Canadians with cable or satellite TV won’t be affected, but viewers who have old televisions and rely on antennas for over-the-air reception can expect “snow” on their screens as broadcasters move to digital signals by Wednesday.
About 850,000 Canadian households don’t subscribe to cable or satellite TV services, said Scott Hutton, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission‘s executive director of broadcasting.
“If your channel switches to digital and you just try to turn it on, you will have snow,” Hutton said of Canadians who only have rooftop antennas, or rabbit ears, and older TVs. “It just won’t be broadcasting anymore,” he said.
The bulk of the households are in urban markets, he said, noting that Montreal probably has the lowest level of cable or satellite penetration among large centres because those living near Mont-Royal mountain get good reception without it.
These viewers, if they don’t subscribe to cable or satellite TV, will need a digital converter set-top box, or a newer TV with a built-in digital converter to access the digital feeds.
The change to over-the-air digital signals provides better picture and sound and also allows broadcasting in high definition. The move brings Canada in line with other countries such as the United States, which made the transition in 2009.
The CBC has been granted another year to finalize the transition from over-the-air analog signals and has said it may seek another extension.
In 2007, the CRTC mandated that all TV broadcasters switch from analog signals to digital by this Aug. 31.
The CBC got a one-year extension from the CRTC to keep its analog signals running until Aug. 31, 2012, in 22 markets, primarily secondary ones. The CBC has said it plans to install a total of 27 digital transmitters across the country.
