Television sets that still rely on “rabbit ear” antennas for a signal are set to fall silent at the end of this month.
On Aug. 31, over-the-air broadcasters in Canada must switch from an analog signal to a digital one, meaning that, without a digital converter, sets could go dark.
But the change won’t be widely-felt as around 92 to 93 per cent of Canadians subscribe to cable or satellite service, said Chaouki Dakdouki, director of distribution and access policy for Canadian Heritage — which is the federal government department is charge of broadcasting policy.
“The other eight or seven per cent, I’m not sure if all those people watch TV or have other means to watch TV, like the Internet or they have other means of getting their TV signal,” he said.
The reasons for the change were many, Dakdouki added, including more options and flexibility, and the ability to free up airwave space for advanced wireless communications and public safety services — not to mention the quality of the broadcast.
“It’s more effective, it provides a sharper picture and improved sound. The picture is superb; when you watch it, it’s unbelievable,” he said.
In St. Albert, Future Shop has been selling digital converter boxes for analog sets for a while and interest has been fairly high, said home theatre sales associate Brady Durksen.
Some people are unsure what they need, he added.
TV sets sold within the past few years have digital converter boxes built in, but for those still using rabbit ears, Durksen said the switch is fairly simple.
He added that he thought there has been enough notice about the switch to make sure no one is left out.
“They’ve been advertising it on TV for about a year now,” he said.
One channel that won’t be affected as severely is the CBC, as the Canadian Radio-television Telecommunications Commission has granted the public broadcaster an extra year to make the switch in 22 markets across the country, where signals from larger markets are rebroadcast. Replacing those transmitters could cost up to $10 million.
Meanwhile, Shaw Communications has been trying to help those affected by the switch, offering free satellite receivers and antennas to those whose service might otherwise go out and who have not subscribed to cable or satellite service for the past three months. Those customers can then get a basic package of three or four channels free of charge or sign up for Shaw’s satellite service.
Demand has been quieter than expected, said John Piercy, Shaw’s vice-president of operations.
“It’s been very quiet,” he said. “I’m hoping people have heeded the message. There are still very few TV sets with rabbit ears on them, so [I hope] people understand they’re not going to work or have found some way … to get around those issues.”
For more information on the switch, visit www.digitaltv.gc.ca or call 1-855-DTV (388)-5050.
