Conversion to digital television

When the conversion from analog to digital television is made next February, nearly 15 percent of our viewing population will be affected by it.   If they don't make a change, they'll lose our signal.

Whether from an antenna, satellite, or through cable, it's important to know how you get your television to find out if you'll be impacted when TV analog signals will be turned off next year.

Those who have the least to worry about are cable customers, so says WLUC-TV6 Chief Engineer, Sonny Reschka.

"If the viewer has cable, for instance, they'll probably see no change, depending on the cable system they belong to," said Reschka.

Customers of the largest U.P. cable provider, Charter Communications, won't have to worry about the conversion.

For satellite, it's a little more complicated.  If local stations like TV6 are finally offered to satellite customers by February, then they, too, won't have to worry about their TV set.  However, if they are still watching local U.P. stations like TV6 with their antenna, it's a different story. 

Those who receive TV over the air with an analog receiver will not be able to watch broadcast stations after February.  They'll need a digital tuner to convert the digital signal to analog.

There's one more problem for over-the-air viewers.  With digital broadcasting, local station's coverage area may become smaller.  For TV6, our signal coverage will decrease by 15 to 20 percent.  That means for some, unfortunately, they'll no longer get our channel.

"If you live in an area where your analog picture is a little bit unstable, might be grainy, that's about the biggest danger area for viewers,” Reschka said, “because with digital you get a perfect signal, or you get nothing."

That all or nothing means viewers have to act now before their TV goes dark.

Get more information on the switch here, and watch for the next part of this series. 

If you have a question you would like to ask, go to our Ask Our Expert page to get an answer.