What if the launched a LiL market...

[Newshawk]

... and nobody noticed?

I went onto directv.com this evening and looked in the news release section. I saw the announcement for the launch of SD LiLs in Palm Springs, CA, but then I noticed another release-this one announcing the launch of SD locals in Harrisonburg, VA!

They only have four channels right now-ABC, PBS, Fox and MyNetwork- and a check of Antennaweb shows that the CBS and NBC stations appear to be low power stations, with three or four translator stations covering the area.

You can see the news release here (http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=127160&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1097199&highlight=).

[Stuart Sweet]

Hey, newshawk, thanks! That's what a user community is for!

[Milominderbinder2]

Thanks for catching this! There are actually quite a few announcements like this now coming on.

I would note that antennaweb is typically the least accurate site for determining what stations you will be able to receive. For instance, even if you live in downtown Chicago, Antennaweb says that there is only 1 OTA HD station. (And that one station is the one you will not be able to actually get!)

HDTV Magazine (http://www.hdtvmagazine.com/programming/broadcast.php) is simple to understand and will tell you the real channels. For instance there are really 28 digital channels in Chicago and you might be able to get 27 of them. The official FCC (http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/audio/tvq.html) site is harder to use and can only display results if you know the actual licensing address.

For more, check out the HD DVR FAQ (http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?p=817199#post817199):

Why would I want to connect a TV antenna to my HD Receiver? How do I do it?
→ Get Great Local HD Channels (http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?p=1042341#post1042341)

- Craig