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Originally Posted:2007
Michael Sherman
Junior Member
More Sophisticated Antennas Required For Digital Off-Air Signal Reception
As spending tightens in these uncertain economic times, discretionary purchasing has shifted away from other key market categories, to consumer electronics and particularly to digital TV and HD. High Definition Televisions bumped digital cameras out of the top spot for the most desired CE product for 2007. Several dynamics are affecting millions of households now relying on analog signals for reception of their broadcast TV signals, with antennas older than 2 years. They need to upgrade to the new antenna technology, along with cable and satellite customers looking for alternatives. Although cable and satellite program providers will continue to serve the great majority of homes as the primary signal source, missing HD local reception, higher costs, billing add-ons, service outages, contact difficulties, in-home service waits and no shows have left many subscribers looking to OTA antennas as alternatives and backup.
There are more than 40 million households currently receiving OTA analog signals in the U.S., according to new proprietary research just released by Centris (www.centris.com), a leading market research firm. Their findings said that “consumers who wish to remain OTA and continue to receive “free TV” may have to consider upgrading existing indoor or roof-top TV antennas to a more sensitive model in order to receive a satisfactory number of broadcast stations. Some over-the-air consumers who wish to buy a digital-analog converter box for use with their analog TVs may also have to consider an antenna upgrade. Similarly, consumers who are replacing an analog TV with a new digital TV may also have to contemplate obtaining a more sensitive antenna.”
To viewers already receiving a cable or satellite network, the benefits of Off-Air antennas are compelling. There is only so much room on cable or satellite bandwidth in which to squeeze signal, so data is compressed to fit, resulting in a somewhat “soft” picture. An OTA signal is the gold standard in digital reception because it’s almost completely uncompressed and also FREE. Local digital TV broadcasts are everywhere. But bandwidth limitations force cable and satellite providers to not carry all local channels in many areas, or may not offer all of them in high definition. Contract disagreements between local cable operators and local broadcasters mean that major networks may not be available in several areas. DISH Network® offers local HD coverage to about 47 percent of U.S. markets, while DIRECTV® reaches about 76 percent, but for an additional monthly fee.
What about those other millions of viewers who want to see their favorite local shows and in HD. The answer is to add an OTA antenna to other signal reception sources. This not only gives a viewer the ability to receive all their local stations, but, with the right digital antenna from Antennas Direct and location, some viewers may even be able to receive out-of-town channels, carrying blacked out sports programs or network broadcasts not available in their home town. As an added benefit, an OTA antenna provides back-up reception options for local cable or satellite signal loss due to equipment failure or rain, snow and ice fade and to smaller TVs and second sets in homes not wired for whole-house signal distribution.