DirecTV brings PBS HD to 14 local markets
By Darren Murph 
posted December 3rd 2008 1:20PM
posted December 3rd 2008 1:20PM
DirecTV's taking a break from its usual HD rollout escapades to focus specifically on PBS. Millions of subscribers will now be able to enjoy Public Broadcasting Service content in glistening high-definition, with 14 markets going live today and more planned before the year's end. As of now, customers in Cedar Rapids-Waterloo-Iowa City-Dubuque, Iowa; Chicago; Davenport, Iowa-Rock Island-Moline, Ill.; Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami-Fort Lauderdale, Minneapolis-St. Paul, New York, Norfolk-Newport News, Va.; Phoenix; Portland, Ore.; Rochester, N.Y.; and Waco-Temple-Bryan, Texas have access, and the rest of ya will just have to wait.
When are they going to add more national HD channels?
DirecTV only provides half-arse HD local access to its Atlanta subscribers as it is. And on top of that, after the FCC threatened to revoke digital licenses for some broadcasters not using the digital license, my local PBS stations simple fed the poor analog feed into the digital transmitter, which is then recompressed by DirecTV and fed like a drunken soldier.
Its pretty bad when the FCC adopts the ATSC specification and the PBS stations refuse to even transmit original content digitally, nor get with cable and satellite providers to re-transmit a kosher signal. Worse yet when 3rd world countries have had better examples of HD than the Public Broadcast Stations in Atlanta.
I agree ChostDoggy, Im in ATL also and this totally Sucks for a PBS company!
Would really like to see local markets along with DIRECTV push out more CW HD feeds.
In Minneapolis, KTCA 2-1 is the simulcasted SD, digital PBS channel. 2-2 is the HD channel with a completely different schedule. DirecTV is feeding the Minneapolis DMA KTCA 2-1...so, no HD...yet. According to this link:
http://www.tpt.org/program/digital_updates.html
..they will be merging the two channels' programming on 12/15. Here's hoping DirecTV remembers to change from feeding 2-1, to feeding 2-2 on 12/15.