From the broadcast perspective, tower
crews and resources for the repack are getting tight. With winter
approaching, experts predict they will have issues keeping the process
of transitioning stations from their old channels to new ones moving.
That’s based on Inside Towers’ interviews with broadcast engineers, engineering consultants, equipment suppliers and vendors at the IEEE Broadcast Technology Symposium Wednesday in Arlington, VA.
“I think there will be a handful of
stations that don’t meet their Phase 1 deadline. We’ll probably see more
problems as we get to Phase 2,” said Dennis Wallace, managing partner
at engineering consulting firm Meintel, Sgrignoli & Wallace.
“There’s just not enough resources on the tower side. Tower hands are
moving from company to company based on who’s paying the most today. So
you may have a tower company that bid a job based on this crew that they
had at the time, and all of a sudden that labor is not available.”
By November 30, Phase
1 stations need to be off their old channel and transmitting on their
new channel. The testing period for Phase 2 stations begins on December 1
and ends at the end of April. If a Phase 1 station misses its deadline
and is daisy-chained with other stations, either on the same channel or
adjacent channels, there’s a domino effect, explained Wallace. “If
they’re still operating on their existing channel, than those other
stations can transition until that station moves,” he said. Continue Reading
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