasting's Tran
sition Coordinator Tom Haydon,
the answer to that depends on
location.
"As a general rule," Haydon said,
"yes, reception will be better, but
there are some exceptions. Every
location is different based on how
the signal goes through the air."
In short, viewers won't know until
after they buy the converter box and
find out.
At Spirit Mountain Lodge, the
TV signal for guest room TV sets is
provided by a cable provider, said IT
Manager Steve Stewart.
He said he doubts many residents
living in the Grand Ronde area still
using an antenna to watch TV are
getting good reception because of
the area's distance from Portland
and Salem, as well as the interfer
ence caused by living in a valley.
The pay-TV industry expects ben
efits from the switchover. Because of
the difficulty of putting together all
the aspects of the program, Comcast
Chief Operating Officer Steve Burke
told a trade meeting this summer
that the February transition will
prove to be a growth opportunity for
all pay-TV providers.
And one analyst, Craig Moffett
of Sanford Bernstein, recently con
cluded. The digital TV transition
could represent a once-in-a-genera-tion
catalyst for cable stocks."
The state's Department of Envi
ronmental Quality has weighed in
on another aspect of the switchover
What happens to old televisions when
customers update to a newer television
not needing a converter box?
The DEQ information sheet "Don't
Toss That TV! What to Do With Your
Old TV Set" offers three answers:
Keep the old TV as a second TV for
games, videos and DVDs; give your
old TV to a friend or donate it to a
secondhand store; and recycle it.
Starting in 2009, Oregonians can
recycle their old TVs, as well as
desktop and portable computers and
monitors, free through the DEQ. Ev
ery county and all cities with more
than 10,000 residents will have a
drop site.
Check the DEQ Web site at www.
deq.state.or.uslqecycleindcx.htm,
or call DEQ at 603-229-6830 for
more information.
Tribal member and Tribal In
formation Systems AudioVideo
Network Technician Wendetl Olson
contributed to the research for this
article. O