Local HD rollout for 2007

[ekilgus]

Just wondering if anyone has heard of/seen a schedule for HD rollout in 2007. The last time I spoke with someone at DISH (last November) they indicated that the rollout schedule for 2007 would not be available until the new year. Well it's 2007 so has anyone heard anything?

I'm primarily interested in the Augusta GA local area. Someone at Direct TV indicated that they would be providing the local channels in HD sometime during the year.

I kind of like DISH but if Direct TV begins providing HD feeds of the local channels and all of the promised HD channels, I'd have to switch.

 

[Poke]

Well Dish will continue too add HD Locals just like Direct.

Here a list of Locals In HD Dish has up.

http://ekb.dbstalk.com/hdlocal.htm

 

[Hall]

Well Dish will continue too add HD Locals just like Direct.

Can you give us the list that they'll be adding ??

 

[ekilgus]

I'm fairly certain DISH will continue to add HD locals and all I would require is a schedule of when my locals would be available in HD. Lacking that, if Direct TV announces that they are now available, I'll switch as I don't really see any dramatic difference between the services as long Direct TV makes good on their HD promise by providing at least most of the 100 or so HD channels.

All things considered, however, my preference would be that DISH provide the HD locals so I don't have to change anything.

 

[mdonnelly]

About this time last year, Dish came out with an HD locals list. They provided some of them, with some of the networks, in no particular order, and the rest just sort of got swept under the rug.

I would think the same would apply to any other list that Dish (or Directv) came out with.

 

[Poke]

Well I have not seen any new list for 07 so far.


http://ekb.dbstalk.com/hdlocal.htm
Updated 1/11/07

TV Market
(click for map) Network and Channel DSC Satellite

Albuquerque
Available 3/1/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 129°
6324 6326 6327

Atlanta
Available 3/1/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 129°
6365 6366 6367 6368

Boston
Available 2/15/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 61.5°
6318 6319 6320 6321

Charlotte
Uplinked 1/11/07 ABC CBS NBC Fox 118.75°

Chicago
Available 2/15/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 129°
6312 6313 6314 6315

Dallas
Available 5/10/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 110°
6383 6384 6385 6386

Denver
Available 3/1/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 129°, NBC "off the air" 10/18
6330 6331 6332 6333

Detroit
Available 7/5/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 118.75°
6459 6460 6461 6462

Houston
Available 5/10/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 110°
6389 6390 6391 6392

Indianapolis
Uplinked 5/31/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 118.75°
Removed 11/8/06


Kansas City
Available 3/8/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 129°
6377 6378 6379 6380

Los Angeles
Available 2/1/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 129°
6306 6307 6308 6309

Miami
Available 5/10/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 110°
6401 6402 6403 6404

Minneapolis
Available 3/1/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 129°
6347 6348 6349 6350

Nashville
Available 2/15/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 129°
6340 6341 6342 6343

New York City
Available 2/1/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 61.5°
6300 6301 6302 6303

Philadelphia
Available 3/1/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 61.5°
6353 6354 6355 6356

Phoenix
Available 5/10/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox KTVK 110°
6446 6447 6448 6449

Pittsburgh
Available 12/13/06
ABC CBS NBC Fox 118.75°
6477 6478 6479 6480

Portland, OR
Available 5/10/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 110°
6420 6421 6422 6423

Raleigh
Available 12/6/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 118.75°
6465 6467

Sacramento
Available 5/10/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox WB 110°
6395 6396 6397 6399

Salt Lake City
Available 3/1/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 129°
6372 6373 6374

San Antonio
Available 5/10/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 110°
6426 6427 6429

San Diego
Available 5/10/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 110°
6407 6408 6409

San Francisco
Available 5/10/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox KICU KRON 119°
6438 6439 6440 6441 (test)

Seattle
Available 5/10/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 110°
6414 6415 6416

Spokane
Available 5/4/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 110°
6432 6433 6434 6435

St. Louis
Available 7/5/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 118.75°
6453 6454 6455 6456

Washington DC
Available 3/1/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 61.5°
6359 6360 6361 6362

DSC = Digital Sub-Channel guide listings (not the channels) available for these, and some other markets not carried in HD by Dish.

Future planned markets for 2006

Cleveland Memphis
Austin
Baltimore Milwaukee
Greenville, SC
Buffalo New Orleans Providence Springfield, MO
Burlington Indianapolis Norfolk
Jacksonville Tulsa
Cincinnati Oklahoma City
Louisville Orlando


As we know Dish still needs to add the markets listed in the future planned markets.


Off the Direct site here some future markets they have listed.

http://www.directv.com/DTVAPP/packProg/channelChart2.jsp?assetId=1100086

Here's a list of upcoming markets that will be launched:
Buffalo, NY; Greenville-Spartanburg, SC-Asheville, NC; Jacksonville, FL; Brunswick, GA; New Orleans, LA; Spokane, WA; Tulsa, OK; and Albuquerque-Santa Fe, NM.

On Direct site if you put in your zip code it will tell if they have Locals in HD in your market.

 

[Poke]

I will see if there a way to get a list for 07.But my guess is that I would think they would bring this up in one of the Charlie Chats like they did last year. I sent out some E-mail's so I will let everyone know what I found out.

 

[waltinvt]

About this time last year, Dish came out with an HD locals list. They provided some of them, with some of the networks, in no particular order, and the rest just sort of got swept under the rug.

I would think the same would apply to any other list that Dish (or Directv) came out with.

You beat me to it. I was just going to ask: do we prefer a Bullsh!t answer like we got last year or no information at all?

Hmmmmm, I have to think about that a minute.......that's not easy to answer. Although I'd love more honesty from Dish, if they all of a sudden started being straight with customers, we wouldn't have as much to bitch about here and I'd likely be spending more time in the Pit. Probably not good - for me or the Pit.

 

[ekilgus]

I think all of these replies made my point especially about not being able to get any reliable information from DISH/Direct TV. Accordingly, which ever service provides the Augusta Ga. metro area locals in HD first will be my provider.

 

[Hall]

I think all of these replies made my point especially about not being able to get any reliable information from DISH/Direct TV.

Until either company has an agreement (contract) from enough of the local stations (if they can only come to agreement with 1 out of 4 or 2 out of 4, they likely won't add the city, for example), they won't "announce" anything. When they put out a list of planned cities, I don't even know what that suggests... That they'll put add'l efforts into talks ??

Accordingly, which ever service provides the Augusta Ga. metro area locals in HD first will be my provider.

Whatever you do, do NOT go with Dish/DirecTV based on "we plan to launch Augusta GA locals by mid-year 200X".

 

[Dish VIP]

The info Poke has provided is inaccurate. For example Sacramento does not have Fox in HD. There are many other "holes."

 

[BobaBird]

The holes are more easily seen, including the missing Sacremento Fox (note how the channel number jumps), on the EKB HD Locals web page that Poke quoted.

 

[long_time_DNC]

Seattle's Fox channel is SD only. Tribune Broadcasting wants E* to carry KMYQ (also Fox and also in SD) in HD also, which E* refuses to do...so no FOX-HD on Dish for Seattle/Western WA.

 

[dishjim]

Until either company has an agreement (contract) from enough of the local stations (if they can only come to agreement with 1 out of 4 or 2 out of 4, they likely won't add the city, for example), they won't "announce" anything. When they put out a list of planned cities, I don't even know what that suggests... That they'll put add'l efforts into talks ?? Whatever you do, do NOT go with Dish/DirecTV based on "we plan to launch Augusta GA locals by mid-year 200X".

I find it hard to believe that any city that has one Companies Local HD's that the other company can't get an agreement, Like Cleveland, D* has had HD's up for the best part of a year, but E* just has empty promises, perhaps E* is gathering cash to pay large fines

 

[Hall]

E* has a history or reputation of playing hard-ball, that is, in hopes of getting the best rates possible, to the point of walking away if they don't like the deal.

 

[bobinchico]

I can only get my locals in digital with an OTA. It works great. I'm not that concerned when Dish gets around to my locals in HD. The only downside is if I want to record two local programs in HD at the same time. All I can do now is record one through the 622 and watch the other, as I have my OTA coax split with one to the 622 and the other to the TV. It only happens once a week. As much as I hate watching live TV - I can suffer through it. My mind long ago tuned out to TV advertising.

I was in a Radio Shack a month or so ago and a salesmen there told me he had heard my market was looking at May 07. I'll believe it when I see it. I sure won't lose any sleep over wondering about it.

 

[dishjim]

I can only get my locals in digital with an OTA. It works great. I'm not that concerned when Dish gets around to my locals in HD. QUOTE]


Thats great for you and E*'s offer of free oTA in my market is great for some but even with my Channel master 3671, 173" antenna on a 15' mast and a rotor I have drops out to the point the some shows are unwatchable so I have to record SD locals as a backup (what a waste). One of the main reasons I spent 200.00 on a 622 was the promise of Cleveland HD locals in 2006. I may have been naive but "fool me once ...." I won't be fooled again

 

[Jim5506]

The pressure on stations to "be included" will go up as 2009 analog shutoff approaches. If they refuse to be reasonable with their HD signal Dish will just put up a crappy SD signal (OH the SD signal already is!), NEVERMIND.

 

[long_time_DNC]

When the analog signals go off in 2 years, these hold-out stations will have to negotiate reasonably for carriage of their digital signal, or figure on losing some revenue. I don't know how important that amount of revenue is to them, but it must be somewhat important, considering how nasty the DNS situation became...

 

[dfergie]

Albuquerque
Available 3/1/06 ABC CBS NBC Fox 129°
6324 6326 6327

Still no CBS, KRQE/LIN...(who owns KASA Fox now and is holding up the release of the D*HD locals...)

When the analog signals go off in 2 years, these hold-out stations will have to negotiate reasonably for carriage of their digital signal, or figure on losing some revenue. I don't know how important that amount of revenue is to them, but it must be somewhat important, considering how nasty the DNS situation became...

They are losing revenue now as - if others are like me they either look for an alternate source that has better SD PQ or quit watching... before the Albuquerque 3 HD locals came up last year I had D* HD distants and watched from them, but I still rarely watched ABC and Fox....