New Locals, Channels, Info from New Feb 5 Retailer Chat...

[Darkman]

Will post more exact info later...Not a bad Retailer Chat though..some good info...
just some approx. details:

Locals:
Feb 6 - Chico
Feb 6 - 1 channel for Salt Lake City, Utah,
Feb 20 - Monterey, Salinas, Ca - 4 local channels there..plus might add 1 or couple from other markets (maybe ABC - i ll have to watch the tape) -- With this Local market - will be 58 markets to date..
Few more local markets to come for sure - Soon (approx. next few months)

Feb 20 or 26 or something (will check exact dates later)- some locals will move again - from 700 and 800 block to 8000, etc (to free up 700 and 800 blocks i guess)...On Feb 19th (or earlier or something - will have to doublle-check) will be a Slate on those channels notifying of a move..some markets effected will be - Philladelphia, Denver (will have to doublecheck later though for more exact info)

New channels:
ch 626 - Telemundo West - currently available
ch 632 - Gol! (lots and lots of Football/Soccer - Mexico, etc) - will become available on Feb 20th (i think - will have to recheck) - will be available with Dish Latino, Dos, Mac packages ( i tjhink)

Showcase channel will have a New Look...

Next Retailer Chat - Feb 25, 12:00 Noon (Eastern Time)

[Darkman]

Some more - more exact details (for now)

Monterery - Salinas - Feb 20:
KION CBS
KSBW NBC
KCBA Fox
KCAH PBS

No ABC in the market (so they are looking to bring Adjuscent ABC to this market from somewhere close or something like that)

Sault Lake City one on FEB 6:

KUPX Pax (local ch 16)

[Darkman]

Sorry - i am waiting for some1 ( have to go :) )

but more exact details to above:

3 markets will be moving from 700, 800 blocks to 8000, etc blocks, - 2 described above (Denver and Philladelphia) and also San Diego - all will move on Feb 26 (not on Feb 20)...but i think starting Feb 19th there will be a Slate on those channels indicating people of this move...

Charlie also said - every month there will be few more New Locals...

[Darkman]

Gol = Gol TV - Latino Max, DOS, Dish Latino...
Whole lot of Football... on ch 632, Feb 20th..

Current ch 632 - Gran Canal Latino (Charlie said wasn't that popular) - so i guess it will go away!?)

Sorry for multiple posts... :) - I am done for now..
I was in hurry waiting for my ride, but It is not here yet :)

[craigb]

Anyone know what happens when the locals are available to a subscriber who currently has the east/west network package and wants the locals. Do they just take away the networks covered by the locals, for instance, redding/chico locals are abc, nbc, cbs, fox and pbs? I currently have San Francisco with all of these plus a couple other independents. Will I lose all of them? Thanks.

[Jacob S]

Someone had said that a retailer told him the last channel is going digital in my area and getting ready to uplink and had a dish or something and once it goes digital they will have them available for here but I am not sure if that is true or not. It is the Charleston locals, but I dont think its true though. They said they were waiting on channel 3 (NBC).

[Mike123abc]

Dish is doing a good job filling up CA. Only 6 small markets left to pick up and the whole state will be filled in. They have a lot of spot capacity in CA, nice to see them filling it up.

[TNGTony]

Gran Canal latino wasn't that popular?????

It wasn't that cheap he means! That was a non-commercial movie channel. If I was a subscriber to the package I would be PISSED beyond all restraint!

Another *&@$ sports channel... Great....

See ya
Tony

[TNGTony]

Craig,

EVERY time a new market goes up the same question is asked which sparks the same debate.

The REAL answer is that locals becoming available and your eligibility to receive distant networks are completely and utterly unrelated. Your locals eligibility is 100% determined on your geographical location within a certain pre-defined designated marketing area (DMA). Nothing else.

Your eligibility for receiving distant networks is a little more complicated. It's based on the PREDICTED ability for you to receive a certain pre-determined signal strength on an outdoor antenna cut for the channel and place 20 feet in the air in the MIDDLE of the street on which you have your home. If you do not qualify automatically, there are legal ways around this including waivers. Waivers are essentially the local station which you claim you can't receive saying, "I know we have exclusive control for our programming on our network in your house, but in your case, we are going to waive our right to force ourselves on you and allow you to get another source for the network to which we are affiliated." The waivers can be revoked at any time for any reason by the station.

That's a long answer for saying, if you have distant networks because your station granted a waiver (whether you know it or not--ie Dish could have asked for the waiver on your behalf without your knowledge) then there is a posibility you could lose the distant network. However, if you qualify for distant networks outright, you WILL NOT lose the distant network.

See ya
Tony

[Darkman]

Sorry Tony :( (btw - there is also a Post about this Gol TV / Gran Canal thingy on dbsforums

[sampatterson]

My wife will be angry also. She likes the Gran Canal channel...

[Chris Freeland]

I guess I will find out soon if my source was correct in saying that Chattanooga was #63 on E* list, if I am not mistaken E* now has 62 markets either up or listed as "coming soon" on their web site and promotion materials. I am keeping my fingers crossed, expecting the worst and hoping for the best, that my source is correct :).

[jerryez]

Dish told me that the FCC on allows you two network feeds. I have CBS NY SD & CBS NY HD, so I could not get the distant CBS LA, but could have added NBC, ABC, & FOX from LA to my NY package. Based on this, I would assume that you will have to drop one of your distants to get locals, but not both.

[RichW]

I wasn't aware that the HD channel counts as one of the two feeds if you already have the SD feed from the same station? I think that Dish is wrong on this.

[TNGTony]

The HD feed does not count since CBS itself is agreeing to allow their network signals to be sold.

The two network distant restriction only applies to channels whose signal is being sold out of their area without the consent of the copyright holders. So when CBS sells its own programming, it is NOT considered the same. This is why CBS has the resrictions it does on the HD channel so it does not infringe on the rights of other copyright holders.

Remember that the SHVIA rules are ENABLING you to ignore existing copyright laws.

See ya
Tony

[BillB]

Here's my experience with distant locals.

When I initially got Dish with one receiver, I decided not to order NY locals although Dish was giving them to everyone at the time. When I bought a second receiver and decided I'd like the NY networks, I could not qualify. My local stations would not grant waivers.

Then during a brief window when Dish again was not checking on qualifications, I signed up and got the NY locals. Soon it was clarified I did not qualify for the locals, and I was fearful that they would be taken away. I had them for years and Dish didn't turn them off until they put my locals up late last year.

So if you are in a market where locals become available and you have no waivers to get the distants, expect to lose your distant networks.

Bill