TV in america?

Hm just a random question really. How is the TV system organised in america. Do they have terrestrial TV over there? I know that cable is the big digital over there because of the sheer size of the USA - different parts need different satelites.

The United States television system is surprisingly simple. There are three primary ways of receiving television in the US:

Analogue Terrestrial: Widespread VHF service has been around since the late 40s, and is now based on the 1953 NTSC broadcast standard (30 fps, 525 lines). Ironically, rural areas tend to get the best over-the-air reception, as transmitters are allowed to broadcast at up to 50,000 watts. Metro areas get poorer reception, with transmitters not generally exceeding 8,000-10,000 watts.

Stations that broadcast on AT are generally either local affiliates of major networks (NBC, CBS, ABC and Fox), or independent local stations. Major networks sometimes own and operate their local affiliates, but more often than not they are owned and operated by a third party. Network affiliation provides access to news and entertainment programming at specified times of the day.

There are 12 VHF channels on a standard television (channels 2 through 13). Any network affiliate can occupy any channel in a given market (for example, ABC isn't on channel 10 everywhere). The FCC (the Federal Communications Commission, a government body) assigns and regulates channel frequencies.

Channel 1 was originally a government emergency frequency, but has since been replaced by the Emergency Alert System, which can broadcast on all channels. Even so, there are no broadcasts on channel 1, though most TVs can tune to it.

Cable: Cable is probably the most popular form of receiving television, as it is practically everywhere and provides a much better picture than AT. In metro areas, Digital Cable is supplanting Analogue Cable thanks to reduced maintenance cost and improved feature set (on-screen guide, video-on-demand, etc.). Cable offers several more channels than AT, often numbering in the hundreds, depending on the cable company. Digital Cable is far from replacing Analogue Cable at this stage, as it's only in about 20% of homes.

Digital Satellite (DSS): There is one main provider of Digital Satellite service in the US, called DirecTV. The service is very similar to Digital Cable offerings, but (obviously) there's a dish involved. There are two DirecTV satellites that serve the United States, one (DIRECTV1) for Eastern and Central time zones, and one (DIRECTV2) for Mountain and Pacific time zones.

Those are the basics. I imagine after reading this you have specific questions, so pass 'em along.

EDITS are in italics.

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Then there's also the actual UHF band, channels 14 to 69.

With regards to channel 1, there was a commercial station operating on that channel in New York City (WNBT) before the frequency was re-assigned, I think in 1947.

Thanks - was just randomly wondering really if it was similar to how it is here in the UK - video-on-demand sounds interesting... I think I saw this on tommorows world eons ago... is it like an interactive thing where you choose a program you want to watch?

Exactly. On my cable provider, for instance, there are several channels of VOD that correspond with their "live" counterparts. For instance, we have have BBC America and BBC America On Demand, which basically shows recorded episodes of Ground Force and Changing Rooms. You can start them whenever you like and pause them, even. Movies are available this way, pay-per-view, as well.

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Wow... do you think we'll ever get to this sort of thing on Sky Digital in the UK? I know there's sky plus, but you can't select the programmes to view with that

UHF? Isn't VHF also used?

Also the 1940s is far too early for UHF broadcasting I'd have thought

It is indeed ... perhaps I was typing too fast, as someone pointed that out earlier. VHF occupies channels 2 through 13, and UHF channels 14 through 69.


One typo and your marked for life ... that first one should have read "VHF" as those transmissions started in about 1943 and grew substantially after the war. UHF transmissions didn't start in earnest until the mid-50s.

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Homechoice have been providing a VOD service via ADSL for a few years now ( http://www.homechoice.co.uk ). Programmes include many of the BBCs more popular programmes such as Eastenders.

Oh yeah, don't forget, Dish Network, the number 2 DSS in the US. Right now they are the fastest growing. The have 9 satellites in orbit. (ECHOSTAR 1 - ECHOSTAR 9). They all have diiferent jobs, Dishnetwork.com.


Also right now the UHF bands are being used to test/start HDTV broadcasts. Then most digital cable companies and digital sat. providers are rushing to add local stations in HD. Right now Fox, CBS, ABC, and NBC are making most of thier prime time lineups and sporting events in HD. The picture quality is great!

Homechoice sounds very interesting - but I can't see any sign-up link on there ? :S

My local CBS affiliate, KFMB-TV channel 8, has some surprisingly readable (and sometimes pretty funny) information on HDTV. If you have 10 minutes to kill, have a read.

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