Analog Death or

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Analog Shutdown - Early Retirement or Killing Me
Softly
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Analog Death or
Digital Bleeding Edge
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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• Switching Off Analog Shouldnt Have To Be Painful

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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• SITUATION BEFORE DIGITAL BROADCASTING
• Analog channel 60
• Digital assignment of channel 59
• Broadcasting from San Bruno Mountain

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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• TWO CHANNELS OUTSIDE THE CORE
• Searched for channels in crowded spectrum
• Successful petition for channel D43
• D43 required transmission from Sutro Tower
  (co-locate with existing channel 44) putting KCSM
  at the primary transmission site for the San
  Francisco Bay Area
• Facility secured
• Digital transmission begins March 2004

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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• DECISION TO SHUTDOWN ANALOG
• Cost of operations
• Loss of analog site lease to NBC affiliate
• Unreliable analog transmitter
• Lack of other transmission facilities
• Cable penetration gt80- Satellite 9

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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• TASKS TO DO BEFORE MAKING THE DECISION

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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge
Expected Unexpected Relationships
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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• PTFP REQUIREMENTS
• 2 years Federal interest remaining in equipment
  purchased through grant
• PTFP allowed that interest to be transferred

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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• NEGOTIATIONS WITH CABLE CARRIERS
• In addition to the major carrier and two
• overbuilders, there were numerous smaller
• companies
• KCSM provided receivers to all that we could
  identify

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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• NEGOTIATIONS WITH DBS
• DirecTV very cooperative
• EchoStar has been more difficult

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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• PETITION TO FCC
• Counsel to KCSM recommended first requesting an
  STA to go dark

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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• CONTENTS OF PETITION
• Lost our lease
• Looking for alternate site
• Agreements had been made with cable and DBS for
  digital carriage
• Telecourse students would be provided loaner STB
  and tapes of programs no longer accessible

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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• ANNOUNCING THE DECISION
• On-air messages
• Messages in our monthly guide
• Newspaper articles (press coverage was limited)
• No advertising budget
• Increased information on website

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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge
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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge
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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• SWITCHING OFF THE ANALOG CHANNEL
• We ceased broadcasting scheduled programming on
  May 15th, 2004
• Turned off transmitter on May 24, 2004
• Shut down prior to lease expiration to allow time
  for site clean up

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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• WHAT WE LEARNED - INITIALLY
• Non-stop calls written correspondence voicing
  concern over losing KCSM
• Engineering Dept. trained staff on how to answer
  calls
• Call summary
• 10 would not be consoled
• 45 interested in obtaining the equipment
  necessary
• 45 would not get cable / satellite or equipment

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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• WHAT HAPPENED NEXT
• Viewers attempted to buy equipment
• Retailers did not have enough stock
• and worse, frequently did not know what a
  set-top box was or if they had them in the
  store
• Viewers who succeed in buying receivers
  frequently needed installation advice from KCSM
  Engineering staff

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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• SATELLITE ISSUES
• EchoStar required second antenna
• DirecTV had a problem with early versions of
  their receivers. KCSM audio disappeared on
  channel 704
• Continued confusion over KCSM channel
  assignments on cable and satellite systems

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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• TO DATE RESULTS
• 38 viewership loss after analog shutdown
• 30 increase in pledge income with less than 5
  increase in pledge minutes
• YTD 05 Membership Income already exceeds
• entire FY 04

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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• ALWAYS MORE TO DO
• Listing services
• PSIP
• Set top boxes
• Newspapers- TV listings
• Field continuing viewer calls

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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• WHERE WE ARE NOW
• Nearing the end of second 6 month STA
• Filing Petition to Terminate License
• FCC could require analog restart

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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• CONTENTS OF FCC PETITION
• Community impact from analog termination
• Quantity of OTA stations in grade B contour
• Number of analog OTA viewers losing access
• Steps taken to mitigate OTA viewership loss
• Cable DBS agreements
• Economic impact of new construction for NCE

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• BAY AREA BROADCASTING
• 28 Commercial Stations
• 6 Non-Commercial Stations

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• BAY AREA BROADCASTING
• 28 Commercial Stations
• 6 Non-Commercial Stations

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Analog Death or Digital Bleeding Edge

• Thank You
• Michele Muller
• Director of Engineering
• KCSM TV FM
• San Mateo, CA
• michele_at_kcsm.net