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Local Access TV Channels Going Digital

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By CHRISTIAN M. WADE, The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 6, 2007

NEW PORT RICHEY - They're not the most popular shows on cable, by any means.

Much of the programming on local access channels - created in cable television's infancy - consists of mind-numbing, continuous loop message boards and reruns of unscripted city and county government meetings and state legislative sessions.

But those channels do give governments an inexpensive way to reach the public while keeping their meetings open to the largest number of citizens.

Most of that programming is part of basic cable packages that cost customers less than digital services.

That's about to change.

On Dec. 11, Bright House Networks plans to switch local access stations throughout its seven-county Tampa Bay market from analog to digital.

The changes come ahead of a new federal communications law, which takes effect in February 2009, requiring broadcasters across the country to switch from analog to digital technology.

That means subscribers to the cable provider's lowest-priced basic package will have to pay a bit more to rent a converter box if they want to keep tuning in to local governments.

It's a move that has city and county officials in Pasco concerned.

'It's terrible,' New Port Richey Mayor Dan Tipton said. 'There are many elderly residents in the city who won't be able to afford this and will be deprived of access to information.'

In Pasco County, the programming on channels 14, 19 and 20 will bump up to channels 614, 615 and 622, respectively.

Currently, the cities of New Port Richey and Port Richey broadcast on Channel 14, the county on Channel 19 and the school district on Channel 20. Dade City, Zephyrhills, St. Leo and San Antonio do not broadcast their meetings.

Bright House spokesman Joe Durkin said that despite local officials' concerns, the switch from analog to digital won't be costly for cable customers.

'First and foremost, nothing is going away,' he said. 'The government access channels are being moved to an area in the lineup where the majority of subscribers are surfing.'

Durkin said those who want to keep basic cable can purchase a digital converter for $1 more a month.

'In reality, customers will be getting more for their money,' he said. 'It's a good deal.'

It's also a question of demand, Durkin said. Two years ago, Bright House surveyed its subscribers and found that most don't watch government access shows.

But that survey focused only on Hillsborough County, and Pasco officials argue that subscribers in this county, with its huge elderly population, rely on the broadcasts for details about local government, storm warnings and evacuations.

'When we have a hurricane or a tropical storm, citizens rely on those channels for the latest information and updates from the county,' said Michael Nurrenbrock, director of the Office of Management and Budget, which oversees Pasco's broadcasts.

County officials have been discussing the issue with Bright House representatives, Nurrenbrock said, but there appears to be little room for negotiation.

'They have basically said, 'This is the way they want it,'

' he said.

Schools Superintendent Heather Fiorentino said the district uses basic cable services, not digital; so when the switch is made, the district will have to buy digital converters for possibly all of its TVs in order to see the programs produced by local students.

'As a community leader, I have real concerns with this,' she said. 'They're planning to charge citizens for public access television. There's something very wrong with that.'

Reporter Christian M. Wade can be reached at (727) 815-1082 or cwade@tampatrib.com.

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