Cincinnati Leads The Way To DTV
By Karen Anderson
As the first in a continuing series of a monthly features examining the move to digital transmission, this month television broadcast features Cincinnati, a top-30 market where stations are proving to be trailblazers in the transition to this new era of television.
Though some stations covering the Cincinnati area are moving full force into digital transmission, others are being prudent. All the station we spoke to, however, are prepared to some degree for the imminent changeover to DTV.
On February 9, WLWT, a Gannett Broadcasting station, powered up its ITELCO 7.5 kW solid state transmitter and sent its first digital signal through an MCI filter into an Andrew ALP-12 slot antenna. Running close to full power for its initial on-air test, WLWT delivered about 60 kW ERP on channel 35.
Following on the heels of KITV, Honolulu, which last year became the first commercial television station in the US to transmit a digital signal, WLWT will also rank as a pioneer of DTV.
But WLWT is not the only Cincinnati station moving quickly toward digital broadcasting. WXIX-TV, a Malrite Communications Group station, has been transmitting its digital signal for about two months now.
WKRC-TV, Jacor Communications, on Channel 12, has installed an Advanced Broadcast Systems (ABS) BEST II series transmitter. This brings the Cincinnati market up to three stations either testing or having tested DTV transmitters.
WXIX-TV is using a Harris DiamondCD digital solid-state UHF transmitter and a Harris Deltawing UHF panel antenna system, and has successfully been transmitting a series of test patterns, reported chief engineer, Bob Thurber.
With plans to transmit a low-power digital test signal this month, neighboring WKRC-TV hopes to follow suit, said Leon Brown, vice president of engineering. Though there are still many open ended issues in the move to digital transmission, Brown predicted a bright future in DTV, and he is thrilled that his station is part of such a historic undertaking.
"We [the television industry] haven't seen any problems that are insurmountable. We have overcome every problem that has come up," he said. "The system that has developed provides incredible flexibility, beautiful pictures, and tremendous sound quality. Its capabilities far surpass anything I have ever seen in the rest of the world."
However, there are still many perplexing technical questions all stations need to resolve before advancing to digital transmission.
"The questions remaining are how do we distribute and manipulate the signal within the plant?," he asked. "What kind of routing switcher do we need? Do we need a routing switcher?"
At this early stage, the station has not committed itself to any particular brand of transmission gear for the long haul. But in a joint venture between ABS and WKRC, the station will use ABS equipment for its initial test broadcast.
Brown said he is hopeful that they will not have to build a new tower, but it is still too early to tell.
He said that while individual stations must address many of these issues, manufacturers must also continue to work to provide solutions.
For example, Brown notes, "We know that we can switch between two digitally compressed sources without disturbing the picture, but there's not a device out on the market now to do that."
And the bottom line for many stations, he reported, is the cost. It is still unclear how stations will pay for the transition and continue to profit despite an exorbitant investment.
Brown said WKRC still needs to explore its business possibilities.
"Do we get involved with multicasting? Do we get involved with datacasting? What business plan makes sense," Brown suggests. "A lot of things are technically possible; [but what we have to figure out is] what things are technically feasible?"
Proceed With Caution
If "slow and steady" wins the race, then WSTR is on the right track and at the right pace to achieve success.
As a member of Sinclair Broadcast Group, this Cincinnati-based station has already addressed many business-related questions, but continues to probe into all aspects of DTV, especially the technical angle.
Sinclair is developing a game plan and setting the pace for WSTR's move into digital television. The company has not committed to a specific target date for its digital broadcast, said Greg Buzzell, WSTR's chief engineer.
"We're slow and cautious because we don't know where this whole thing is going," he explained.
But WSTR is ahead of the game structurally. Its current tower is designed to hold a DTV antenna, allowing the station to circumvent the time, costs, and effort of constructing a new tower.
Though details have not been finalized, Sinclair has a deal pending with Comark and will be using its transmission equipment. The station has not decided what type of antenna they will be using.
Notwithstanding dubiety surrounding its future in DTV, Sinclair is steadfast on its decision to broadcast multiples streams of programming, Buzzell explained.
"Sinclair's position is that they want to multicast as much as possible, because there is no benefit to us to only be a single channel. Somehow we have to pay for this [investment]," he contended. "We are going to try to get as many digital channels as possible into our bandwidth."
While Buzzell said he will follow through with the plans set forth by its parent company, he is not as optimistic as Brown of the overall picture of DTV.
"My personal opinion is that it's not going to happen when the government says," he predicted, "I do not think the government has done the research to realize how really big a project this is and how expensive it is going to be."
This leads back to the stark reality of the DTV transition and those nagging questions that have yet to have solutions, he noted.
"I agree it needs to be done. Digital is the way to go, but there is no way it is going to happen by 2006. I don't think people are going to make the deadlines. There are too many unknowns. There is too much research that still needs to be done," he added.
But the optimists and skeptics agree DTV is going to happen and it is going to be big. For better or for worse, TV stations have a mandate from the FCC and there is no turning back. So, as Brown suggested, "make the most of DTV, bask in it, benefit from its flexibility, and be proud that you are a part of television history." |
