Pay TV is doing all it can to BAN free Antenna TV.

[gary350]

Do a Google search for BAN Antenna TV and read all about it. People are returning to Antenna TV. One antenna factory is turning out 100,000. antennas a month. Why pay for TV when you can have it FREE. Support HDOTA = High Def Over The Air TV. TV stations are in compitation with pay TV so they are offering, Movie channels, Weather channels, Educational Channels, and more. I returned to free TV 4 years ago and I don't miss pay TV at all. I get 24 channels that come in crystal clear most of the time. People are returning to FREE TV and it worries Pay TV companies. They are trying to BAN free TV.

Hello, rabbit ears! Americans give free antenna TV a new look

No More Antenna TV!! - TV Fool

What can you do? Inform your congress man to keep OTA. Drop your pay tv. After all the consumers has all ways been in charge. If pay tv have no audience to show commercials, out of bussiness they go. If you drop your pay tv, OTA will get a lot better, and it for free. Pay tv make money off fees/you and commercials. OTA just commercials and can offer the same programs. Do your part and take actions by dropping pay tv. May be the 20 or 30 channels that can survive, will broadcast OTA to make money.

Even if you never intend to return to antenna TV you need to support OTA because once free TV is gone pay companies will have you over a barrel. Free TV will keep pay TV prices LOW.

I have some excellent antenna PLANS for HDOTA if anyone wants them. Go to **broken link removed** and do a search for TV stations in your area. My antenna has a range of 60 miles excellent crystal clear reception 99% of the time.

 

[tcmtech]

We still have local channels and they still have good overall following as well. Although the switch to digital broadcasting seems to have some drawbacks that still have not been fully worked out.

I dropped the satellite TV over a year and a half ago. $45 a month for nothing worth watching most of the time wasn't worth it.

Personally I am more of a internet down loader myself. I just download what I want to watch now.
Every show, series, and movie eventually makes it to the internet for free so I just wait it out.

 

[Speakerguy]

Television is such crap (I know, it's cliche) that I gave it up years ago. At least in terms of cable or satellite TV. I will still watch critically acclaimed series on DVD (like Battlestar Galactica and Dexter) on DVD rentals. And I will catch the two shows a week I actually care about on Hulu for free.

But when the History channel has "ghost finders" or whatever showing, and "SyFy" is showing wrestling, and ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT is showing DOG THE BOUNTY HUNTER for fucks sake, just save the fifty bucks a month and spend it on electronics.

 

[tcmtech]

just save the fifty bucks a month and spend it on electronics.

Or spend it on cheap alcohol and then go on line and hang out on some tech forums and pretend like you know everything about anything.

I would suggest putting the $50 a month toward a higher speed internet connection if you cant get any fair local channel stuff. I have been absolutely amazed at how many regular satellite shows and programs are available online for free as well. Many the same day as they aired on the network channels.

 

[HarveyH42]

I've never paid for TV, always have been off the air. I just can't stay focused on one thing that long. Occasionally there is something interesting enough, and I'll watch it through. Today, there should be a historic speech on TV, that I hope to record and save. Obama's first State-of-the-Union, which should both comical and reveling. He hasn't made much progress on his campaign promise, but then what politician does, but of course it's the Bush administration's fault. I'm sure he well be pointing the blame-finger at G.W. Bush plenty of times through out. But mostly, I'm interested in what his goals will be for this year, will he continue to push Obama-Care, or a new pet projected to keep our legislators detracted from important issues, while passes out more bonus money to his friends.

With digital TV, I get 32 channels, some are barely watchable, pixelated, sound cuts out, but most are clear. I'm just using the same VHF/UHF antenna I used with analog, so guessing all those ads for 'Digital' antennas are a little misleading. I don't think pay TV is suffering so much because of the lack of fresh content, but mostly the economy. Everybody is a little tighter these days, and pay TV is a luxury that has the least impact on a household. Nobody wants to admit it's because finances are getting a little tight, and they need to trim some of the fat. Got a hunch cellphones are going to take a hit next, for most it's a toy, a very expensive toy. There will be a lot of people getting back to the basics before much longer.

 

[Nigel Goodwin]

With digital TV, I get 32 channels, some are barely watchable, pixelated, sound cuts out, but most are clear. I'm just using the same VHF/UHF antenna I used with analog, so guessing all those ads for 'Digital' antennas are a little misleading.

It's entirely misleading - there's no such thing as a 'digital' aerial - although in the UK some areas require a wideband aerial, rather than a grouped one.

 

[kroni]

Here in Central Europe, the polarization of the Signal has changed, from Vertical - Analog to Horizontal - Digital. However, even due to polarization loss and lower power on the TX side, the TV in the household still receives the local programs well enough. I dont personally watch TV, im the one here who has to take care that it works

 

[HiTech]

gary350 --- you need to realize that OTA television signals are surpassed by something else: "entertainment packages". Folks who desire broadband and such are lured to getting CATV along with their broadband due to package discount pricing. For example, for a mere $1.50 more each month I can add broadband to my basic CATV package. Rural dwellers will opt for this since DSL isn't as readily available to them. So if a person wants broadband, for a few dollars more they get the TV channel package deal... forget the antenna and the need for a top of the set HD box! And now you also get a signal strong enough to run to 2-3 televisions.

BTW, I once traveled through Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Had a woman driver cross the centerline, hitting me head on. I landed in the front yard of a "real hillbilly", an old man named Mr. Arnold. His lawn barely had any grass, but the cacti were plentiful!!

 

[gary350]

gary350 --- you need to realize that OTA television signals are surpassed by something else: "entertainment packages". Folks who desire broadband and such are lured to getting CATV along with their broadband due to package discount pricing. For example, for a mere $1.50 more each month I can add broadband to my basic CATV package. Rural dwellers will opt for this since DSL isn't as readily available to them. So if a person wants broadband, for a few dollars more they get the TV channel package deal... forget the antenna and the need for a top of the set HD box! And now you also get a signal strong enough to run to 2-3 televisions.

BTW, I once traveled through Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Had a woman driver cross the centerline, hitting me head on. I landed in the front yard of a "real hillbilly", an old man named Mr. Arnold. His lawn barely had any grass, but the cacti were plentiful!!

You are missing the point. If antenna TV goes away they cable TV has no compitation. Then Cable companies will stick it to you for all they can get. Support antenna TV just to keep cable prices low.

 

[smanches]

And I want your cable company. Only discount we get here is $10 for combo internet/cable, and then you MUST choose one of their "qualified" cable packages which start at $49 a month.

Comcast is the suckiest.

 

[Speakerguy]

Cable will always have competition, it's called "not having cable".

 

[mneary]

In my area, we have OTA, Time Warner cable, Verizon Fios, Dish, and DirecTV.

I have Fios because it comes bundled with a high-def DVR, phone, broadband, and cell.

I could easily use OTA but then I would need to come up with a PVR. That would be easy enough if I cared. Sometimes I'll watch OTA if I'm recording two shows and want to watch a third program in real time.

 

[Mikebits]

I thought that OTA was already turned off, was that just analog OTA? I did not even know HD was OTA.

 

[HiTech]

Hello? Haven't you heard the fuss about folks buying the set-top converter boxes to receive OTA signals? Remember the government provided coupons handed out to help lower the purchase cost of a converter box? Heck, even the stations themselves for a number of years whined about the additional cost incurred from HD transmission equipment. A big reason why the FCC delayed the transition date way back.

 

[HarveyH42]

One of the selling points of pay TV, is the picture quality. OTA provides the same quality now. I use the same antenna, as when it was analog, and was only getting 4-5 stations, only one or two were reasonably clear, but not great. I now get 32 channels, half aren't too good, unless I mess with antenna a lot. The rest need little or or none, but still only watch two or three anyway, news mostly. Cable is losing customers who wanted better reception, and not too concerned about the rest of the package. Cable will still do just fine, just that won't be growing, and profits are going to drop. Without a free option, people would have to do without, or pay whatever price they say. Got a hunch, most would go to the internet and recorded media, rather than be a slave.

 

[Hero999]

I've done a quick Goolge but I couldn't find any more information on this apart from the article linked in the first post of this thread, which says nothing about free TV being banned. The only source saying free TV is going to be banned is forum posts which don't mean much.