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500 TV Stations Still Plan to Make Digital Switch Next Week
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Peter Martin, general manager of WCAX (Channel 3) in Burlington, where the affiliates for each of the major networks and two PBS stations are planning to drop their analog signal next week, said he was concerned that a number of people will no longer have television when the old analog signal is dropped.
"There are going to be people who just aren't going to receive service," he said. "Some are very upset about it."
But, echoing other station officials, he said the crews had been scheduled to make the switch to the station equipment atop Mount Mansfield, the state's tallest mountain. It would be too difficult, maybe impossible, to get the crews back just before the new June deadline, he said.
Likewise, five commercial stations in Dayton are planning on turning off their digital signals Feb. 17. Lisa Barhorst, general manger of the city's NBC affiliate, WDTN (Channel 2), said the station did a "detailed analysis" of the market and decided that most viewers were ready for the transition.
"It's what we've been telling viewers all along," she said, adding that the station will continue to air public safety information over the analog signal after the switch.
In Fort Myers, four of the five commercial stations intend to go all-digital next week, mainly because the new deadline, June 12, is in hurricane season, which would cause public safety risks. About 5 percent of the viewers in the market rely on over-the-air broadcasts, said Wayne Simons, general manager of the CBS affiliate, WINK (Channel 11). The station did soft tests in January and didn't receive many calls from viewers.
The FCC is encouraging stations to continue airing transition information and public safety alerts over analog airwaves for 30 days after they switch to all-digital programming. Most of them are not doing so, according to the FCC.
"There's always going to be a certain percentage of people who won't be ready," Simons said. "We won't be any more prepared June 12 than we are right now."
