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4 edits | Flash Cutting... One thing that many TV broadcasters are doing is flash cutting. Here's what it is.
After 2/19/2009, TV broadcasters have to turn ONE channel back in to the FCC. For many of them, the DTV channel they got is inferior to their NTSC (analog) channel. Other TV stations got DTV channels out of the 'core' allotments. The core is channels 2-51, but for example CBS channel 2 in Los Angeles is operating a DTV channel in the sixties.
Many of these broadcasters plan to do a 'flash cut'. What this means is that they will sign off the air with their analog TV signal and a few hours later sign BACK on that channel with a DTV signal. The DTV channel they were running along with the analog will be the one turned back to the FCC.
I know for a fact that all the high band VHF stations (channels 7-13) in Los Angeles are going to do this-they have already notified the FCC of their intention to do so.
This is because DTV works best in the high VHF band (channels 13-7 in that order).
The problem is, if you have a DTV set (or a DTV converter) you're going to have to program its channels again after the transition or many/most of your channels will be gone.
They call this a flash cut because the TV stations plan to do just that-cut from analog to digital in a 'flash'.
Needless to say, there will be a lot of TV engineers hard at work converting transmitters the night of the DTV transition. |
