High-definition TV slow to connect in Ozarks

Though network transition is lagging, Mediacom will soon offer some HD channels

by Eric Olson

SBJ Reporter

eolson@sbj.net

High-definition digital television has yet to fully catch on in the Ozarks, and executives in the local television industry don't expect it to soon.

Only one local commercial network, KYTV-NBC, has started sending the high-definition digital TV signal, according to Federal Communications Commission documents, since the FCC began initiating broadcaster conversion from analog to digital format in August 1997. Two other stations, KOLR-CBS and KDEB-Fox, are sending a standard definition signal which is an alternative, lower power digital signal per FCC requirements. While KSPR-ABC is still working to get its standard definition digital signal on air, Ozarks Public Television is preparing to send a high-definition signal for certain PBS shows beginning Feb. 1.

All stations continue to transmit the traditional analog signal; digital signals are available on separate channels via digital-ready televisions. The FCC would like to do away with analog TV in three years.

"That's certainly the aspiration, but I wouldn't say the expectation," said Rick Chessen, chief of the FCC's digital TV task force. "The statute says the end of 2006, but there is an exception: That day could be extended if 85 percent of a particular market don't have digital (TV) sets yet."

Local station managers are skeptical of the FCC's timeline.

"The industry consensus is it won't happen by 2006. It is just a slow transition," said Mike Scott, general manager at KYTV, whose station is ahead of the game. Ahigh-definition digital feed from KYTV is available on channel 44 on HD-ready televisions.

"The largest obstacles are currently remaining," Scott added, citing digital programming, HDTV prices and cable compatibility.

The timing for digital penetration is largely based on the viewing market if it's ready, digital will come, said Mark Gordon, KDEB-Fox general manager.

The question in markets the size of Springfield which is No. 78 of more than 200 markets is which should happen first: access to HD channels or an established market to serve?

If HD channel availability should occur, local broadcasters must invest a sizable amount for the new technology. KYTV spent about $6 million to get its HD signal on the air, which included building a new tower, and OPT invested more than $4 million in the digital technology. Some stations simply aren't ready for that investment when the financial returns are no greater.

"I can't sell a commercial any more on an HDTV than I can on a standard analog," Gordon said.

If local viewers should start the full-force rollout to HDTV, then more HD units must be purchased. That's where pricing becomes an issue. Though prices have decreased some, digital-ready televisions are traditionally higher than analog sets, with prices mostly in the thousands of dollars.

HD channels

In just the past year, high-definition programming has picked up, most widely available via satellite companies. The networks collectively are offering about 2,500 hours in HD this season, and this year CBS is broadcasting the Super Bowl in high definition in capable markets. But only NBC's high-definition programs The Tonight Show, Law & Order and ER, for example are available in this market.

Satellite channels such as ESPN, Discovery Channel, Showtime, HBO and HDNet, an all high-definition national network featuring sports, sitcoms, dramas, action series, documentaries, travel programs, concerts and special events, are leading the way in HD offerings.

"When people are buying high definition TV and they want a high-definition picture, they are going satellite," said Bill Hall of Home Trends, an electronics retailer on East Kearney.

However, some national cable companies are jumping to HD formats, and Springfield's cable carrier, New York-based Mediacom, is soon joining them.

Regional Vice President Richard Hale said Mediacom within a month will announce plans for a handful of HD cable channels. Hale said there would be as many as six HD channels available immediately following the announcement.

Scott believes HD programming is the driving factor and that's why KYTV chose to invest in the technology.

"Everybody is going to have to make that decision at some point," he said.

At KOLR-CBS, General Manager Dean Wasson is waiting for an FCC mandate or a viewer base to support HD before increasing power of the station's digital feed.

"It's a long way off," Wasson said. "We don't have a timetable; it depends on those two issues."

Gordon doesn't think viewers without HDTV are missing out just yet.

"Can you enjoy an episode of Friends more when it's on HDTV? I would suspect the laughs are just as good," he said.

HDTV sales

It's hard to say if digital televisions are outselling analog sets neither Best Buy nor Circuit City would provide specific sales figures but pricing has dropped lately to somewhat close the gap between the two.

According to Best Buy Video Manager Donny Peak, prices for HD-ready televisions have dropped about 20 percent in two years.

"Two years ago a high-definition monitor would run you around $2,500 to $3,000. Now you can get the same high-definition monitor for around $1,500 to $2,000," Peak said of 46-inch to 55-inch models that require HD set-top box converters, an additional $400 to $600. Sets with built-in HD tuners retail for about $800 more, he said.

If not the sales, the interest is there.

"That's the buzz word," Hall said. "Everybody wants a high-definition TV."

But can everybody afford them? HDTVs barely outsold analog sets at Home Trends this past Christmas.

Best Buy's prices range from $500 for a 27-inch HD-ready TV to $9,000 for a 50-inch HD-ready plasma wide screen. The good news is that HDTV manufacturers are finding ways to save money in production.

"Just like most emerging technologies, they have slowly decreased in price," Peak said. "The more technology progresses the more economical it is."