No Runny Eggs

Today is the last day most TV stations will be broadcasting analog signals. Let’s celebrate with some one-hit wonder…

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_IKcMl_a9A[/youtube]

Tim Cuprisin of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has a list of what will be happening today:

• Channels 18 (WVTV), 24 (WCGV), and 30 (WVCY) previously shut down their analog broadcasts.
• At 9 am, Channels 10 (WMVS), 36 (WMVT) and 49 (WBME) will shut down analog broadcasts.
• Also at 9 am, Channel 63 (WYTU-LP) will cease Telemundo broadcasting and begin simulcasting the CBS and local programming carried by Weigel corporate sister Channel 58 (WDJT) in analog. Because the mandatory digital conversion does not affect low-power stations, The Business Journal of Milwaukee previously reported that Channels 63 and 41 (WMLW-CA, also owned by Weigel) will continue to broadcast an analog signal after today.
• At 11:30 am, Channel 6 (WITI) will bring back Albert the Alleycat and the playing of the national anthem one more time as part of a special signoff of its analog signal. They then wil run a loop of digital transition information for the next two weeks, with audio still available at 87.7 MHz on the FM dial for those two weeks.
• At noon, Channel 12 (WISN) will shut down the analog signal.
• Also at noon, Channel 4 (WTMJ) will run a 2-hour loop of digital transition information, with analog signal shutdown at 2 pm.
• At 11:59 pm, Channels 55 (WPXE) and 58 will shut down their analog signals. That does not affect the simulcast of Channel 58’s signal on Channel 63.

For those of you who have every TV/VCR/DVR hooked up to ATSC tuners (either built-in or converter box), cable, satellite or AT&T’s U-verse, or watch nothing but low-power TV, you’re golden. If you still have at least one TV, VCR or DVR that isn’t and don’t like or can’t get the very-limited choices low-power TV offers, you’re about to be SOL.

Revisions/extensions (8:20 am 6/12/2009, with Part 2 at 8:28 am 6/12/2009) – A couple of housekeeping notes based on the fact that the FCC has ordered the abandonment Channels 52-69 so that they can be auctioned off for other telecommunications services:

• WVTV will be returning to physical channel 18 from its pre-transition digital physical channel 61 at 9 am. That means that those of you who get WVTV via antenna will need to rescan.
• Channel 63 (about to become the analog version of WDJT) will soon vacate that channel. Weigel does have a construction permit on file with the FCC to move the analog signal to Channel 49 (about to be vacated by WBME), with the same coverage as the current Channel 63 signal.
• WMLW has a application in to the FCC to assume physical channel 24 for its analog signal as physical channel 41 has been assigned to digital stations in Green Bay and Rockford, and WCGV will remain on physical channel 25.

R&E part 3 (10:40 am 6/12/2009) – The loss of the analog Telemundo signal did not affect either the Time Warner carriage of Telemundo (on cable channel 27), its broadcast as a low-power digital station on physical channel 17, or its simulcast on WBME’s digital signal at virtual subchannel 49.4 (physical subchannel 48.4).

Relating to Weigel, and specifically WMLW, while it does have a low-powered digital signal at channel 13, the return to the frequency by Grand Rapids’ WZZM after its pre-transition relocation to channel 39 means that prior plans to make the digital signal full-powered had to be set aside, and it will continue to be available on WDJT’s digital signal at virtual subchannel 58.2 (physical subchannel 46.2).

Also, WMKE-CA, which operates on Channel 7, runs America One programming, and is essentially available only in the northern 2/3rds of Milwaukee County (and notably, not in Oak Creek), apparently will continue to broadcast its analog signal. The parent company does not have any plans to construct a digital tower.