When I write about antennas, readers respond with questions on specific antennas or ask how the antennas I’ve described work (I still get email messages asking about the Gray-Hoverman and UHF rhombic antennas I wrote about two decades ago!). This month, I’ll review some antenna basics that will help you evaluate any antenna, although I doubt any readers are fooled by antenna ads claiming over 100-mile reception. Measurements are great, but an understanding of how antenna elements work will help to evaluate designs just by looking at them!

Size is important, but the correct size for the TV-frequency band is most important. The simplest antenna is a half-wave dipole, and when looking at any antenna—transmit or receive—you should see dimensions close to a half-wavelength at the lowest frequency of interest.

Table 1 (next page) shows the free-space half-wavelength at the upper and lower edges of the VHF and UHF TV bands. The element’s actual half-wavelength will be affected by surrounding elements. In a band, the antenna’s active element, the one connected to the coax or balun, should be close to half a wavelength. Combination VHF/UHF antennas will have multiple active elements to cover different bands.

Impedance match for receive antennas isn’t nearly as critical as it is for transmitting antennas, but it will impact signal level, particularly with a long cable between the antenna and the amplifier or tuner. Notice the difference in wavelength in each band. Ideally, the antenna will provide a reasonable impedance match across the TV channels. In addition to size, this is an area in which a look at the antenna can provide some clues.

Shape Matters, Too
At UHF frequencies, a fan dipole, like those seen on bow-tie antennas, will work over a wide frequency range. Decades ago, I made a test antenna to evaluate radiated TV third harmonics using a fan dipole made from copper-clad PC board. While a solid element is best, broadband TV antennas typically use a wire bow-tie or something similar. Larger diameter or thicker elements have a wider bandwidth than thin rods. New designs will have UHF active elements optimized for the post-repack UHF band from 470 to 608 MHz.

Elements with different lengths can be connected to increase bandwidth. Log-periodic antennas do this and offer excellent bandwidth. The “Silver Sensor” indoor antenna, popular when DTV broadcasting started, is one example. You’ll sometimes see multiple dipoles connected to improve VHF performance in an antenna. Note that in these cases I’m talking about active antenna elements—ones connected to the coax or matching network, not the directors or reflectors in front of them.

What about those directors and reflectors? A perfect reflector behind the active elements should double the signal into the element. For a TV antenna covering the entire UHF band, a single rod reflector isn’t going to be as effective as a screen with multiple rods or a wire grid.

Directors—the elements in front of the active element—act as a lens to focus more signal into it. Many directors can be added in front of the active element to improve gain, but as gain increases, bandwidth decreases. For TV antennas, this makes it difficult to obtain significant gain over the entire UHF band with a large number of directors.

The gain of an antenna is directly related to its directivity or beamwidth. When evaluating antennas, do not include gain from amplifiers. A high-gain antenna will require more careful aiming and could be a problem if the TV stations to be received are not in the same location. Gain can be achieved by reducing the azimuth (side-to-side) or elevation beamwidth (up-to-down) directivity. Receive antennas will reduce both to achieve higher gain. Most gain in high-power TV transmitting antennas comes from a narrow elevation beamwidth.

Let’s use some antennas to illustrate these points.

Real-World Examples
An example of an antenna that depends on the reflector for gain is the Scala Paraflector. These are used at frequencies from 450 MHz to over 900 MHz for both reception and transmission. The PR-TV operates in the UHF TV band and has over 16 dB gain at channel 36. It’s a simple antenna, with only two elements in front of the reflector and a very narrow beamwidth. It also has a narrow bandwidth so the desired frequency needs to be specified when ordering the antenna.

Channel Master claims a gain of 12 decibels for its 8-bay “EXTREMEtenna 80” bow-tie antenna. This number appears to be the sum of 9 dB from the 8 active elements and 3 dB from the reflector. The basic design is simple (broadband elements and a reflector) so performance shouldn’t vary much over the UHF TV band.

A low-cost TV antenna that’s widely available is the RCA ANT705E and, at less than $50, it performed impressively. As you can see from the image, it has a curved reflector and a wider active element shaped like two horseshoes to cover the UHF band. There are only two directors.

Using our size criteria, the only element that will be significant at VHF is the large folded dipole in front of the reflector. The UHF active element may help a bit as a VHF director, VHF but I doubt the reflector will have much impact. I no longer have my Los Angeles apartment for testing antennas over a wide range of channels, so I was unable to evaluate VHF performance.

The Televes Ellipse Mix is an excellent antenna that costs significantly more but worked well in a difficult environment (see slide 24 in the PDF here). It has a broadband UHF active element. Like the Paraflector and the RCA antenna, there is also a shaped UHF reflector. Unlike the RCA, Televes added a reflector for VHF at the back of the antenna. Rather than use a long boom with director elements in a row, Televes has three levels of directors arranged to focus energy from the upper and lower directors into the UHF active element.

The active UHF elements on both the RCA and Televes antennas don’t taper to a point at the center like traditional bow-tie antenna elements. Elements no longer have to work up to channel 69 (806 MHz), so having more area at the lower channels improves performance.

What about indoor antennas? The flat antennas made with copper film on a plastic sheet are easier to stick in a window than the ANT705E. I did some limited testing comparing the Walmart Onn Indoor High-Quality Clear HDTV Antenna with the RCA ANT1120E and Best Buy “Essentials Ultra-Thin” antennas. As expected, the larger RCA antenna provided the strongest signal and the smaller one from Best Buy was the weakest. At UHF channel 36, the difference wasn’t huge. The Onn antenna, at under $25, is the cheapest and the one I’ve been using while traveling.

You can see it from almost anywhere in the City by the Bay. No other landmark can make that claim — not the Golden Gate Bridge, nor any of the city’s skyscrapers. Including the ground, the tower has six levels, with hundreds of antennas.

Sutro Tower has stood for 52 years in San Francisco. To many residents, it’s now a sign welcoming them home.

“I think there are more Sutro Tower tattoos out there than Golden Gate Bridge tattoos,” Peter Hartlaub said on the Total SF podcast, produced by the San Francisco Chronicle, in an episode commemorating the tower’s 50th anniversary in 2023.

Co-host Heather Knight remarked that the tower can appear differently, viewing it for instance from the city’s botanical garden or from across the bay.

“It’s like a living thing,” she said.

The tower has come a long way to become a Bay Area icon. To know its story requires a visit to a moment in time when TV broadcasting was still novel.

Where to Place a TV Tower
In the late 1940s, television was on the bleeding edge. Engineer Bill Ruck recalls Ken Nielsen, his mentor, furnishing the John O’Connell School of Broadcast with an RCA TV package with cameras and control units. The inner-city school operated in San Francisco’s Mission District, part of the city’s unified school district. They used KALW(FM), the first FM educational station built in the country, for training.

A 1953 article from the Radio, TV and Recording Technician-Engineer described engineers and station supervisors, many of whom were former O’Connell students, assisting in organization, advice and hiring trainees. Nielsen was an instructor in the program. Ruck said that gaining any kind of knowledge was integral.

In San Francisco, determining the best place to broadcast TV stations from was a question that didn’t have an easy answer in the days before Longley-Rice-based studies, for example, were available.

“It was all kind of trial and error,” Ruck said.

By 1960, the five primary Bay Area TV stations were fielding complaints of poor reception, which required viewers to reposition their rabbit ears to get a clear picture. There were two separate sites. Channel 7, KGO(TV), had its tower at the site of the mansion, La Avanzada, the one-time home of Adolph Sutro, a San Francisco mayor in the 1890s.

ABC planned to reconfigure the mansion into a broadcast facility for KGO, its new local TV station. By 1949, KGO began transmitting from a 580-foot broadcast tower adjacent to the mansion. KPIX Channel 5 would join KGO there.

The San Francisco Chronicle’s KRON(TV), Channel 4, went on the air in 1949 from a tower on Mount San Bruno. The Chronicle was owned by the Thieriot family. Another prominent family in the city — friendly with the Thieriots — was the Crocker family, which owned Mount San Bruno. When the Chronicle wanted to put on a TV station, it was perfectly logical for them to go to the Crockers and buy property, Ruck said.

“All part of ‘old San Francisco money,’” Ruck remarked.

KQED(TV), Channel 9, joined them in San Bruno in 1954, and Channel 2 KTVU(TV), which signed on in 1958, did the same. KGO would propose a tall tower at Mount Sutro, while KRON proposed a tall tower on San Bruno. “Lots of consulting engineers made piles of money studying the two tall towers,” Ruck said. The two sites resulted in about the same coverage projections with the FCC, so the process stalled. Ultimately, a tall tower on San Bruno was blocked by the FAA, as it was much too close to San Francisco International Airport, about two miles to the southeast.

“That’s why Sutro Tower was built,” Ruck said.

In 1968, four TV stations — KRON, KGO, KPIX and KTVU — came together to form Sutro Tower Inc. Initial designs envisioned a 1,200-foot tower that had a restaurant and observation deck. Opposition ensued. Ultimately, a 977-foot height was settled upon. Construction began in 1971 and it was completed a year later. Antennas were mounted in 1973, and on July 4, the first broadcast from Sutro took place.

Ruck is the best living Sutro historian. He started working for 104.5 KFOG(FM) in 1978, which transmitted atop Sutro — today it is the FM side of sports-talk KNBR. Sutro’s manager at the time was Harry Jacobs, who dated back to working with KGO at the mansion. Ruck has been part of the San Francisco broadcast engineering scene ever since.

“The more I look into it, the more I'm fascinated with the pioneers that did it when it had never been done before,” he said.

After Jacobs retired, Don Lincoln took over. Ruck had access to a file drawer of Sutro history during that time. He remembers a “foot of paper” of reports. Their plans, Ruck recalled, only considered San Francisco, San Mateo and Alameda Counties. At the time, there were only ranches and almond groves in Contra Costa County and Santa Clara County.

“Nobody lived there,” Ruck said of their logic.

Today offers a much different story. In fact, Ruck said that if such a tower were being planned now, he’d put it in the East Bay, such as the site of 94.1 KPFA(FM)’s transmitter in the Berkeley Hills.

Navigating Public Perception
Early public relations for the tower — and the surrounding Twin Peaks, Forest Knolls and Midtown Terrace neighborhoods — was, at best, a struggle. Ruck recalls that in the early 1980s two more area TV stations wanted to move to Sutro. Its transmitter building did not have the space for more occupants. Management drafted a design to allot more space, which required a permit and public notice, leading to a lot of pushback. There are homes as close as 300 feet from the tower. Some neighbors refer to it as “an industrial complex.”

“San Francisco invented the concept of NIMBY,” Ruck joked.

Lincoln wanted to engage the neighborhood. He set up a public meeting where the benefits of the tower were highlighted. Ruck remembers being in attendance. Afterward, a neighbor across from where Ruck’s parents lived scolded him for being involved with Sutro Tower. “It was a PR nightmare,” Ruck recalled.

As an engineer, managing the mindset of an average person’s perception of a large tower in their backyard wasn’t necessarily part of Lincoln’s thought process. Ruck remembered suggesting to him that someone be hired specifically to manage neighborhood outreach. Ever since, Sutro has had someone in such a capacity.

How did Sutro become the regional symbol that it is today?

Cody Hmelar, former chief engineer for Salem Media and an instructor at the University of Pittsburgh, grew up in the Bay Area. He said feelings about the tower became warmer by the early 2010s, as what he described as “contemporary hipsterism” rose.

It was simultaneous to the growth in popularity of “Karl the Fog,” a personification for the city’s trademark low-cloud layer.

Its Clarendon Avenue location, he said, sets it apart from other Bay Area towers, prompting its use in local art, tattoo designs and even on the San Francisco City Football Club's uniform badge.

While its East Bay penetration may suffer to an extent, as Hmelar noted, Sutro’s inner-city location makes it a prime site for digital TV transmission — especially since the principal satellite and cable headends are in Petaluma, about 33 miles north of downtown San Francisco, and rely on a strong, centralized transmission source.

Managing Sutro Today
Lincoln would retire, succeeded as Sutro’s general manager by Gene Zastrow and Eric Dausman. Dausman in turn announced he was retiring in 2018.

Raul Velez, 56, recalls seeing Sutro Tower out of his bedroom window a few years after it was completed. “I didn’t know it at the time, but it was my source of [TV] cartoons, so it was really important to me,” he said. Velez received encouragement, including from Sutro’s primary RF consultant, Peter Eckmann, to apply for the opening following Dausman’s announcement. Now he guides outreach efforts.

“When I talk to folks and say ‘I work for Sutro Tower,’ they’re like, what?”

Velez has been involved in Bay Area radio engineering since 1989. He was chief engineer for Univision’s San Francisco stations from 2002 to 2016. More recently, Velez was Bonneville’s director of engineering for 96.5 KOIT(FM), 98.5 KUFX(FM), 99.7 KMVQ(FM) and 102.9 KBLX(FM) from 2017–2019, when he applied for the Sutro job.

From a distance, Velez remarked, Sutro looks static. But there’s work going on nearly every day. He works from an office in the reinforced concrete transmission building at the base, which also houses signal handling and transmission equipment. Sutro Tower operates with a dedicated team of five employees handling administrative, power and building maintenance, supported by contract security and external contractors like Full Wave Tower & Broadcast for specialized tasks.

Each entity, which could be TV, FM or two-way, has its own staff or team that is responsible for their infrastructure. “When I have 11 different TV stations with their own perspectives on the business, I have to manage and coordinate the individual philosophies,” Velez said.

TV stations KGO, KPIX, KRON, KTVU, KQED, KRCB, KPYX, KPJK, KCNS, KDTS and KFSF all transmit their signals from Sutro, representing ABC, CBS, FOX, PBS, CW and TelevisaUnivision.

Hmelar pointed out that in the Bay Area, over-the-air TV is particularly important, as there are several foreign-language and minority-owned media networks that make use of digital TV subchannels as their primary communication method. He noted the city’s language-access ordinances.

“It makes being able to broadcast in multiple languages essential,” he said.

On FM, 96.5 KOIT, 98.9 KSOL, 104.5 KNBR and translator 93.7 K229DD, which relays Chinese-language 1400 KVOT(AM), all call Sutro home. Two 102.5 LPFM stations maintain a timeshare from Sutro: KXSF(LP), operated by San Francisco Community Radio, and KSFP(LP), the San Francisco Free Press.

Seven amateur radio groups maintain facilities on Sutro, including the San Francisco Radio Club (W6PW). “We treat them like everyone else,” Velez said.

If someone calls and asks for a check on their suite to make sure a certain green light is on, for example, Sutro’s staff can save them a trip. Or maybe it’s to dispatch a telco company or assist an HVAC vendor. “Really, our job is to make sure the tower is still there every day,” he said.

Making the tower a “living thing” involves plenty of other hands-on endeavors the Sutro team has spearheaded. That includes a 360-degree, rotatable, movable, zoomable panorama of the tower, available at explore.sutrotower.com. Velez said the feature consists of 1,300-gigapixel images placed together, produced by the Portland, Ore.-based Panogs. A 13-minute documentary produced by Stimulant and a team led by Darren David explores the origins of the tower, from the history of the Sutro family to the opposition residents provided before it was erected.

Sutro also keeps up good relations with nearby Glen Park Elementary, where third-grade teacher Sheila Tenney has students draw Sutro Tower as a back-to-school activity each year. “When you see Sutro Tower, you’re home.”

Chicago's Willis Tower and New York's Empire State Building are among other iconic sites with consolidated broadcast facilities. Hmelar describes Sutro as Empire’s “artsy cousin.” Its unique design features one tower and one building, unlike structures with towers atop office or residential spaces. The closest analogy is perhaps Paris's Eiffel Tower, hosting multiple broadcasters in one location, though Sutro lacks tourist amenities.

There have also been numerous earthquake warnings that have been transmitted via its host signals, most notably 1989’s Loma Prieta, which registered 6.9 on the Richter scale.

Former Sutro spokesman Dave Hyams noted the reason the tower withstood the quake — two of the three KGO(AM) towers did not — is the structural science behind it. The tower is embedded in 15 million pounds of cement.

There are seven generators and an associated fuel supply that can keep equipment running for up to three days without power.

Velez noted that maintenance is a constant part of the process. In 2025 that included the repainting of cladding panels.

Sutro removed vertical cladding to comply with seismic code. Inside panels are now thicker to improve rigidity, which also allowed the panels to be painted offsite. The outside horizontal cladding panels are next, and Velez expects the paint job to be completed by 2027.

Velez’s duties are not without stress. “I dealt with more lawyers in the first year I was here than in my previous 50 years of existence,” he cracked. But by all accounts, the relationship between the 977-foot tower and its neighbors is as good as it has ever been. He credits the team at the law firm Womble Bond Dickinson and at Lighthouse Public Affairs for improving communications between the neighbors and the city of San Francisco.

“We’re here, I can be reached 24 hours a day,” he said.

And if you look up in the City by the Bay, you’ll get a glimpse of the tower, peeking through the fog.

BACKNANG, Germany—Hiltron featured its HMAM-XY motorized antenna mount and other satellite communications products and system integration skills at IBC2025, which concluded mid-September in Amsterdam.

The motorized antenna mount, introduced as a prototype at last year’s IBC, is now in full production. Hiltron highlighted the product along with its range of satcom control, monitoring and antenna de-icing technology as well as the Premium Line D-SNG platform.

“Following a well-attended GovSatCom and its near-namesake GoSatCom, IBC remains a well-timed event attracting major broadcasters and broadcast-related telco service providers from many countries,” Hiltron Communications managing director Antonio Monteverde said.

“System integration continues to be the core element of successful ground station operation, ensuring fully coordinated monitoring, control and long-term reliability in all weather conditions.”

The HMAM-XY was well-received and recognized for its ability to provide stable transmit and receive links to LEO, MEO, smallsat satellite constellations and drones as well as traditional geostationary satellites, he said.

The new motorized mount accommodates parabolic reflectors and planar antennas up to 9.84 feet (3 meters) in diameter and operates in the L, S, C, X, Ku and Ka bands with circular or linear polarization, the company said.

Among its key features are fast tracking speed with low backlash and full hemispheric coverage with no zenith keyhole.

“We also promoted our satcom system upgrade capabilities, including 3D laser scanning and evaluation of teleport antennas,” Monteverde said. “This resource is far more accurate than the commonly used photogrammetry technique and can be conducted without interrupting the subject antenna’s operating schedule.”

More information is available on the company’s website.

ROHRDORF, Germany—Kathrein Broadcast, a German-based provider of professional broadcast antenna systems for radio and TV has sold its U.S. division to American Amplifier Technologies (AAT), a California-based provider of broadcast and industrial electrical products.

ATT has acquired 100% of the shares in Kathrien Broadcast USA and will continue operating the company under the same name.

“This step strengthens our global presence. AAT has been familiar with the U.S. markets for years and can position our products there even more effectively. At the same time, we are building on a close sales partnership with AAT ensuring the Scala product line remains available worldwide,” said Jörg Lippert, designated CEO of Kathrien Broadcast GmbH.

Kathrien’s Scala product line, specifically developed for the North American broadcast market, covers a wide frequency spectrum, serving both traditional broadcast applications and modern digital requirements. Under AATs ownership and through synergies with its core business, these products will be even more closely aligned with the needs of local markets in the future, AAT said.

Stephen Wilde, CEO of AAT, said: “We are delighted to acquire KATHREIN Broadcast USA Inc. The brand represents the highest technical quality and reliability. A promise we are committed to carrying forward.”

Founded in 2008, AAT acquired Mauna Towers in 2018, which operates broadcast tower locations in Hawaii and Arizona. In 2023, AAT acquired Shively Labs and also in that year, formed an alliance with System Engineering Solutions (SyES).

RAYMOND, Maine—Dielectric and Philippines partner 90 Degrees North said they have been working to extend the digital television service for BEAM (Broadcast Enterprises and Affiliated Media) beyond Mega Manila to cover secondary and tertiary cities.

The second phase of the expansion deployed complete ISDB-Tb Powerlite antenna systems with filters and flex transmission line to the major metropolitan regions like Cebu and Davao over the past 18 months, with subsequent shipments to cover the secondary emerging cities of Baguio, Naga, Ilo-ilo, Laguna, Batangas, General Santos and Zamboanga over the past year.

Dielectric also reported that it has now shipped Powerlite turnkey antenna systems for 2.4 kW to 5 kW low-power sites in the cities of Legazpi and Cagayan De Oro, bringing the third phase of the project closer to completion. Once installed and commissioned, BEAM will officially strengthen DTV service in Southern Luzon complementary to Naga, and offer DTV service to Northern Mindanao.

In addition, the two companies reported that BEAM’s DTV network expansion will continue as its programming extends into new cities, marking a fourth phase of the project.

90 Degrees North owner John Achilles “Achie” Denna said the network will reach up to 30 cities by the end of this phase, which will be completed in mid-to-late December.

“These are full-service projects that begin with RF network planning and constructing new or rehabilitating existing cabins/shelters. That is followed by electrical system installation, retrofitting of towers, and then installing transmitters and filters in the shelters,” said Achie Denna, who adds that site development accounts for “60 to 70%” of each project. “Dielectric has been nothing short of exceptional with aligning their manufacturing and delivery timelines to my installation schedules, which conclude with running line, adding antenna mounts and support, and installing the antennas.”

The project started in 2018 with the Mega Manila system, anchored by a TFU-WB UHF antenna for the UHF Channel 31 single-frequency network (SFN), with low-power DLP and TLP single-channel antennas filling out the flagship network. BEAM relays programming from Mega Manila to UHF Channel 31 frequencies in Cebu, Davao and Zamboanga; Channel 26 in Baguio and Iloilo; and Channel 32 in Naga. The General Santos transmission operates on Channel 51 with Dielectric Powerlite TLP antennas to radiate signals.

“With assistance from our partners at PROGIRA and using their market-leading RF Network Planning Software, we have optimized coverage patterns and areas, performance and efficiency through three specific design elements,” said Cory Edwards, OEM, distribution and Southeast Asia sales manager at Dielectric. “All antenna designs feature elliptical polarization to improve ISDB-Tb penetration into buildings and homes, the majority of which have concrete metal roofing. That added vertical element also strengthens coverage to mobile devices. We chose slotted antenna designs to reduce tower loads and streamline installation, and provided simple tunable coaxial filter designs with patch panels, components and loads that fit comfortably next to the transmitters. That is especially important in shelters that share rental space.”

Achie Denna added that Dielectric’s market share in the Philippines continues to rise as the country’s DTV transition moves forward, which includes a nearly wholesale shift from VHF to UHF frequencies. “Dielectric has captured approximately 35-40 percent of the digital TV transition business here in the Philippines to date, and we expect the DTV transition to continue through the year 2030," he said.

More information can be accessed at www.dielectric.com.

A major new survey of consumer video subscriptions offers the TV industry some mixed messages, with data showing ongoing drastic declines in pay TV subscriptions and antenna usage coupled with notable increases in streaming.

The “State of Media, Entertainment, and Tech: Subscriptions 2025” report, from Horowitz Research, found that homes who could access to live TV channels via an antenna declined from 32% in 2020 to 19% in 2025. Even more precipitous declines were recorded for traditional pay TV providers, with the number of homes with MVPD subscriptions falling from 81% in 2020 to 44% in 2025.

Meanwhile, the new Horowitz data showed the share of homes with SVOD subscriptions rose from 70% in 2020 to 81% in 2025, and households with free streaming services jumped from 52% to 70% in the same period.

Virtual multichannel video programming distributors (vMVPDs), like Sling TV and YouTube TV, declined from being in 29% of homes in 2020 to 23% in 2025.

Over the last decade, that has dramatically changed both the mix of video services and the way those services are accessed. In 2015 nearly half of all homes (47%) only had a MVPD subscription and only 7% of all homes were streaming only. In 2025 nearly half of all homes (49%) were streaming only, while only 11% only had a pay TV subscription. About one third (33%) had both MVPD and streaming subscriptions in 2025, down from 40% in 2015. The homes with no video subscriptions stayed virtually flat, rising from 6% in 2015 to 7% in 2025.

In terms of homes with TV antennas, the Horowitz study found that they skewed towards lower income homes and older households. Antenna were used in 26% of homes headed by someone 50 or older compared to 19% for the overall population in 2025. Only 9% of homes with incomes of greater than $100,000 a year had antenna while 26% of those with incomes below $50,000 had antenna. About 28% of all homes without MVPD subscriptions had antennas but only 10% of homes headed by someone 18 to 34 had access to live TV channels via an antenna.

The report also provides detailed information on how much consumers are spending on subscriptions, the most popular streaming services, subscription bunding, broadband subscriptions, opportunities in the area of smart homes and a wide variety of other subjects.

The report is based on a survey of 2,200 consumers 18+ who are decision makers about subscription services in their home. Data have been weighted to ensure results are representative of the overall U.S. population. The survey was conducted in January and February of 2025.

More information is available here.

In a world increasingly dominated by subscription-based streaming services, over-the-air (OTA) television remains a crucial source of free, accessible content. From local news and sports to public service announcements and diverse programming, OTA broadcasting offers invaluable services to communities without requiring costly subscriptions.

Despite its benefits, many households overlook this resource due to the challenges associated with external antennas. By reintroducing built-in antennas into modern television sets, these barriers can be eliminated, ensuring OTA broadcasting continues as a vital, equitable and efficient medium in the digital age.

OTA Broadcasting in the Streaming Era: Challenges and Potential
Despite its longstanding history and wide availability, OTA broadcasting faces a curious contradiction: it offers content at no cost, yet accessibility challenges make it less appealing.

External antennas, once a standard feature of television viewing, have largely disappeared as minimalist TV designs dominate the market. This trend has inadvertently restricted access to a resource with immense potential, especially for diverse communities.

Barriers to Accessibility
External antennas present significant barriers to widespread adoption. Many viewers find setting up external antennas technically complex and intimidating. Achieving optimal signal reception often involves trial-and-error adjustments, which can be frustrating and time-consuming, particularly for those unfamiliar with the technology.

Aesthetic concerns also discourage use; sleek, modern interiors often clash with the visible, cumbersome nature of external antennas. In urban settings, especially for apartment or condominium residents, restrictions on antenna placement add another layer of difficulty. Geographic challenges further exacerbate accessibility issues.

In rural or remote areas, specialized antennas are often necessary to achieve strong reception, a requirement that adds complexity and discourages adoption even in communities that stand to benefit most from OTA broadcasting.

Societal Consequences
The difficulties in accessing OTA broadcasting have far-reaching societal implications. Limited access to OTA content diminishes community engagement by reducing the shared experiences facilitated by local programming, such as live sports or emergency updates. This decline weakens the collective understanding and connection within communities. Local broadcasters, whose revenues rely on advertising, suffer as viewership dwindles.

This financial strain undermines their ability to produce high-quality content, further compounding the cycle of declining interest. Moreover, limited access to OTA broadcasting jeopardizes public safety by reducing the reach of critical emergency alerts, leaving households unprepared during crises such as natural disasters or severe weather events.

The Unique Value of OTA Broadcasting
Unlike streaming platforms that depend on stable internet connections, OTA broadcasting operates independently of broadband infrastructure, making it particularly valuable in areas with limited connectivity or during service outages.

OTA broadcasting can deliver content to an unlimited number of receivers without additional infrastructure costs, a feature that makes it inherently scalable and efficient. These qualities reinforce its role as a vital component of a balanced media ecosystem, complementing the on-demand nature of streaming platforms.

Built-in Antennas: A Path To Accessibility and Equity
Reintegrating antennas into television sets directly addresses the accessibility challenges posed by external devices. Built-in antennas simplify the process, eliminating technical and physical barriers while presenting OTA broadcasting as a modern and practical alternative to streaming services. By integrating the antenna into the television sets, viewers gain a straightforward plug in-and-play solution that benefits a range of audiences. Those less familiar with technology can access OTA content without navigating complex setups, while urban households with space-conscious living environments benefit from an unobtrusive solution. In areas where high-speed internet is unavailable or unreliable, built-in antennas offer a dependable source of news, entertainment, and emergency alerts.

By expanding the viewership of OTA broadcasting, built-in antennas maximize the use of the public spectrum, a finite resource allocated for societal benefit. This broader utilization enhances the impact of OTA broadcasting, fulfilling its role as a public service. Reintegrating antennas also align with media accessibility principles.

Contemporary theories, such as postphenomenology, argue that unnecessary technological complexity creates barriers between users and content. Simplifying access fosters a direct connection with OTA content. Media ecology theory further emphasizes the need for diverse platforms in the media landscape. OTA broadcasting, with its real-time content, complements streaming services and strengthens civic engagement and cultural connection.

Advances in Antenna Technology
Modern technology has made it possible to integrate antennas into television designs without compromising aesthetics or performance. Innovations such as compact antenna designs allow for discrete integration within slim TV profiles, ensuring high-quality reception while maintaining visual appeal. Smart signal-tuning technology enables automated optimization of reception, adapting to environmental or geographic variables without manual intervention. Hybrid designs offer flexibility, combining built-in antennas with optional external connections for areas with challenging signal conditions.

The potential of built-in antennas extends beyond hardware integration. Smart TVs can incorporate OTA capabilities into their interfaces, presenting OTA channels alongside streaming services in a unified menu. This integration bridges traditional broadcasting and digital media, enhancing user experience through features like voice search and personalized recommendations. Televisions equipped with intelligent switching technology could seamlessly alternate between OTA and streaming content delivery, offering the best option for any given program without user intervention.

Broader Benefits of Built-in Antennas
The reintegration of built-in antennas offers significant benefits across various domains. For households, it provides access to free, high-quality programming without the need for additional equipment or subscriptions.

This is particularly impactful for families in areas with limited broadband access or those seeking cost-effective alternatives. Local broadcasters benefit from increased OTA viewership, which boosts advertising revenue and supports the production of high-quality, localized content.

Television manufacturers gain a competitive edge by offering products with advanced built-in antenna features, such as smart tuning or integrated interfaces, adding value for consumers. Enhanced access to OTA broadcasting also strengthens public safety by ensuring more households receive timely emergency alerts, particularly in scenarios where internet services are disrupted.

Implementation Strategies
Achieving the potential of built-in antennas requires a coordinated effort. Collaboration among television manufacturers, broadcasters, and policymakers is essential to developing high-performance integrated designs that meet existing and future OTA standards.

Consumer awareness campaigns can educate the public on the benefits of built-in antennas, dispelling misconceptions and repositioning OTA broadcasting as a modern and reliable option. Policymakers can support these efforts through regulatory incentives that encourage manufacturers to include built-in antennas while preserving the spectrum allocations necessary for OTA broadcasting. Content investment is also crucial; engaging, high-quality programming is essential to attract and retain viewers, showcasing the unique advantages of OTA broadcasting.

Measuring Success
The success of this initiative can be measured by increased OTA viewership, higher engagement with local content, and improved dissemination of emergency alerts. Surveys and audience data provide valuable insights that inform continuous improvements in both technology and content delivery.

Conclusion
Reintroducing built-in antennas offers a forward-thinking solution to revitalizing OTA broadcasting. By removing access barriers and embracing modern design, this initiative ensures the continued availability of free, reliable content for all. It reflects a broader commitment to accessibility, equity, and the public good.

As a cornerstone of public media, OTA broadcasting’s universal access, cultural connection and environmental efficiency remain indispensable in the digital age. Through thoughtful collaboration and innovation, built-in antennas bridge OTA’s legacy with the demands of the streaming era.

RAYMOND, Maine—Dielectric will introduce its first top-mounted, free-standing UHF broadband pylon antenna at NAB Show 2023 next week, building on more than 15 years of field-proven Dielectric broadband technology with new patent-pending design innovations, the company reported.

“Broadband panel antenna systems require higher part counts, external feedlines, and  more connection points for installation than pylon systems,” said Keith Pelletier, president and general manager, Dielectric. “That complexity increases wind load and reduces system reliability, which increases field maintenance and repairs. Our new generation of UHF broadband pylon antennas enable the coveted top-position on the tower and ensure excellent circularity, made possible by utilizing multiple techniques developed over the past few decades by Dielectric’s engineering team.”

Broadband pylon antennas bring exceptional bandwidth, performance and pattern flexibility to broadcasters. However, they have traditionally been offered as side-mounted solutions due to structural hindrances that compromise the pylon from being self-supporting, the company explained. 

New for NAB, Dielectric has engineered a structurally-sound, broadband pylon design for top-mounted configurations without sacrificing horizontal and vertical pattern circularity, bandwidth characteristics, and elevation pattern gain.

The breakthrough was made possible through Dielectric’s work developing top-mounted, stacked antenna systems and combining that knowledge with techniques used for side-mounted broadband pylons. The result is a free-standing, high-efficiency pylon alternative to top-mounted panel antennas. The new slotted coaxial design supports up to 10 UHF channels while reducing wind load and footprint on broadcast towers, Dielectric reported.  

Available immediately, Dielectric has already shipped two UHF broadband pylon antenna systems to broadcasters in Omaha, Nebraska and El Paso, Texas. In addition to high-power panel replacement opportunities, Pelletier sees strong opportunity for NextGen TV deployments over the coming several years. 

“These are attractive designs for higher power applications with multiple stations, and will typically accommodate input power ratings of 60 to 120 kilowatts,” he said. “That makes it perfect as the main antenna for an ATSC 3.0 SFN network, and is otherwise an ideal replacement choice for panel antennas in the field that are nearing end of life, or have become increasingly expensive to maintain.”

Dielectric exhibits at Booth W3601 at the Las Vegas Convention Center during the 2023 NAB Show beginning April 16.

BATON ROUGE, La.—Technical Services Group (TSG), a provider of broadcast engineering and commercial AV solutions, has installed two new Rohde & Schwarz transmitters for WMBC-TV at One World Trade Center in New York, becoming the latest broadcasting tenant for the Durst Organization on the One World Trade’s master antenna system. 

Last year, Radio Frequency Systems (RFS) extended its existing antenna and combiner infrastructure at One WTC, which allowed WMBC-TV the ability to upgrade to ATSC 3.0 broadcasting. Owned by Mountain Broadcasting Corporation, WMBC-TV is an independent, full-power TV station serving the New York metropolitan area. 

As the owner representative and design-build contractor for the project, Advent Industrial Corporation, together with Technical Systems Engineering and Marc Musgrove of the Durst Organization, collaborated on the design of the RF and support systems for WMBC-TV. Advent Industrial Corporation prepared the tenant space and integrated the electrical, mechanical and RF systems into the building’s master state-of-the-art broadcast infrastructure. Bo Hoover, CEO of TSG, said Advent was instrumental in facilitating and coordinating all the skilled union trades people for the project, the company said.

This project marked a return to One WTC for Advent Industrial Corporation. AIC had previously built a significant number of the major TV transmitter facilities in the original North Tower prior to 9/11, and was also involved in the post 9/11 emergency return to on-air broadcasting at the Alpine Tower in New Jersey. 

“There’s a lot of advanced prep and coordination that needs to be done to get personnel and equipment clearances to work in One World Trade Center,” Hoover explained. “When we arrived on site, we worked with Advent’s president, Michael Christatos, and his team to verify and test electrical, mechanical, and cooling systems—with only final modifications to ensure the broadcast systems would run at optimal efficiency. It was a rare and remarkable effort by all to show up on a Monday and work together to facilitate going live on Friday.”

Once the physical components were in place, TSG worked closely with RFS’s Todd Loney, who managed the filter tuning and optimization of the master combiner, while TSG handled the commissioning, startup, and proof of the remaining system equipment. WMBC-TV is broadcasting from two new R&S THU9evo-40 transmitters (main and auxiliary), which can be used seamlessly with either the upper (RFS PEP96) or lower (RFS PEP40L) antenna main and auxiliary systems at One WTC.

“The One World Trade facilities master RFS antenna system is second to none in the world,” said Hoover. “This move has allowed WMBC-TV to significantly improve its signal coverage and position itself for an ATSC 3.0 future. A true team effort—and we appreciate WMBC-TV, Advent, R&S, RFS, and especially Marc Musgrove of the Durst Organization for the confidence in choosing TSG to be part of this complex, high-profile broadcast project.”

As cord cutting hits record levels, a new study from Horowitz Research finds that in 2022, almost two in ten (18%) TV content viewers report having a digital antenna and that digital antenna ownership has grown among younger viewers from 14% in 2021 to 23% in 2022. 

Despite the growth in younger viewers, the penetration rates for OTA antenna was similar to 2021 and lower than the penetration during COVID, during which antenna adoption and usage spiked.

Notably, hyper-local content is very important to antenna owners, with 58% saying they are interested in hyper-local news and information from their specific community.  The Horowitz study also found that interest in hyper-local content is on par with interest in national and regional news.

 “There is still a healthy market for the live, linear local and hyper-local broadcast news and information that digital antennas can deliver for free to consumers,” notes Adriana Waterston, chief revenue officer and insights and strategy Lead for Horowitz Research. “But consumer education is critical to drive awareness, continued adoption, and viewership. There are many consumers who would benefit from having a digital antenna but don’t know it’s an option for them. It’s in the best interest of broadcasters to make a concerted effort to change that.”

The data is from Horowitz’s latest State of OTA 2022 report, which tracks the evolving market for over-the-air (OTA) antennas, wireless 5G home internet services, and other disruptive technologies. The study looks at the role digital antennas play in keeping consumers connected to live, linear broadcast content as Americans continue to shed traditional cable or satellite (MVPD) services.

The study found that younger viewers now over-index on digital antenna usage compared to their older (50+ year-old) counterparts (23% and 15%, respectively). 

The study also finds that Latinx viewers over-index on digital antenna ownership compared to all other segments (25%, compared to 18% among white non-Latinx and Black viewers, and 19% among Asian TV content viewers).

The new State of OTA 2022 survey also reports that digital antennas have priority placement in the home, perhaps filling in the space once occupied by cable/satellite set-top boxes in homes that have shed traditional pay TV service. Two in three digital antenna owners (67%) have an antenna on the TV that is used the most in the home, a number that rises to almost 8 in 10 among digital antenna owners who do not have MVPD service (78%).

The study also shows that antenna owners are using them. Self-reported time spent with content delivered through a digital antenna accounts for about 1 in every 4 viewing hours among antenna owners overall, growing to over 4 in 10 hours of viewing time spent among antenna owners without MVPD service (42%). Streaming accounts for a little over half of their viewing time spent, Horowitz said. 

According to the digital antenna owners surveyed, being able to get live access to local broadcast channels is the main reason for getting an antenna, followed by being able to access local news, the researchers reported. 

The study also points to some challenges and opportunities in the digital antenna/OTA space.  The majority (62%) of owners are satisfied with their digital antennas, but reliability and the number of channels available are frustration points for some consumers. 

The researchers also noted that, given the desire to remain connected to live, local and hyper-local content, there is a missed opportunity to better market the technology to non-adopters. Over half (54%) of non-antenna owners say they know only a little about digital antennas. When presented with a description of the technology and its benefits, non-antenna owners say they would be interested in getting a digital antenna. Overall, the study finds that 13% of TV content viewers are either planning to get a digital antenna or would be very likely to adopt an antenna in the near future based on the description provided in the survey.

The full State of OTA 2022 report provides analysis of TV content viewers 18+ who have at least one TV set in the home and are decision makers.  The survey was published in November 2022 in English among 1,600 adults, with an oversample that resulted in 855 antenna owners. Data have been weighted to ensure results are representative of the overall TV universe. The report is available in total market, FOCUS Latinx, FOCUS Black, and FOCUS Asian editions.

CINCINNATI—Scripps announced today that TV antenna sales are up 30% in the 13 markets where it launched a marketing campaign to promote free broadcast TV last summer. The company announced the results during its Q3 financials in which it reported an overall 10% increase in revenues, fueled by CTV and political ads.  

Scripps President/CEO Adam Symson said the $20 million campaign was part of the station group’s efforts to promote both old and new ways of accessing free and ad- supported TV.

“Scripps’ impressive 10% revenue growth in the third quarter was fueled in part by the company’s multiplatform distribution strategy—to ensure viewers can find our high-quality programming content anywhere they watch TV,” Symsom said. “We have now launched our free, ad-supported TV (FAST) networks across major connected TV services, and in the third quarter, that paid off with a solid beat of Scripps Networks’ revenue expectations. We’re just getting started and expect that strategy to fuel continued revenue growth against an impressive run rate. 

“In the midst of an economic climate that is challenging consumer spending and confidence, Scripps is leaning into its leadership in free TV to benefit the company and shareholders,” Symson added. “Pay TV prices are rising, subscription on-demand services have nearly doubled in price, and the TV marketplace is more confusing to the consumer than ever. It is clear from the results of our earliest initiatives that Americans are seeking to add an option that is free and easy — broadcast television. We are very pleased to see our marketing efforts beginning to increase antenna sales. Because we already capture nearly a third of all over-the-air viewing, more antenna use means more consumers spending time with our nine Scripps Networks and our local broadcast stations.’

Scripps earned $208 million in political ad revenues, surpassing its 2018 midterm results. Connected TV (CTV) revenue grew 57% year over year as the division launched more channels on major streaming services. The division expects to reach an annual run rate of more than $100 million in CTV revenue next year.

As I approach my 300th RF Technology column for TV Tech, I thought it might be useful to describe some of the things I’ve learned in more than 50 years of working with broadcast transmitters. Throughout my career, I worked with concepts and systems that were difficult to understand, but through experience and help from experts I was fortunate to meet I was able to understand them better.

You’ve probably had similar experiences, from things as basic as learning to drive to creating spreadsheets on a computer or configuring an IP network. One element of this is being able to understand how these systems or tasks work on an almost intuitive level. That provides the basis for additional learning and expertise even across different fields. 

I’ve found many people who have built a good understanding of IT are also quick learners when it comes to RF systems. Over the years, I’ve noticed more of my readers are not engineers with RF backgrounds, but people, often with experience in other fields, who are interested in RF. This month’s column is for them, as I’ll be covering some basic principles. If you have had experience with RF, I welcome your comments on other RF topics non-engineers would find useful.

One thing that helps in gaining an understanding of how RF works is finding ways to see it work. Radio frequency electromagnetic fields are similar in many ways to much higher frequency energy, such as light. Just as buildings block some light and create shadows, they also block RF. 

However, the shadows are not completely dark, as some light finds its way in by reflection from other objects and scattering in the atmosphere. RF behaves the same way, although the amount of reflection and scattering in the atmosphere will vary with frequency and wavelength, which is the frequency divided by the speed of light. 

Comparing RF to Light
Like light, RF energy can be focused. In transmit antennas, this concentrates the power on the ground and can be used to target specific areas while avoiding others where coverage isn’t needed or interference has to be reduced. In receive antennas, the focusing provides gain, which, like a telescope, increases the intensity of the signal coming from one direction and reduces signals from other directions that may cause interference. 

As RF frequencies increase and wavelength decreases to a millimeter or less, antennas can even start looking like optical devices. At satellite and microwave frequencies, parabolic reflectors are commonly used. These also turn out to be quite effective at light and infrared wavelengths, as anyone who has had an LNB cover melt when the sun moved behind the satellite the dish was looking at knows.

Antennas and Wavelength
Keeping in mind the relationship between frequency and wavelength can also help in evaluating antennas. Antennas that have to work on lower frequencies, like low-band VHF-TV (54–88 MHz), FM radio (88–108 MHz), have to be larger than those used for high-VHF TV (174–216 MHz) or UHF TV (470–608 MHz) to work efficiently. This doesn’t mean small antennas won’t work at the lower frequencies for reception, just that the antenna itself will be less efficient. 

One solution is to add an amplifier. However, the amplifier will add its own noise, reducing sensitivity, and because the small antenna will be less directional (focused) it will pick up more surrounding noise and interference. For best results, a low-noise amplifier should be located at the antenna where it can offset the loss in the line to the TV and provide a good match to the line. 

On the transmit side, matching the resonant frequency and impedance of the antenna to the transmitter is more important. Without getting into the math, matching the impedance is like connecting two pipes of the same diameter together with the faucet on one end supplying water at the optimum rate for the pipe and the device (say, a turbine in this analogy) at the other end. The water flows smoothly with the least amount of loss. 

The same analogy applies in a system with a transmitter, transmission line and antenna. However, if the impedance of the components isn’t matched, it will lead to excessive current (causing heating) and voltage (potentially causing arcing) at different points in the system, depending on wavelength. 

Most broadcast systems are well-matched, unless the antenna is damaged so problems are more likely to occur when a connector starts to lose contact, increasing loss and heat leading to contamination in the line, perhaps due to carbon created by overheating from a bad contact. 

In most cases failures will create a mismatch in the line, which can be located at the base of the tower either by sending a very short pulse up the line and looking for the time it takes for the return reflection, or sweeping the frequency across a band of frequencies (and different wavelengths) and looking at the time domain response across the frequencies. Because these measurements involve “sweeping” between frequencies, this is often called “sweeping the line.”

TV Antenna Specs Debunked 
One of the things that bugs me when reading reviews for TV antennas or looking at ads is comparisons based on range in miles or antenna gains that include a built-in amplifier. More responsible manufacturers will include the gain of the antenna at different channels. Most are based on gain above an isotropic antenna (without going into details, a “perfect” antenna) as “dBi” rather than gain above a dipole or “dBd” (like a set of rabbit ears with total length of half a wavelength). Gain in dBi will be 2.15 dB higher than gain in dBd. Ideally the specifications will specify whether the gain is in dBi or dBd. 

The range numbers in antenna ads should be ignored, as they eliminate too many factors, such as the height of the transmit antenna above ground. Just as light diminishes quickly after the sun sets, when the transmitter’s antenna is below the radio horizon the signal will drop off quickly. Read my TV Tech column “Estimating Coverage: Quick Analysis for Facility Mods,” for more information. 

For a transmit antenna 2,000 feet above average terrain, the radio horizon is 63.3 miles away. As the signal drops off quickly beyond this distance (as with light past sunset) ranges of more than 70 miles only would apply from mountaintop to mountaintop or for very high transmitter sites. 

Experimenting With RF
The best way to get comfortable with RF is to experiment with it. While difficult to do on the transmitter side (unless you are a licensed amateur radio operator) there is a lot that can be done on the receive side. Check out my article “Inexpensive Tools for RF Field Measurements” for more information. 

The Airspy Software Defined Radio (SDR) is a great way to explore the RF spectrum. It cannot demodulate broadcast TV signals, but it will show the TV signal’s spectrum and signal strength. A handheld spectrum analyzer like the TinySA (read my column “tinySA: Finding Interference and Aiming Antennas”) is a great way to explore RF spectrum. 

I got an email from a reader who was seeing some odd behavior picking up distant stations in Chicago. He was interested in trying out different antennas and locations, so I suggested he get a tinySA. He did and is now able to see how antenna type, orientation and location impact the signal. He noticed the ripple (“spikes”) and I explained those were due to reflections. With a bit of time and tinySA, he now understands more about TV reception than many people today who work in broadcasting.

A clarification: In my article “RF at the NAB Show—ATSC 3.0, Part 1” I said Saankhya Labs developed their multi-standard ATSC 3.0 tuner in cooperation with Coherent Logic. Vasanth Shreesha from Saankyha said, “The Saankhya ATSC 3.0 receivers use our own chipset (SL3000 or SL4000)” and they were not developed by Coherent Logic.” 

Email me at dlung@transmitter.com. I try to answer all emails promptly, but if I’m busy and the email gets buried, I might miss it. If you don’t get a response within a week or so, email me again.

BACKNANG, Germany—Hiltron Communications has added to its product range with the introduction of the HSACU4, a compact antenna control unit for use with flyaway antennas. 

The HSACU4 is based on the same hardware and software platform as the HACU antenna control unit which is used for earth station antennas at hundreds of stations worldwide.

The HSACU4 is based on a modular architecture and can be configured with elements such as a polarization driver, an integrated beacon receiver or power supply modules for the LNBs. 

The controller can also be operated and monitored via an Ethernet link and has an intuitive web interface that reduces operator training to a minimum. The antenna can also be controlled by means of a handheld unit directly connected to the HSACU4.

An auto-pointing function can be activated using the web interface which displays the coordinates of the target satellite. Auto-pointing and tracking are based on data received from a beacon receiver which can be installed remotely and accessed via an Ethernet link or integrated in the controller. The HSACU4 reads the antenna position from a GPS and adjusts the antenna's inclination using an integrated sensor. After locating the satellite, the HSACU4 progresses to fine-adjustment mode. It can also scan a predefined area and search within this area for a satellite.

The HSACU4 has eight slots which can be populated with plug-in modules to support the required functions. Among these is the HP_HCS4-NET which provides LAN/IP connectivity and full remote access via a browser-based user interface. All operating parameters can be adjusted via a local or remote PC. The UI displays all the information required to set and maintain azimuth, elevation and polarization, including current position and target position plus a database of potential accessible satellites. 

Azimuth, elevation and polarization axes can be adjusted simultaneously. Also included are a sensor box with a fluxgate compass, a GPS receiver and an inclinometer for adjustment of elevation and polarization.

Tracking functions like Steptrack and TLE for NORAD data are supported and can be automatically activated after fine pointing of the antenna. Prediction tracking is included for tracking inclined-orbit satellites.

Designed for easy installation, configuration and operation, the HSACU4 occupies a 300 x 300 x 150 mm housing which mounts directly behind the antenna or on a flyaway's pedestal. Housing and connectors are weatherproofed for outdoor operation.

JOHNSTON, IOWA— There is a bit of a renaissance taking place in the broadcast television industry—the return of the television antenna. Television antennas became relegated to use only by the TV in bedroom for watching the nightly news or to the TV on the kitchen counter providing background content while preparing a meal. 

However, with the rising costs of traditional cable and satellite services, the increased availability of over-the-top streaming services and the expanded channel selections over traditional broadcast have exposed digital generations to the technology and reminded the pre-digital generations of how they used to be entertained in their homes. A recent study from Horowitz Research shows that antenna penetration nationwide grew 38% year-over-year between 2020 and 2021 and now reaches 40% of all TV content viewers 18+.

As this rediscovery is taking place, the underlying technology of traditional over-the-air broadcast television is undergoing a metamorphosis that will enable improved traditional television and a whole lot more. Higher-quality pictures and immersive audio are just the tip of the iceberg of improvements. 

NextGen TV, as it has been dubbed by the Consumer Technology Association will enable interactivity with the content, user-specific personalization and recommendations, higher resolution, a vast improvement in accessibility and alerting features, and a raft of other capabilities beyond what television can and has traditionally done or even considered.

The Path Forward
While it may seem irrelevant to talk about the original NTSC standard and analog broadcasting, it is important to understand how the past has influenced the present ATSC 1.0 DTV broadcasting service and continues to influence the rollout of ATSC 3.0. One of the obvious influences is a TV’s station’s over-the-air coverage. While television can trace it roots back to the early 1900’s, it was after World War II that the explosive growth started. which required the establishment of the interference limited coverage contours that we are all familiar with. While over-the-air service protection changed to noise-limited contours, the assumption was that the receiver was stationary and attached to an antenna that was mounted outside of the home and 30 feet above the ground.

The introduction of digital television (DTV) 25 years ago was a game changer when it came to the quality and quantity of live streaming content that is still the mainstay of over-the-air broadcasting. It also expanded ancillary services which we often refer to as “datacasting,” which, in essence, started with the introduction of closed captioning as a digital service carried on line 21. There have been numerous experiments and deployments of other ancillary digital services encoded into the analog services with limited success. 

ATSC 3.0 was the next logical step in the development of television and pretty much follows the path of all things digital. As the underlying physical technology improves, software developers create code to take advantage of the improvements which then pushes the physical technology, and the cycle continues.

Global Goal
Unlike what was done in the past, the goal this time was to create a standard that could be adopted worldwide. A global community of technical experts is involved in creating the use cases and suite of standards that is ATSC 3.0 as well as in its testing, refinement and deployment. 

Currently, in the U.S., more than 60 markets have deployed NextGen TV with station groups working together to launch ATSC 3.0 while maintaining ATSC 1.0. South Korea deployed ATSC 3.0 a few years ago and there are also other countries that are looking at their next upgrade in terrestrial DTV and considering adopting all or portions of ATSC 3.0. This could be good news as it could prompt a deeper consideration of adding ATSC 3.0 receivers in handheld devices.

Probably the most frequent question I hear when discussing the move to NextGen TV is: Why do it at all? The transition to DTV  was easier because it was federally mandated, but the FCC’s approach to ATSC 3.0 is to put the decisions and timeline mostly in the hands of station owners, with some guidance from the commission on protecting traditional digital broadcasts.

To answer the “why” question requires that we examine how the advances offered by ATSC 3.0 resonate with decisionmakers as well as the general public. It also requires that we understand not only the content creation side of the equation but content reception as well. Take immersive technology for example—creating this type of content will not only require additional skills and resources from the creators, it will also require the consumer to have the technology to receive it. 

Consumer Adoption
I often get the chance to talk about NextGen TV with industry groups as well as the general  public and I usually start off with a few questions to the audience to get an understanding of their technical expertise and field of interest. 

The first thing I like to talk about is the improved reception thanks to the changes to the physical layer modulation scheme and the addition of elliptical or circular polarization to the transmitted signal. 

Just as important, there’s also the advantage of being able to configure independent physical layer pipes to improve specific stream reception in the face of more challenging conditions. Using an indoor antenna is not only a fact of life but also the dominant methodology for viewers who expect reliable service regardless of location. 

Explaining the benefits of ATSC 3.0 over ATSC 1.0 to consumers is significantly more challenging. Where the DTV explanation got complex was the difference between SD and HD. Talking pixel count and resolution is fairly easy and the audience is sort of conditioned to understand that the bigger number is always better.

The problem with ATSC 3.0 is that the benefits of UHD over HD are much more subtle. This is especially true given that most broadcasters don’t see the benefit of using a significant amount of their channel capacity to carry content at a resolution that will not be perceived by a significant majority of viewers.

The areas that I like to focus on regarding content enhancement are things like color gamut, dynamic range and immersive audio. I bypass the 1080p vs. 1080i debate and instead, show an SDR and HDR high definition picture side by side that clearly illustrates the value proposition.

When it comes to audio, the early enhancements used to be a lot harder to explain, but inexpensive sound bar systems have made 5.1 immersive audio a fairly simple and affordable audio enhancement.

I am also careful when bringing up the potential for personalization and interactivity, primarily because most of the development happening in that space is geared towards enhancing advertisers’ ability to better target their audiences. However, I’m not sure that telling viewers that they’ll see more meaningful commercials adds a lot to the value proposition.

Public Service
Perhaps ATSC 3.0’s strongest tool in the toolbox is its ability to provide a much more robust and meaningful emergency alerting services—a  topic that resonates well with everyone. The idea of waking up a receiver to provide alerts during an emergency is a very compelling. 

I live in an area of tornadic activity and high-wind events that happen on very short notice. Weather radios are pretty common and while they wake you up and provide an audio alert, most of us will turn on the TV to see what is happening. ATSC 3.0 can wake people up and provide video and audio and offers a faster and more complete, yet simpler method of gathering the necessary emergency information from different sources. 

My colleagues at PBS North Carolina have even worked with emergency services within their state to use ATSC 3.0 as a closed alert system for first responders providing basic data in a few seconds that currently takes minutes using their current technology. The envisioned system can also supply a wealth of additional information such as maps, floor plans and situational data so that the first responders arrive better informed.

Closed-circuit services are not necessarily limited to first responders. The pandemic lockdown in many cases crippled educational institutions and many students lost an entire year or more of learning. A number of ATSC 3.0 pilot projects were demonstrated providing secure, curated content to deliver remote learning to homes that don’t have access to traditional broadband. The lack of connectivity may be due to rurality or economics, but regardless of the root cause, these pilot projects represent vital public services.

Fleet Updates
These types of ancillary services are just the tip of the iceberg—one to many broadcast distribution of data services have applications well beyond the traditional broadcast space.

With the annual ATSC Meeting being held in Detroit for the first time this month, we are seeing real interest from automakers—in particular, car rental companies—who are considering using ATSC 3.0 to provide software updates to their fleet. These companies have stated that the number one reason many of their cars are out of service is due to the lack of software updates, so being able to use ATSC 3.0 to update their fleet of vehicles while they are parked rather than in the service shop is a compelling case.

So what is the future of NextGen TV? Well, I have a fundamental question that I have asked myself and as well as others working in television. The question, “do you think ATSC 3.0 is essential to your station’s future survivability and growth?” I’ll be blunt, I have heard “yes,” “no,” and “not sure.” 

My personal opinion is yes it is. I think that what we call DTV was actually a half step. ATSC 3.0 moves us to being a true digital broadband service. It will provide opportunities to grow in ways that we have only started to think about. Without it I think we operate our existing systems until we become irrelevant and fade away and without action on our part, I don’t believe that fate is too far into the future.

LAS VEGAS—Electronics Research, Inc. (ERI) will showcase new circularly and elliptically polarized models to its ALV Series High Band VHF Television Antenna product family at the 2022 NAB Show in Las Vegas, April 24-27.

The high band VHF television antennas are built for any single RF channel from 7 through 13 (174 to 216 MHz). The  lightweight side-mounted antennas are primarily designed for use as auxiliary antennas and include a fiberglass slot cover to protect the antenna from rain, snow, and ice. 

All models of the ALV Series VHF television antennas are shipped with 36-inch (914 mm) standoff brackets for mounting on poles or tower legs from 1.5-inches (35 mm) to 7.5-inches (191 mm) OD. As optional items, standoff support pipes, face mount brackets, and mounts for larger diameter poles are available from ERI. Contact ERI for a proposal for these requirements.

ERI will exhibit the antennas at Booth #W6505 at the show.

ELLISVILLE, Mo.—The pandemic drove new levels of consumer dependence on television to stay entertained, informed and connected, but the rising cost of maintaining TV subscriptions is prompting many consumers to consider dropping at least some of those services, a new report from Mohu suggests. 

The survey from Mohu, a digital TV antenna provider owned by Antennas Direct, found that most Americans subscribe to more TV services today as compared to last year (59%) and that 2 in 5 (44%) currently have four or more subscriptions.

But the Mohu’s "TV Viewership Index,” which surveyed 1,200 U.S. adults ages 18 and older that currently subscribe to at least one TV service, also found that more than 2 in 5 (44%) plan to cancel at least one subscription within the next six months. 

As Americans subscribe to more services, the research also found that consumers cite cost as the primary driver (80%) for their plans to drop services. 

The research also found that financial challenges have pushed many to get creative with managing their TV costs by leveraging free trials (55%), sharing subscription logins (48%), tightening budgets for personal spending and activities (48%), and even cutting the cord altogether (54%).

"Access to TV is no longer just nice to have, it's an urgent necessity for every American to stay updated on critical news and information,” said Richard Schneider, CEO and founder of Antennas Direct and Mohu. “The problem is that watching this programming is becoming extremely difficult and expensive – but it doesn't have to be. While many Americans grapple with rising streaming and cable costs, a sizable group depend on TV antennas to seamlessly and affordably access the TV content they need to stay connected to the world around them.”

Other findings from the report include:

• Americans are willing to invest in more TV content options: Three-quarters (74%) of Americans currently subscribe to different TV services to expand available content, and nearly 4 in 5 (78%) have subscribed to a new service just to watch one particular piece of content. Content is so important that 80% say limited viewing options have pushed them to cancel a TV subscription.
• Investments also go toward optimizing the home viewing experience: Watching TV at home has become so important that Americans have invested in new devices (75%), such as a new television (86%) or streaming box (81%) to optimize the experience. Another 64% have purchased new furniture or home décor to enhance viewing at home.
• The cable vs. streaming war continues: To avoid choosing between streaming or cable, many households are diversifying content by subscribing to both (63%). In fact, cable is the go-to source for local (54%) and national (46%) news programs, while streaming is the most popular way to access movies (57%) and TV show favorites (50%). Meanwhile, approximately 1 in 10 Americans use TV antennas as the primary way to access all the different types of content.

To download the TV Viewership Index, click here. 

ALBION, Mich.—With the December 5, 2021 deadline for the first phase of spectrum clearing approaching quickly,  Challenger Communications has announced that it has antenna systems and mounts as well as technical expertise, and installation support available to help Earth station operators affected by C-band relocation. 

"The 5G rollout is underway, and as the C-band spectrum clearing deadlines come ever closer, Earth station operators have less time to plan and execute a successful transition," said Gene Sorgi, president at Challenger Communications. "With our long history of providing reliable antenna systems for various projects, we offer both the products and expertise — plus relationships with installers across the country — to help simplify preparation, make installation easier, and ensure uninterrupted service. We recommend preparing ground equipment, including antennas, filters, and LNBs, sooner than later to avoid time and cost issues that will come as demand increases and time runs out." 

Available equipment includes Challenger's aluminum Prime Focus antennas with excellent RF gain and have an increased signal-to-noise ratio, which means greater tolerance to changing weather and atmospheric conditions, the company said. 

The 3.8-meter and 4.5-meter antennas can be installed by just two people using a ladder. Both antennas in this family consist of contoured, die-formed petals and outboard skirts, all powder-coated, and include stainless steel hardware. These high-gain, receive-only, C/Ku-band dishes are outstanding performers for 4K UHD and HDTV, as well as for headend applications, GOES weather systems, radio broadcasting, and more, Challenger said. 

In addition to supplying its 3.8-meter and 4.5-meter Prime Focus satellite antenna systems, the most common solutions for U.S. operations, Challenger offers 6.3-meter and 7.5-meter antennas often required for users situated far away from the geostationary equatorial orbit (GEO), such as Alaska and Hawaii. 

Challenger Communications also offers a 3.8-meter-offset antenna for Uplink GEO applications. 

Further information about Challenger Communications and the company's C-band products and services is online at www.CbandReady.com.

RALEIGH, N.C.—Hindsight brings perspective to any broadcast installation, particularly when we look back at the unique challenges of the recent repack. A Phase 5 project for MyTV affiliate WRDC-TV and CW affiliate WLFL-TV was no exception as we navigated the deadline-driven pressures of this particularly active phase. 

Both stations transmit to the Raleigh-Durham market from atop a candelabra tower, which has six top-mounted antenna positions with exceptional sightlines. To maximize signal coverage and reduce weight, we opted for a stacked omnidirectional UHF antenna system from Dielectric that would serve WRDC's Channel 14 assignment and WLFL's Channel 18 assignment.

TWEAKING THE DESIGN

The omnidirectional coverage is necessary due to the market's size and terrain. Since the antennas are stacked, both transmit into free space as true top-mounted arrays that do not interfere with each other. In a typical stack, the bottom array becomes directional due to the effect of the transmission line feeding the top antenna. Both the horizontal and vertical azimuth patterns are affected, with the vertical seeing more negative impact. 

The Dielectric engineering team overcame this drawback with an innovative design that results in the bottom of the stack being as omnidirectional in both polarizations as the top. This is a significant engineering breakthrough that assures WLFL will not suffer from interference issues.

The design includes plenty of vertical polarization to enhance signal reception through the region's rolling hills and valleys. Both stations broadcast NextGen TV content today, and that vertical signal component will increase in importance as more viewers consume NextGen TV content on mobile devices.

We scheduled a helicopter lift to raise the stacked antenna system, with WRDCÕs center of radiation (1,950 feet) roughly 60 feet above WLFL's (1,888 feet). A temporary Dielectric TFU-WB side-mounted antenna continued on-air operations while the old antennas were removed. The stacked system, which comprises two Dielectric slot antennas, positions WRDC's more compact custom 27-bay TFU-ETT antenna atop the larger 26-bay TFU-JBH structure. 

The new antennas are each fed by seven 3/16-inch Dielectric transmission line runs, with one newly installed digiTLine run. The post-installation RF sweeps confirmed that both overall system VSWR results were excellent, comfortably bettering our minimum requirements and enabling the transmitters to run at optimum efficiency.  

A NEW KIND OF FILTER

This system requires an unusually complex filter design for WRDC since it operates on Channel 14. A typical UHF transmission system requires a six- or eight-pole filter to reduce out-of-band emissions to meet FCC specifications. Channel 14 is unique in that it requires a very steep roll-off at the lower side band to prevent interference into land mobile frequencies just below the band edge.

Dielectric engineered a very sharp-tuned 12-pole filter to eliminate out-of-band emissions from WRDC's (Channel 14) 108 kW transmitter. While the 12-pole design creates a larger physical footprint, we worked closely with Acrodyne Services to ensure a clean installation in a tight space, including temporary use of their 20 kW MAT (Mobile Acrodyne Transmitter) outside the building to facilitate new equipment placement inside. The filter was floor-mounted alongside WRDC's six-cabinet transmitter, WLFL's four-cabinet transmitter and filter, a dual-channel combiner and all associated plumbing and switching systems.

Moving forward, we plan to install Dielectric's RFHAWKEYE to monitor antenna and RF performance for both stations over IP. That will add a new level of operational efficiency for our Raleigh-Durham engineering team, especially as we put more emphasis on ATSC 3.0 and NextGen TV signals in the years ahead. 

Dale Scherbring is the director of engineering for WRDC-TV and WLFL-TV. He can be reached at 410-487-3492.

For more information, please contact Jay Martin at Dielectric at 207-655-8138, or visit the company's website at www.dielectric.com.

WASHINGTON—A settlement has been reached between the Federal Trade Commission and Wellco Inc. and its owner and CEO George M. Moscone on the charge that Wellco sold indoor TV antennas and signal amplifiers to consumers using deceptive claims that the products would allow them to cut the cord and still receive their favorite channels for free.

Per the FTC, Wellco violated the FTC Act by making deceptive performance claims for their OTA television antennas and related signal amplifiers, using deceptive consumer endorsements and misrepresenting some of their web pages as news reports about antennas.

Wellco began marketing and selling indoor TV antennas and amplifiers to consumers in 2017 under the TV Scout, SkyWire, SkyLink and Tilt TV brand names. The FTC says that they sold more than 800,000 antennas and more than 272,000 amplifiers.

“The defendants used every trick in the book to sell their antennas and amplifiers to people, including older adults, who wanted to save money on cable and satellite TV channels,” said Daniel Kaufman, acting director,  FTC Bureau of Consumer Protection. “People should be able to trust the claims companies make, not discover after buying that they were told lies.”

Among the claims Wellco made with the products, the FTC alleges, were that users could stop paying for cable or satellite TV subscriptions and still receive all of their favorite TV channels; that a substantial portion of users receive more than 100 premium channels in HD; they enable consumers to receive more channels than most other TV antennas on the market; and that they were the top rated indoor HDTV antennas in America. In addition, Wellco also claimed their amplifiers substantially increased the number of stations received with their antennas and that by using both consumers could receive HBO and AMC.

Under the terms of the settlement, Wellco would be prohibited from making claims about any product’s rating, ranking or superiority to other products; the channels users will receive; or any material aspect of a product’s performance, efficacy or central characteristics, unless the claims are true and substantiated. The company is also prohibited from making any misrepresentation through a product endorsement, that a website is an objective news report or that independent tests demonstrate the effectiveness of a product.

The proposed order also called for a $31.82 million judgement against Wellco. However, the judgement will be suspended upon the defendants’ payment of $650,000 to the FTC, based on their inability to pay the full judgement.

The settlement was unanimously approved by the FTC.

LOS ANGELES—Ken Kelly, a Black electronics engineer who was a key contributor in developing antennas for satellite TV and radio, has passed away at the age of 92, the Associated Press has reported. He had Parkinson’s disease and officially died on Feb. 27, according to his family.

Throughout his career, Kelly received more than a dozen patents for his work in radar and antenna technology. This included two-way antenna designs that enabled customers to have DirecTV and Sirius XM connections. This technology is also used in the Mojave Desert radiotelescopes that are searching for signs of life in space.

Kelly’s career also included working with NASA on deep space missions and JPL.

In addition to his professional career, Kelly was an advocate for Civil Rights. In 1962, he and his family were the first Black family to move into the suburb of Gardena, Calif., which had excluded Black people. He also, as letters show, helped convince Charles Schulz to include the character of Franklin in his “Peanuts” comic strips as a “supernumerary” and just another member of his cast of characters.

Read the full Associated Press story on KTLA’s website. 

TV receive antennas are one of the most popular topics based on the number of emails I receive from readers. Many times they will request additional information on antennas I wrote about years ago—the Gray-Hoverman covered in 2008 or the high gain wire rhombic I covered in 2006.

Meanwhile, I often learn new things from readers. Bill Robbins, an over-the-air TV viewer in Florida, was concerned about reception from his antenna setup. I’ve found trying to align or adjust a TV antenna using the “quality” indicator on a TV set or the signal level on a meter is difficult, slow and doesn’t always find the best orientation. A spectrum analyzer is a better choice.

Fortunately, these no longer cost thousands of dollars. I recommended Robbins pick up an Airspy SDR and use its free Spectrum Spy software to look at the spectrum of the incoming signals, aligning the antenna for best level and best flatness (least multipath) on the desired channels. He bought an Airspy R2 and sent me a screenshot of the final result. It looked good. He’s using a Winegard LNA-200 (one I’ve also found to work well) and RG-11 coax from the antenna to his in-home distribution setup. However, I’d never heard of the TV antenna he was using—the HD-Stacker. So when he asked my opinion I looked into it and found it quite interesting.

DIGITENNA AND HD-STACKER

In some markets there are a mix of UHF and VHF stations—mostly high-VHF (7–13)—but post-repack, sometimes low VHF (2–6) as well. Unfortunately, the last time I looked, the most common option for people needing high gain at VHF was a monstrous low-VHF through UHF antenna that was as big as a Volkswagon. You know the ones: They have low VHF elements in the back, followed by high VHF elements, followed by a long UHF section.

The HD-Stacker has elements for low-VHF (Fig. 1), which require 60.3 inch-width but is only 70 inches long compared to monster low-VHF to UHF antennas that are more than twice that length. I didn’t find any gain specifications for the antenna but suspect that gain at VHF and UHF will be comparable to the monster antennas. Denny’s Antenna Service (dennysantennaservice.com) did a comparison of outdoor antennas and found that the HD-Stacker did as well as the huge Winegard HD8200U (Fig. 2) except on some low-UHF channels.

This test was done before the repack as it includes stations above Channel 36. The comparison included the DigiTenna DUV-XF, which performed as well or better than the HD-Stacker except at VHF and high (above Channel 36) UHF. The DigiTenna includes an amplifier with a second input that could be used for a high-gain, high VHF-only antenna to create a stack, although when I was searching for one of these for another reader it looked like VHF-only antennas had been discontinued, at least by the major consumer antenna manufacturers.

The performance of DigiTennas at lower UHF channels should improve a bit as Brad Eckwielen, president of DigiTenna, told me he was modifying the design of the fan dipole-driven element to optimize performance between Channels 14 and 36, ignoring channels above 36. Perhaps more important to viewers requiring a preamplifier in weak signal areas, Eckwielen has modified his amplifier to provide 20 to 30 dB of LTE filtering above Channel 36 (608 MHz).

Most filters now allow through signals up to 698 MHz (Channel 51). This is important as T-Mobile and other carriers build out cell sites in the 600 MHz band. TV tuners, which still cover up to Channel 51 (if not Channel 69) will be susceptible to overload if a preamplifier is used. See digitenna.com/Products for more information on the preamplifier.

NEW NANOVNA DESIGN

In my January column (“Checking Out TV Antennas With a $130 VNA”) I used a NanoVNA to check a number of different indoor antennas and noticed the return loss increased at low UHF on most of them. It would be interesting to see what the new DigiTenna-driven element looks like after optimization for lower UHF and I wonder if other manufacturers, like the HD-Stacker, Winegard, Channel Master, Antennas Direct, etc., will be modifying their designs to improve performance in the truncated UHF band.

Since the VNA article, I’ve learned more about the different varieties of NanoVNA. Some new versions have appeared, software has improved, but unfortunately, getting products from China has become much more difficult with the drastic drop in flights between the United States and China due to COVID-19. Products ordered from China are usually shipped by ePacket or similar service that depends on space available on flights to the United States and a hand-off to the U.S Post Office for delivery. Out of the two products I ordered this year, one eventually made it to me in about two months. The other was returned to the sender after a bit over two months, apparently because the shipper couldn’t find any flights. When ordering gadgets from China, use DHL, UPS or some other service with its own aircraft.

The NanoVNA unit I’m recommending now is the one with the 4.3-inch LCD I showed in the January column. This turned out to be a NanoVNA-F. Details on the design of the unit are available at https://github.com/flyoob/NanoVNA-F. Note that the latest version has 0 dBm output at the generator fundamental frequency (up to 300 MHz) and will operate up to the fifth harmonic allowing measurements to 1.5 GHz.

In the 10 kHz to 300 MHz band its dynamic range is 70 dB dropping to 60 dB in the 300 MHz to 900 MHz band. I had no problem upgrading the firmware in my 2019 unit to the latest firmware—it is as simple as copying a file to a flash drive—but I didn’t get the benefit of the extra output (older units were –13 dBm) and the improved RF bridge in the latest hardware version.

If you want the latest hardware, order from www.aliexpress.com at the DeepElec store and use DHL shipping. If you want to order from a U.S. source such as Amazon or eBay, check out the version in the DeepElec store—images, specs, etc.—and make sure the one you are ordering specifies the same version, has the same specs, and looks the same as the DeepElec NanoVNA-F. The price should also be higher, assuming people are buying these units from DeepElec and not importing some no-name clone that may not offer the same performance.

I recently learned of a new NanoVNA, the NanoVNA-V2. This unit has a smaller screen, no battery and no case, as can be seen from the official website at https://nanorfe.com/nanovna-v2.html and also at https://groups.io/g/NanoVNA-V2. The websites claim operation up to 3 GHz with 40 dB dynamic range at that frequency. The website www.tindie.com/products/hcxqsgroup/nanovna-v2/ is selling official units starting at $59.95 as of this writing. A calibration kit and acrylic case are available at extra cost. Special software for Window, Mac OS and Linux is available for the NanoVNA-V2 at https://github.com/nanovna/NanoVNA-QT/releases.

The latest version of NanoVNA-Saver also runs on Mac OS, Windows or Linux and will work with most of the NanoVNA hardware, including the NanoVNA-F and the NanoVNA-V2. This is the software I used in the January article. The software is updated regularly and remains my choice for driving the NanoVNA from a laptop or PC.

If you don’t want to bother installing software to run the NanoVNA, there is now a web-based client available that works with the NanoVNA-F and some other units. Cho45’s software, available at https://github.com/cho45/NanoVNA-Web-Client, should work on Mac OS, Windows, Linux or Android. I’ve tested it with the NanoVNA-F on Windows, Linux and Android and it worked fine, with surprising functionality.

Fig. 3 is a shot of the web client connected to my NanoVNA-F displaying the frequency response of a Channel Master LTE filter. Due to COVID-19 and travel restrictions I’ve been unable to get back to Los Angeles where most of my RF adapters are stored, so the accuracy of this plot may not be the best because it was done without using 50 to 75 ohm minimum loss pads or transformers. Follow the instructions on the Web-Client web page. You may have to modify settings in Chrome or, if using Linux, make sure your user is in the same serial device group as the NanoVNA. I had to add myself to the “uucp” group to get it to work.

You can learn more about the NanoV-NA in my column in the IEEE Broadcast Technology Society magazine for March, 2020 (you can search for it on https://resourcecenter.bts.ieee.org). It is free to IEEE BTS members. In the article I show a block diagram of the unit and describe how it works. A key component is a Texas Instruments digital FM stereo matrix decoder!

A final note—I’ve finally gotten around to updating my transmitter.com website. It is still a work in progress, but there are now links on the homepage to folders with some of the tools I’ve created and mentioned in previous articles and what I hope to make a monthly feature—highlighting an article on the website from TV Technology that I wrote more than 20 years ago. The current one is a build it yourself frequency standard and calibrator from March 1994. WWV and WWVH fortunately received funding to continue operating so the device can be built and will still work 26 years later!

As always, I welcome your comments and questions. Let me know what I’ve missed! Email me at dlung@transmitter.com.

RAYMOND, Maine—Dielectric has begun to transition the focus of its antenna and RF component production from television stations assigned new channels in the FCC’s spectrum repack to the needs of TV broadcasters wishing to deliver ATSC 3.0 over-the-air service.

The repack, which is entering its final phase, has seen Dielectric book nearly 1,000 antenna systems, 82% of the repack market, the company said.

“We have booked 959 repack or displaced antenna arrays in North America since we began taking repack orders, and have shipped more than 930 of those arrays over a 30-month period,” said Jay Martin, vice president of sales, Dielectric. “Upon adding in non-repack projects, we estimate that Dielectric will ship 1,065 medium-to-high power antennas within that period in North America alone by the conclusion of repack.”

To meet the surge in demand created by the repack, Dielectric set up two manufacturing facilities focused on designing, building and stocking antennas and other RF systems, the company said.

“Beyond antennas, we built 111 miles of transmission line, 1,039 RF filters and 101 multichannel combiners for TV alone,” said Martin. “We built 395 complete RF systems, and we built many of these within days to address very short lead times. The volume of product we have manufactured and shipped has been astronomical.”

With the repack nearly in the rearview mirror, the company is preparing for demand it anticipates will stem from NextGen TV. It is employing strategies to prepare for ATSC 3.0 that are similar to those it used to ready for the demand created by the repack.

“That will ensure we can properly address growing interest in our Powerlite low-power antenna systems for ATSC 3.0 SFNs, while also serving our other customers without delay,” said Martin.

PLUS: NextGen TV to Spur Transmission Market

The company also anticipates the replacement market for TV antennas around the world to remain strong, as more than 200 high-power antennas and transmission line runs in North America alone have been in operation for 30 years or more, said Martin.

Dielectric also sees demand coming from the LPTV market. Its design tools will hasten fulfillment of international orders from broadcasters that largely operate at lower power. Further, NextGen TV and domestic LPTV operators will contribute to demand, said Keith Pelletier, vice president and general manager of Dielectric.

“We have added support for nearly 20 additional antenna patterns that apply to NextGen TV SFN systems and low-power TV systems worldwide, along with a comprehensive software toolset for consultants to enhance SFN coverage analysis and antenna configurations,” said Pelletier.

The company also recently introduced its RFHawkeye real-time monitoring system for antenna feeds. RFHawkeye, the Powerline Series and NextGen TV developments will be presented this week during the NAB Show Express online event. The company’s virtual presence is accessible online May 13-14.

Dielectric has also posted a white paper that was to be presented by its Vice President of Engineering John Schadler at the cancelled 2020 NAB Show in April. The paper, “ATSC 3.0 SFN Network Planning and Antenna Design,” also is available online.

COVID-19 has slowed, but not stopped, the transition to ATSC 3.0. Work continues in the ATSC to refine the standard and stations and corporations like Public Media Group and broadcaster groups like Pearl TV are readying plans to deploy. “Safe-at-home” regulations have led to huge increases in ratings for local TV stations, particularly news. People are (re)discovering broadcast TV. 

I’d like to make the argument that while we’re building out ATSC 3.0, viewers shouldn’t ignore ATSC 1.0. One thing I’m finding when I talk to people about ATSC 3.0 (Pearl and ATSC have done a good job marketing it as “NextGen TV”), is that there is much hope (or, for some, fear) that ATSC 3.0 will make broadcast TV programming available for free to everyone who buys a small antenna. They might even get free 4K UHD. Ads like the one in Fig. 1 show how crazy some of the claims are. Search Google for “4K UHD Antenna” (without quotes) and see what comes up.  

OVER-THE-AIR TV STREAMING GATEWAY

What’s wrong with this picture? While over-the-air 4K UHD isn’t available now except for a few test broadcasts, and that magic antenna won’t bring in signals from 980 miles away, for most people it isn’t that hard to get the major networks in full HD and a variety of specialty channels in SD right now with ATSC 1.0. There are even ways to stream it from an antenna to an app on your TV or portable device or record it for later viewing. 

If you don’t want to bother with antennas for every device, putting the broadcast signals on your home network will allow viewing on any connected device. The antenna and box can also be placed in a location where the signals are best, even if the TV isn’t there. 

The HD Homerun units from Silicon Dust have been around a while and can be equipped with up to four tuners for simultaneous reception of different channels on different devices. Prices start at $99 for two tuners and go up from there for more tuners, transcoding and DVR capability. Channel Master’s Stream+ has two tuners and includes Google Play for streaming services for $99. Also for $99 is Hauppauge’s CordCutter TV, which includes two tuners and transcodes broadcast MPEG-2 video to H.264 at lower bitrate for less strain on the home network; however it doesn’t have a built-in DVR option. All of these devices should work with Android, FireTV, Windows, Apple TV or iOS apps. 

These devices and TV sets will need an antenna. For many people a simple antenna like the Onn ONA19CH002 I found at Walmart for under $20 will bring in most local channels with a little effort. People who’ve always had their TV set hooked to a cable connection in the wall often don’t realize this. While a proper antenna is best, for a quick check in strong signal areas take an unfolded paper clip (one without plastic coating); push one end into the antenna connector on the back of a TV set; select “antenna” and rescan. You may be surprised how many stations you get. 

3.0 VS. 1.0 RECEPTION REQUIREMENTS

What does a TV station’s coverage look like if we assume an indoor antenna? Fig. 2 shows a plot of predicted signal strength for WRC-TV in Washington, D.C. The green area is where the field strength is predicted to be 88 dBµV/m or stronger, at least 40 dB stronger than the FCC required “community grade” signal for a UHF DTV station. This extra margin will, in many cases, offset signal loss from walls and signals received as a reflection off other buildings. This coverage prediction doesn’t take into account that buildings and foliage can add loss, but on average a simple indoor antenna should work for most people in the green area. Reception outside the green area may require a bit more fiddling with the antenna or moving it to a higher location in the house or even outside.  

Now lets see what indoor coverage would look like if WRC-TV converts to ATSC 3.0 using the same power and antenna. The most likely coverage scenario while stations are broadcasting in both ATSC 1.0 and ATSC 3.0 will still be the green area in Fig. 2. Why no difference? The required signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) for the ATSC 3.0 signal is likely to be the same (15 dB) as that for ATSC 1.0, or even a bit worse. The SNR won’t be any better because bits (data rate) would have to be sacrificed to make the signal more robust. 

This could be done if the ATSC 3.0 station were carrying the same content as one 1.0 station, but initially there will be far fewer 3.0 stations than 1.0 stations and those 3.0 stations will likely be carrying programming from multiple 1.0 stations. I covered that scenario years ago in my July 2015 column “Getting Ready for ATSC 3.0.” Even with the greater efficiency of HEVC video coding, bits are going to be precious. ATSC 3.0 will have some advantage in areas with multipath making antenna placement less critical and reception somewhat easier.

There will be trade offs between the number of stations available on ATSC 3.0, the resolution of their video (4K, 1080p, 720p, HDR?) and the robustness of the signal. Some broadcasters may decide to up the data rate even if it results in less coverage than ATSC 1.0. 

What’s the lesson for viewers? If you want to receive high-resolution ATSC 3.0 in the future, check 1.0 reception now.  

One advantage ATSC 3.0 offers broadcasters is the ability to protect content, just as cable companies and streaming services do now. Premium services can be offered for a price (a subscription fee or registration) and recording blocked. This will ensure quality content is still available over the air, but it also means that with ATSC 3.0’s security features we’ll likely lose the ability to record some (most?) shows over the air, store them forever on a hard drive or DVD and watch them later on any device. With ATSC 1.0, there are no technical limits on what a person can do with the content recorded from over the air broadcasts, even in full HD. 

The lack of a robust ATSC 3.0 signal for early adopters may be disappointing, but the standard does offer techniques for more robust coverage as more stations convert to 3.0. One is to add transmitters in a distributed transmission system (DTS)—also referred to as “single frequency networks”—which increases signal strength to viewers making reception easier without the need to reduce data rates (expanding the green area in Fig. 2 to the entire market). However, building out a DTS is expensive. Other methods steal some data capacity (TDM or FDM) or power (LDM) from the less robust stream to provide a low bit rate robust stream. See sidebar for details on how these techniques work. 

When viewers ask me for help receiving ATSC 1.0, they usually have some signal, but it has artifacts and dropouts. Adding robustness by either increasing signal strength or reducing the required SNR, as described in the sidebar, would provide a great improvement in reception. The blue area in Fig. 2 shows the increase in indoor service area achieved by reducing the required SNR to 5 dB (at lower bit rate and resolution), compared to the 15 dB SNR scenario. Will broadcasters be able to spare the capacity to transmit a robust stream? How long will it take to find the resources to build out the DTS required to increase the signal level delivered to viewers over a wide area? 

While I expect long time readers are already using antennas to pick up ATSC 1.0 broadcasts, if you haven’t tried receiving ATSC 1.0 give it a try; you’ll be prepared when 3.0 makes it to your market and into your TV.  Let me know how it works out! My email is dlung@transmitter.com.  

ADDISON, Texas—TV antennas are making a comeback, as Parks Associates reports that the number of U.S. broadband homes that had used an antenna to watch TV in 2019 was at 25%; up from 18% in 2018. 

This finding came from Parks’ “360 Deep Dive: Today’s Broadcast TV,” and was conducted in the third quarter of 2019.

As consumers have multiple options to determine what content is most important to them, Parks finds that local broadcast news and programming ranks high. Consumers are also looking to cut expenses on content, which could lead toward a further increase in the use of antennas, Parks claims; Parks found that nearly half of TV antennas users do not subscribe to any pay-TV service.

The impact of the coronavirus could also cause a rise in antenna usage.

“Penetration of broadcast TV antennas increased markedly in 2019,” said Steve Nason, director of research for Parks Associates. “Thirty percent of U.S. broadband household report owning a TV antenna, as we expect upward trends both in ownership and usage to continue, especially as we face this public health crisis keeping people at home.”

Parks Associates has also announced that it plans to launch multiple surveys in April 2020 to help quantify how the coronavirus is impacting consumer behavior.

For more information, visit www.parksassociates.com.  

Vector network analyzers (VNAs) are amazing tools that not only let you check an antenna’s VSWR (and return loss) over frequency, but also display the complex impedance of the antenna. Some can be used as a time domain reflectometer (TDR) to determine the length of a coax or transmission line, or to determine the distance to the fault in a line. Two port VNAs can display filter response and return loss.

AFFORDABLE VECTOR NETWORK ANALYZERS

Such versatile tools have been quite expensive. Even a basic analyzer from Copper Mountain Technologies, one of the most popular brands of VNA, costs well over $2,500 and that’s before adding a calibration kit. I was surprised when I was checking out WVIT’s new post-repack transmission facility in Hartford, Conn., and consulting engineer Joe DiMaggio told me about a VNA he found that cost about $350.

He compared his miniVNA with a professional VNA and found it surprisingly accurate.

I immediately ordered a miniVNA Tiny Plus2 similar to his from China. The unit arrived in a nice case with cables and SMA calibration kit. I downloaded the required Java-based software from http://vnaj.dl2sba.com. This VNA covers 1 MHz to 3 GHz and the software offers a number of options for typical one and two port VNA measurements for checking antennas, filters, cable loss, amplifiers, etc. The TDR function is limited to determining the length of a coaxial line. The miniVNA Tiny Plus2 kit was a bit big, however, for packing in my travel kit.

While searching for software for the miniVNA I came across the NanoVNA analyzer (Fig. 1). The original units have a 2.8-inch LCD screen and are about 54x85.5x11mm in size. Frequency range is 50 kHz to 900 MHz. I bought one for $53 from Amazon (shipped from China). These VNAs use an open source hardware design and quality varies greatly. Some units don’t even shield the RF components, and while most come in a plastic box with the calibration kit and cables, the VNA itself is just a stack of the metal back plate, circuit board and LCD with the sides open. Based on reviews I’ve seen online, the cheap units that have a replica of the Copper Mountain lizard logo on them are the worst. Amazon prices have gone up due to tariffs, but most are still under $75.

While searching for a case I found an improved version of the NanoVNA on eBay. This unit has a 4.3-inch LCD display, full metal case, and claims a 1 GHz upper frequency limit. Search eBay for “NanoVNA VNA HF VHF UHF Vector Network Antenna Analyzer + 4.3 LCD + Metal Case” to see the offerings. The price is around $125, direct from China. I recommend choosing a top-rated seller. The 4.3-inch NanoVNA, along with the nanovna-saver software (https://github.com/mihtjel/nanovna-saver) is what I used in this article.

In addition to the measurements available in the miniVNA’s software, nanovna-saver also includes an X-Y TDR display that can show discontinuities in the middle of a cable as well as cable length. The program is Python-based and available as a binary file (currently nanovna-saverv0.2.0. exe) for Windows and a simple installer script for Linux. It works with both the 2.8-inch and 4.3-inch versions of the NanoVNA. Since the NanoVNA includes a display, a computer and software isn’t required, but will provide additional measurement options (like TDR) and segmented sweeps (for greater resolution) and the ability to save parameter data in standard format (s1p, s2p) and plot graphs.

Before you get too excited about these low-cost VNAs, there are some significant limitations. The maximum output power is around –9 dBm for the NanoVNA and –6 dBm for the miniVNA. Available software doesn’t appear to have an option to eliminate interference from the strong signals likely to be present at a broadcast antenna site. I suspect they wouldn’t last long connected to an 8-inch transmission line feeding an antenna on a shared tower. The accuracy will depend on the accuracy of the open, short and load used to calibrate the VNA.

Even with these limitations, I find the NanoVNA useful and worth packing in my travel kit. Fig. 1 shows a test setup I used to measure a Channel Master LTE filter; Fig. 2 shows the results. For this measurement I used minimum loss 50 ohm to 75 ohm pads to present the proper impedance to the filter and calibrated the VNA at 75 ohms with a homemade 75 ohm cal-kit. As you can see, the drop off above 698 MHz is quite steep, but we’ll need a new version that cuts off frequencies above 608 MHz once the incentive auction repack is finished next year as I’m already seeing strong cellular signals popping up in the new 600 MHz wireless band.

TESTING INDOOR ANTENNAS

I tested a few antennas using the NanoVNA calibrated with my 75-ohm cal-kit on the output of the RG-6 coax to the antenna. For antennas, the 50 to 75 ohm pad is not necessary if VNA is calibrated using the 75-ohm cal-kit. I found my vintage Mohu Leaf, which has traveled in my suitcase with cables of various sorts for more than five years, apparently now has some broken connections as its return loss was a flat 2 dB across the 470–608 MHz band.

I ordered a new Mohu Leaf 30 and will report on how it works. I tested a gigantic Mohu Leaf Glide 65 (without preamp) designed for VHF and UHF and found, as expected, it had decent return loss (Fig. 3) across the repacked UHF band. The Winegard Freevision FV30-HD had good return loss in the mid-band channels, but return loss increased at the lower UHF channels. Fig. 4 shows the Winegard antenna after I shortened the balun leads. I found that with the full-length leads, the performance was worse. Without the VNA, I would have never noticed this.

I needed a thin antenna to replace the Leaf while waiting for the new one to arrive. I found an Onn ONA19CH002 Indoor TV Antenna for only $16.88 at Walmart. The antenna is transparent so the antenna element is clearly visible. It worked well in the four cities I tested it in (Miami and Tampa, Fla., Hagerstown, Md. and Los Angeles).

Unfortunately the thin coax cable is permanently attached to the antenna so I was only able to measure the return loss with the cable included. Fig. 5 shows the result using the NanoVNA calibrated with my 75-ohm cal-kit. The sine wave-like variations in the return loss and VSWR plots are due to coax cable and return loss overall is reduced by losses in the cable.

DIGITENNA ANTENNAS

I mentioned the DigiTenna a year ago when describing the setup Meintel Sgrignoli Wallace (MSW) uses for field measurements, (Indoor Antennas, Field Measurements Revisited, January 2019). While I was in Chicago in November for some signal testing DigiTenna owner Brad Eckwielen visited WMAQ-TV and showed us his range of antennas. I had my NanoVNA with me so we also did a number of measurements on the antenna.

I was impressed with the performance of the antennas, which are much simpler than many of the common antenna designs. The key element in his antenna is a driven element that looks like a solid bowtie, but somewhat bigger than those seen on UHF antennas.

Eckwielen put a lot of effort into obtaining a good match from the 75-ohm coax to the antenna, and has modified the shape of the element to provide good results on both UHF and VHF. The DT-31 element I tested is the current design and optimized for the full 470–698 MHz UHF band. As you can see in Fig. 6, the return loss at the low end of the UHF band isn’t as good as at Channel 36. Newer DigiTennas will be designed for better return loss over the new, narrower, 470–608 MHz band.

Higher gain versions of the antenna add a corner reflector for UHF and a reflector element for VHF as well as directors. A version with a low-noise preamplifier built into the matching assembly at the feed point is available for very weak signal areas. One of the engineers at WMAQ-TV plans to compare a mid-range DigiTenna with his Winegard HD8200U monster antenna. If he shares the results, I’ll share them in a future column.

DigiTennas are primarily available through authorized distributors/installers, but TV station engineers can contact him directly. One distributor is a1 Components (www.a1components.com). Because these antennas are made in Wisconsin, not in China, don’t be surprised at the price—often more than double that of Chinese-made antennas.

RESCA REVISITED

A reader pointed out that I missed a rescan tip in my last column (Phase 4 and More, Surviving the Repack, August 2019). The direct-tune (RF Channel. Program Number) method won’t work on many sets if the channel is already in the receiver’s memory. For some receivers, the memory can also prevent the tuner from finding changed channels.

The solution for both these problems is simple. Clear the TV set’s memory by doing a scan with no antenna selected; verify no channels are listed; then scan (or direct-tune) to get the updated channels.

As always, I welcome your comments and questions atdlung@transmitter.com. Let me know if you are interested in VHF impedance plots of these antennas. Responses may be delayed if I’m busy, bug me again if you don’t get an answer in a week or two.

ST. LOUIS—Antennas Direct has acquired Mohu, maker of the Mohu Leaf and other television antennas, the St. Louis-based antenna technology developer has announced. Financial details of the acquisition were not immediately available.

“Mohu was launched with one central goal: to spread awareness of the choice that antennas give consumers and make cord cutting accessible to all," said Mark Buff, founder and CEO of Mohu. "Antennas Direct will enhance the Mohu brand with the innovation, leadership and expertise that they are known for.”

According to Antennas Direct, the acquisition creates the largest company in the United States delivering television antennas for over-the-air (OTA) reception. Efficiencies created by the deal will allow the company to invest millions of dollars in antenna technology, it said.

The number of cord cutters, those who give up cable subscriptions in favor of alternatives like off-air reception and OTT subscriptions, is growing year-over-year. Last year, a Nielsen report found cord cutting has grown nearly 50% in eight years. Other reports indicate 34% of U.S. households will have dropped their subscriptions by the end of last year. (Final 2019 tallies are not yet available.)

A report from eMarketer forecasts that by 2023 the number of cord cutters and those never subscribing to cable TV will reach 56.1 million in the United States.

"There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth within the executive suites of this nation's cable companies," said Richard Schneider, CEO and founder of Antennas Direct.

"It's clear that consumers are tired of overpaying for access to content that can be available for free,” he said. “Cable companies have perennially dwelled on the bottom of consumer satisfaction indexes. Antennas Direct and Mohu have long been on the side of consumers' efforts to get rid of cable. We look forward to welcoming even more liberated Americans to our cord-cutting family, continuing our legacy of putting billions of dollars back in their pockets."

NEW YORK—There are a multitude of elements that will contribute to the overall TV industry landscape in 2020, but in a recent study Deloitte took a close examination of three in specific: antennas, content delivery networks and ad-supported video services (AVODs).

Deloitte’s full report, “Technology, Media and Telecommunications Predictions 2020,” covers a range of technology topics, but the sections on antennas, CDNs and AVODs delve into the economic impact of these technologies across the globe.

In its in-depth look at antennas, Deloitte examines how the death of antenna services have been greatly exaggerated. Across the world, Deloitte forecasts that 1.6 billion people, representing 450 million households, worldwide will watch some of their TV from an antenna in 2020—and it calls that the low estimate. Deloitte acknowledges that data on antenna use is incomplete, with some countries not providing information, but even so, the number of people watching TV through an antenna around the world will be 50% more than those watching TV over cable, IPTV and direct broadcast satellite combined in 2020, per Deloitte.

“Antenna TV is helping the global TV industry keep on growing even in the face of falling TV viewing minutes and, in some markets, increasing numbers of consumers cutting the pay-TV cord,” the report reads. For example, Deloitte predicts that U.S. pay-TV subscribers will decline by 5 million in 2020, in part mitigated because of the 2020 Summer Olympics and U.S. presidential election.

While other countries are seeing similar results, global TV viewership growth is expected to continue to grow in the next few years. Overall, TV subscriptions are projected to grow 8% between 2018 and 2024, while two-thirds of global pay-TV operators are expected to increase over the same period. Specifically regarding ad revenue in 2020, Deloitte estimates that it will grow by $4 billion, boosted in parts by the use of antennas as well as things like targeted ads.

Antennas are impacting another area of the industry. As the issue of spectrum and the desire to develop 5G and other wireless services continues, the industry must be aware that the spectrum used by antenna is not as available as may have been previously thought.

Content Delivery Networks are another element that is expected to significantly impact the bottom line of the TV industry in 2020. With the popularity of streaming video over the internet, CDNs’ global market is projected to reach $14 billion in 2020, a 25% increase than the estimated $11 billion in 2019. By 2025 that number is expected to more than double to $30 billion.

With the demand for CDNs to ensure high-quality delivery of content, media and telecom companies are developing their own CDNs to have greater control over their content and revenue. Despite this, Deloitte says that CDNs and OTT kicking pay-TV to the curb anytime soon.

“Most media companies will likely run their OTT efforts in parallel with their broadcast and pay-TV services, allowing the market to determine which will draw the most subscribers,” Deloitte wrote.

Another area poised to have a noticeable impact in 2020 and moving forward, according to Deloitte, is ad-supported video platforms, or AVODs. These types of services are currently most popular in Asia, with the region estimated to contribute $15.5 billion of a total $32 billion in revenue across the globe.

Something that may boost that in other regions around the world is the overall rise in streaming services available to consumers, says Deloitte. While new ones continue to launch, consumers are expected to limit the number they subscribe to, with some projections putting the cap at three subscription services. In this case, Deloitte believes that streaming platforms that do not make the cut may develop AVODs so as to generate revenue from their services.

Find out more by reading the full “Technology, Media and Telecommunications Predictions 2020” report.

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y.—Disney+ is the shiny new toy for consumers and has seen a significant response in its first week, but some consumers are going old school, watching TV through over-the-air antennas.

This comes via a report from Horowtiz Research, “OTA: The New TV Growth Story 2019,” which finds that 29% of TV content viewers 18 years and older own an antenna, while one in four (24%) actively use an antenna to get TV content on at least one of their sets. For many, the move to antenna is actually a recent phenomenon, with 44% of antenna users saying they got their first antenna within the past three years.

Horowitz found in its report that many of the stigmas of antenna users (older, not tech-savvy, lower-income) don't completely pan out. Half of antennas users are under 50, with 24% of them being between 18 and 34. The average household income is actually higher than non-antenna users. And even with an antenna, they tend to be heavier TV viewers and are more likely to be streamers than non-antenna users; 87% of antenna users stream compared to 75% of non-antenna users.

One reason that could account for the rise in antenna usage is the cord-cutting trend. Horowitz found 39% of streamers that got an antenna said it was a key because they wanted to cancel their cable/satellite service; 28% said it was a reason, but not the key reason.

Still, 60% of antenna users still have a traditional pay-TV service. MVPD subscribers use antennas to get specific channels not available through their cable/satellite service, like local channels or those in the middle of a carriage dispute. Other reasons are as a backup in case of an outage, to avoid having a cable box and on TVs that may not be wired for cable.

“Free or low-priced TV is more readily available to consumers than ever before,” said Adriana Waterston, Horowitz’s senior vice president of insights and strategy. “The number of OTA channels is increasing. And new technologies like OTA DVRs, OTA integration into connected TV platforms and the rollout of Next Gen TV standards will only serve to increase consumer awareness and accelerate usage of over-the-air content in the viewing diets of American viewers.”

Horowitz Research’s website has the full “OTA: The New TV Growth Story 2019” report.

WASHINGTON—Happy rescan day to any antenna users whose local TV stations took part in phase six of the post-incentive spectrum repack. Starting today, those who use an antenna to access their TV programs will need to rescan their TVs to continue watching as stations move to their new channels.

Multiple stations in Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee are officially transitioning to their new digital frequency locations. Stations gave their viewers 30-day notices of the impending change, and many local stations and news outlets have been posting stories online all week to remind viewers.

The repack was conducted to make room for 5G and other mobile broadband services.

The FCC does provide resources on how to properly rescan televisions to ensure viewers keep access to local stations. They also offer an online service where viewers can enter their address and see if they are impacted by this current phase of the repack.

Phase six of the repack officially ends on Oct. 18. The entire repack process is expected to conclude in July 2020.

For more information on the repack, visit TV Technology's repack silo.

WASHINGTON—While the recent summer heat wave has melted nearly everything frozen, the FCC is doing its own kind of melting with the Media Bureau announcing a lift on the freeze imposed on the filing and processing of minor modification applications for full power and Class A stations.

Thanks to the now reopen application process—which was initially ceased on April 5, 2013—full power stations can apply for an increase to its noise-limited contour, while Class A stations can file to increase its protected contour, in one or more directions beyond the station’s authorized facilities. These actions are limited to full power and Class A stations that were reassigned to new channels as part of the repack and have yet to complete the transition to their post-auction channels.

While the freeze was in effect, stations had to apply for a waiver to complete their transition in instances of an antenna not exactly matching the previously authorized antenna pattern or the authorized height of the antenna on a station’s tower differs from the actual installed height. Lifting the freeze is designed to relieve stations of these steps as they move through the repack process.

The freeze is only lifted for the qualified stations, remaining in place for all others.

Minor modification applications will be processed on a first-come-first-served basis, with the filing of an acceptable application cutting off the filing rights of subsequent, conflicting applications.

More information is available by visiting fcc.gov/media.

For more information on the repack, visit TV Technology's repack silo.

HOUSTON–Antennas of the future may be constructed of carbon nanotube film that can be painted onto devices, according to researchers at Rice University’s Brown School of Engineering. The technology was found to be a “viable competitor” for copper in 5G wireless and other applications, the researchers found.

Rice lab chemical and biomolecular engineer Matteo Pasquali and his team tested the antennas made of “shear-aligned” nanotubes and found that the films were tougher and more flexible than copper and better able to handle higher frequencies.

The antennas were tested at the NIST facility in Boulder, Colo., by lead author Amram Bengio, who carried out the research and wrote the paper. Bengio has since founded a company to further develop the material.

To make the films, researchers dissolved nanotubes, most of them single-walled and up to 8 microns long, in an acid-based solution. When spread onto a surface, the shear force produced prompts the nanotubes to self-align, a phenomenon the Pasquali lab has applied in other studies.

The new antennas could be ideal for 5G networks as well as UAVs for which weight is a consideration, as well as for future “internet of things” applications, according to the researchers.

The Air Force Office of Scientific Research, the Department of Defense and a National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship supported the research.

The results detailed in Applied Physics Letters advance the lab's previous work on antennas based on carbon nanotube fibers.

RAYMOND, Maine—Two Dielectric stacked antenna arrays with Adaptive Polarization Technology (APT) are on their way to American Tower for use in Dallas and Boston as part of the FCC-mandated TV spectrum repack, the company announced today.

APT enables broadcasters sharing an antenna array to select their own polarization ratio regardless of what other stations operating on the same array choose to do. Adding a vertical component improves reception of both ATSC 1.0 and 3.0 signals.

“Most antennas of this nature require that the polarization ratio is defined and locked in upfront,” said Dielectric VP of sales Jay Martin.

However, the arrays destined for American Tower are anchored by Dielectric’s TUM-APT series UHF panel antennas for the vertical real estate company’s master antenna TV station clients, while customized antennas for other stations are on top of the stack.

“The TUM-APT panel antenna offers our customers an enormous advantage by allowing for polarization ratio changes inside the transmitter room. And while these arrays are optimized for ATSC 3.0 broadcasting in the future, they will provide increased power density to improve indoor reception for today’s ATSC 1.0 broadcasts,” said Martin.

A dual-channel, center-fed elliptically polarized TFU series UHF array for KUVN-DT and KSTR-DT tops the stack in the Dallas setup, while the Boston installation for WGBY-DT adds a circularly polarized TDM series VHF array above the TUM-APT, according to Dielectric.

The design of the stacked arrays offers improved azimuth pattern performance when compared to traditional main and side-mount antennas, which can disrupt the azimuth pattern and cause reception problems due to the tower, the company said.

Stacking the arrays enables them to be top-mounted and unencumbered by the tower, eliminating tower scattering effects and allowing for a stronger, interference-free pattern, the company said. The TUM-APT design also locates the transmission line for the top-mount inside the mast, eliminating distortions to the azimuth pattern associated with locating the line outside the mast as is traditional.

Following the installation of a TUM-APT panel antenna, station engineers have the ability to optimize antenna polarization in the combiner room with no modifications to the antenna required, Dielectric said.

This feature is well suited for stations wishing to use the TUM-APT with horizontal polarization today but planning to add elliptical or circular polarization in the future to support signal delivery to mobile devices under ATSC 3.0, it added.

The antennas headed to American Tower have the bandwidth and high-power handling capability to accommodate more stations and their specific polarization needs in the future, the company said.

The TUM-APT structure is designed to support the weight of stacking an additional array on top due to splines designed to support both arrays from a single installation point. Both antennas are designed to be lifted by helicopter to expedite installation. The antennas are due to go on air in the summer, the company added.

For more information on the repack, visit TV Technology's repack silo.

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y.—Over-the-air TV broadcasting is experiencing a growth spurt with one-in-three U.S. television viewers using a TV antenna to receive television, new research reveals.

“Horowitz’s State of Pay TV, OTT & SVOD 2019” from Horowitz Research finds antenna owners are younger—40% are age 18-34 vs. 31% of total content viewers. They also skew male—59% vs. 49% of all TV content viewers. Overall, 34% of TV content viewers access TV content with an antenna.

“Pay TV’s advantage has long been its variety of content, superior picture quality and reliability,” says Adriana Waterston, SVP of Insights and Strategy at Horowitz.

“As the broadcast industry works to improve its standards and achieve widespread adoption of ATSC 3.0 –which, according to announcements from NAB, will reach 40 markets by 2020—that advantage gap has the potential to shrink, with adoption of over-the-air viewing increasing,’’ she said.

The research shows that among non-subscribers to traditional MVPDs, 51% report owning an antenna. In traditional MVPD subscriber households, 30% say they own an antenna.

Antenna owners also are more likely to subscribe to one of the three major SVOD services. Seventy-eight percent subscribe to Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime Video vs. 67% of TV content viewers.

Antennas receiving OTA broadcasts appear to be giving consumers who are turning away from traditional MVPDs a means to access live, local content, the data suggests.

When it comes to how viewers split their viewing time among content sources, the research shows antenna owners spend 19% of their time viewing TV via their antenna, 44% streaming, 32% with an MVPD watching live, DVR or VOD content and the rest viewing DVDs.

“Many TV viewers have long felt tied to traditional cable because of their desire to stay connected to live news and sports, along with local and national content from broadcasters,” says Stephanie Wong, Horowitz director of Insights and Strategy.

“With today’s stronger signals and advances in technology, along with improved design aesthetics, antennas are re-emerging as an inexpensive and practical way of accessing TV content.”

Newer technologies are giving viewers a way to DVR over-the-air content, she adds. With products like TiVo’s Bolt OTA, Plex and Amazon’s Fire TV Recast, and using SVOD services, viewers are able to “piece together their ‘cable service’… at what they perceive to be a dramatically reduced cost,” she said.

“Most importantly, TV and streaming technology is improving to a point where being able to access different sources of video is no more difficult—or perhaps even easier—than navigating through a cable set top box menu,” said Wong.

More information is available at www.horowitzresearch.com.

RAYMOND, Maine—After a pair of meetings over the last five months, the FCC has heard from a number of broadcast companies and representatives about issues concerning repack site completions. Following the most recent meeting on Jan. 31, where the FCC Incentive Auction Task Force and Media Bureau met with these representatives, there seems to be a key takeaway:

“The FCC will be flexible in considering STA applications, and extensions if justified, potentially allowing more stations to use interim antennas to meet phase deadlines,” said Keith Pelletier, vice president and general manager of Dielectric, which was one of the companies that attended the meeting.

Severe winter weather and a shortage of qualified tower crews are part of the reason why there is concern over whether broadcasters will be able to meet phase deadlines. As these delays continue to build, they could eventually impact the implementation of permanent antennas.

“Some of our customers have been forced to place their permanent repack antennas in storage,” said Pelletier in a press release. “Stations that fail to vacate their channels in time could prevent stations in future phases from staying on schedule,due to the critical linked changes in the transition plan. We see potential for a serious bottleneck in phases three through six.”

Dielectric contends that because there are more crews capable of safely installing side-mounted broadband antennas, installing these interim solutions could help keep the repack schedule on track.

“The FCC had indicated their willingness to approve interim facilities for reimbursement with suitable engineering support, demonstrating that the interim facility does not significantly harm the station’s over-the-air viewership,” said Jay Martin, vice president of sales for Dielectric. “If the choice becomes going off-air or staying on the existing channel and disrupting critical linkages, operating an interim facility may be a viable compromise for all concerned.”

About 143 stations moved during phase one of the repack, which ended Nov. 30, 2018, with another 115 scheduled to move by the April 12 deadline for phase two. More than 30 of these stations are now operating under STA approvals. More than 400 stations are expected to move channels in phases three to six between mid-April and Oct.18.

For all the latest news and insight on the repack, visit our repack silo.

Readers responded to my article comparing indoor TV antennas—some with questions, some just with comments (Comparing Antennas for Indoor Reception, September 2018). I welcome these as they give me a better understanding of how over-the-air TV works in the real world and the opportunity to share their experiences with other readers.

Reliable VHF reception continues to be a problem and based on recent emails, interference from devices such as LED lamps and even bathroom fans seems to be the most common problem for viewers with indoor antennas.

I also heard from readers having problems with UHF reception. One reader, outside Portland, Ore., was able to get VHF channels but not UHF. There was a small mountain between him and the towers. He’d tried several different rooftop antennas with no luck, but since the performance of consumer TV antennas can vary considerably I could only recommend trying one from a reliable manufacturer that provided real specifications for the antenna (not amplifier) gain.

Another reader who was familiar with propagation of RF signals emailed with his experiences rotating TV antennas to pick up vertically polarized signals. He was able to pick up stations with the vertically polarized receive antenna that could not be received when the TV antenna was horizontally polarized. Polarization shifts on reflection or defraction, so on an obstructed path this was not surprising.

It appears UHF reception isn’t immune to interference. One reader outside Oklahoma City wrote to say sometimes he could get 81 “channels” in a scan but this would drop to 21 “channels” and poor signal at other times. He followed my advice checking for electrical interference but found LTE interference was the real problem. The final solution turned out to be the addition of a “Zenable” LTE filter. Looking at the specs for this filter, I’m surprised it helped as the upper pass frequency of 790 MHz is well above that used for LTE.

For viewers in the United States, the Channel Master LTE filter looks like a better choice, since it rejects signals above 700 MHz. The specs on the Channel Master site are limited (“Frequencies Block 700–2000”). In his September 2016 TV Technology column, Out of Band Interference: Myth or Reality?, Charlie Rhodes measured the performance of that filter, which showed the loss at 740 MHz was 44 dB.

FIELD MEASUREMENT

In December I had a chance to ride along with Gary Sgrignoli and David Lawson from Meintel, Sgrignoli & Wallace LLC (MSW) for some of the 100 measurements they will be doing checking out the performance post-repack facility for San Diego’s NBC O&O KNSD. (These are the precision measurements I mentioned in my October 2018 column, Inexpensive Tools for RF Measurement.) At two of the sites, interference from LTE signals at 740–760 MHz was observed above the KNSD channel 40 signal. (KNSD had not transitioned to channel 17 yet so programming was still on RF Channel 40 with a test pattern without PSIP on RF Channel 17 for the measurements.)

It wasn’t clear interference was occurring to the reception of Channel 40 on the demodulator, but it was quite strong on the Rohde and Schwarz FSH4 analyzer in the van. I noticed the FSH4 has a second IF of 860.8 MHz and a third IF of 54.5 MHz. The relationship of these frequencies to the 740–760 MHz interference and the linear variation of the observed signal at above 633 MHz with attenuation leads me to believe this was filter ingress in the FSH4 analyzer.

This example, and the experience of the reader outside Oklahoma City make me wonder what will happen as LTE signals pop up on what used to be Channels 38 to 51.

I was surprised to see MSW using a consumer DTV antenna rather than a professional or cable headend log-periodic antenna on the test vehicle. Sgrignoli explained that size and weight were an issue and the DigiTenna DT-S (www.digitenna.com), while small and light enough for the telescoping mast and for storage in the van, performed quite well at both UHF and VHF frequencies. My experience is corner reflector/bowtie antennas can equal or beat four-bay bow-tie antennas at UHF. Look for more on the DigiTenna in a future column.

Before starting measurements, the system is calibrated. A calibrated dipole (quite expensive) is mounted in place of the DTV antenna. The measured signal level is used to calculate the field strength of the line-of-sight signal on the channels of interest after applying the dipole calibration factor and accounting for feed line losses. The calibrated dipole is replaced with the DigiTenna and the signal levels measured again to determine the gain of the antenna. These gains are recorded and used to calculate field strength from measured channel power.

This field study includes measurements at 100 sites divided into grids covering different areas. The procedure does not involve taking measurements while driving the van in a line with the mast up or taking a cluster of measurements around each location. This approach decreases the time required to measure the signal at each site and as a result increases the number of sites that can be measured.

One disadvantage of the van antenna setup was that it was not possible to switch polarization, or even mount the antenna on the mast vertically polarized. That didn’t stop us from doing a test at one site surrounded by hills where KNSD was very weak. Holding the DigiTenna about 12 inches above the ground with the elements vertical brought the KNSD signal out of the noise, not enough for reception at this height, but I suspect it would have worked at 30 feet. On Channel 17 KNSD is elliptically polarized with 50 percent of horizontally polarized ERP at vertical.

ACCURATE TESTING

Little did I realize that soon after my last column on simple field measurements was published, I’d have an experience that showed the real importance of doing them as soon as possible after an antenna is ready to radiate.

Measurements the day after a post-repack antenna was put on the air didn’t look right. These were done using the Winegard Freevision FVHD30, a 12-foot painter’s pole, the Airspy SDR with Spectrum Spy and a Hauppauge WinTV dualHD tuner with LinuxTV DVB utilities to obtain signal level in dBm. I didn’t have a precision dipole for calibration, but was able to come up with a rough antenna factor to add to the dBm to dBμV/m at 75 ohm conversion factor of +108.8 by comparing the signal levels from stations on nearby channels transmitting from the same site. Since I was interested in differences more than precise field strength, this was sufficient.

Comparing the measurements to predicted values with the transmit antenna oriented as authorized and with the antenna rotated 180 degrees provided a strong indication the antenna pattern was 180 degrees off, even though the antenna was installed correctly. The manufacturer confirmed there was an error in marking the orientation and has taken responsibility for fixing it. During the transition the station helped hundreds of people rescan to get the signal and in the few cases where there were problems viewers got good reception after tweaking their antennas so it wasn’t obvious there was an antenna issue.

Without the measurements, how long it would have taken the station to determine its signal was several dB weaker than it should have been over the most populated part of the market? Reimbursement for field measurement of the post-repack signal is allowed on FCC Form 399. It is well worth the effort, just in case. I’ve come up with some scripts that make taking channel power and MER measurements from the WinTV dualHD tuner easier. Let me know if you’re interested and I can provide the code and instructions.

As always, your comments and questions are welcome. Email me atdlung@transmitter.com.

ALEXANDRIA, VA.—The Great TV Channel Auction and Repack is now underway, with television and FM radio broadcasters doing the necessary work to change frequency assignments and install new equipment. It is a lot of work, but progress is being made daily.

In addition to the repack project work now underway, the FCC is currently asking for comments about the repack process and reimbursement for affected Class A stations, low-power TV stations, translators and FM broadcasters; deadline is Oct. 26. In addition to the full-power repack, as many as 1,000 smaller stations are being moved in 10 phases, which will cause dislocation and incur some expenses for LPTVs and translators that were not protected in the repack. This also affects some FM stations colocated on TV towers.

In the event you’ve been lost in space for the past two years, the Channel Auction and Repack exists to shift TV broadcasters to VHF and lower-UHF channels, with the goal of freeing up spectrum for wireless services for mobile devices. A distant model was the BAS Relocation program from 2005 to 2010, which also had broadcasters giving up a slice of spectrum for the benefit of a cellphone company.

Since the process began in the spring of 2017 after a spectrum auction that yielded approximately $20 billion to the federal government, more than 120 full power and Class A television stations have moved off their pre-auction channels, according to Jean Kiddoo, chair of the FCC’s Incentive Auction Task Force.

“Approximately half of those stations chose to move before the first formal transition deadline,” she said. “The other half consists of stations that won incentive payments during the auction but elected to continue broadcasting by sharing a channel with another station, and have now implemented those channel-sharing agreements.”

NOW UNDERWAY

By the time you read this article, the first formal phase of the Channel Auction and Repack is now underway. Kiddoo said that the testing period for Phase 1 of the repack began Sept. 14 and ends Nov. 30. There are 82 full-power and Class A television stations scheduled to transition during Phase 1.

[Read: Transitioning To New Channels—Phase 1 Deadline Looms]

Obviously, re-assigning channels of TV broadcasters and radio stations is an expensive proposition, fraught with complex engineering challenges as well as concern about changes in propagation and coverage. Congress appropriated funds to pay for this work, and broadcasters have been receiving reimbursement.

“The initial reimbursement fund totaled $1.75 billion, and as of April 16, 2018, virtually all of that [$1.742 billion] has been allocated by the FCC,” Kiddoo said. “That represents 92.5-percent of total estimates for each station. “Stations have been able to draw down against their allocation by submitting invoices for eligible costs incurred since October 6, 2017.”

As for the remaining 7.5-percent of the projected costs and additional expenses, it appears to be on the way.

“Congress provided additional funding in the 2018 Omnibus Appropriations Act to reimburse reasonable costs incurred by full power and Class A broadcasters as well as previously-ineligible LPTV/TV translator and FM stations,” Kiddoo said. “The rulemaking to adopt rules and procedures to reimburse the latter is anticipated to be completed in the first quarter of 2019.”

How does this translate to the real world of actual broadcasters going through the repack work? Dale Scherbring, a regional director of engineering for Sinclair Broadcast Group and the company’s repack manager, said the project is keeping him busy.

“The Sinclair Broadcast Group’s engineering team has been working on 100 repacks for the company-owned stations and fulfilling contracts with our partner stations,” Scherbring said. “Phase 0 stations and one Phase 1 station have made the transition and are on the air.”

Phase 0 stations on the air include:

• WCHS (Charleston, W.Va.)
• WDSI (Chattanooga, Tenn.)
• WICD (Champaign, Ill.)
• WNUV (Baltimore, Md.)

The only Phase 1 station moved so far is KJZZ (Salt Lake City).

Scherbring said that the company’s Phase 1 stations currently in progress for repack work are:

• KBTV (Beaumont, Texas)
• KFDM (Beaumont, Texas)
• KMEG (Sioux City, Iowa)
• KPTH (Sioux City, Iowa)
• KMPH-CD (Fresno Calif.)
• KRXI (Reno, Nev.)
• WNWO (Toledo, Ohio)

“The remaining 88 stations are in various stages of equipment order, tower studies and overall planning,” he said.

MASSIVE SCOPE

There has been a lot of discussion about the massive scope of this project versus the relatively small size of the broadcast equipment manufacturing industry. In other words, would the manufacturers of transmitters, antennas and ancillary components be able to build high-quality and reliable equipment for the repack in the relatively short time frame for which the project is scheduled? Then, will there be sufficient crews to properly install it?

“The overall planning for our projects is showing no major issues,” Scherbring said. “The implementation of some projects is running into major weather delays for the tower crews, some vendor-delayed shipping issues, and in some cities major delays with local zoning permits.”

The NAB keeps its eye on the big picture across the country. Dennis Wharton, executive vice president of communications for the NAB, said that he is giving special attention to project timing—especially in the latter stages of the work.

“We remain concerned that the 39-month timeframe created by the FCC is simply insufficient to accommodate all the stations that have to be moved,” Wharton said. “It’s going to be especially difficult for stations in later phases that may not have already contracted for repack work. The tragic loss of four talented tall-tower workers reduced an already small pool of qualified tower dogs. In addition, the first couple phases have fairly long transition periods—132 days in the case of Phase 2. However, Phases 3 and beyond are very compressed—just 34 days in Phase 5—and any unexpected delays will affect scheduling like a stack of dominoes.”

Wharton also noted that many stations are linked with one or more other stations and cannot transition until those other stations have also transitioned. And due to cold weather and dangerous weather conditions, there are only so many months of the year that tower work is feasible in the northern states.

NEXT GEN TV

In the past couple of years, there has been a lot of discussion of ATSC 3.0 and Next Gen TV, and stations across the country are keeping this in mind now that repack work is upon them.

“I believe many stations being repacked will upgrade to equipment that can more easily transition to Next Gen TV,” Wharton said. “Some of this new equipment can move from the current standard to Next Gen TV transmission with the flip of a switch, so it does present an opportunity for stations to upgrade for the future.”

Sinclair Broadcast Group has been a avid proponent of ATSC 3.0, so the question came up as to what the company might be doing for the repack to prepare for an ATSC 3.0 future.

“Sinclair has maximized stations’ signal reach and included some vertical polarization elements in all the new antennas that are being purchased,” Scherbring said. “This will enhance ATSC 3.0 [operations], but the costs of these items are not reimbursable, so they are an extra cost to each station.”

STILL NOT CLEAR

There’s no question that the channel auction and repack is big—really big. In addition to the repack at full-power stations (which is fairly well known and documented), the FCC said that the number of affected low-power, translators and FM broadcasters is still not clear.

“We do not yet know how many FM or LPTV and translator stations will be affected by the repack,” the FCC’s Kiddoo said. “To date, construction permits for more than 1,500 of the roughly 2,100 LPTV/translator stations that filed applications in the special displacement window have been granted. The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that the commission adopted in early August sought comment on eligibility requirements and reimbursement procedures for those FM and LPTV/translator stations that incur costs as a result of the repack.”

Therefore, it remains to be seen exactly what the costs and time schedule will be to complete all repack work. In the meantime, work is proceeding quickly across the country.

When asked if the repack was a good thing or just another regulatory nuisance, one broadcaster replied philosophically.

“We can all be armchair quarterbacks on Monday morning,” Sinclair’s Scherbring said. “These are the new rules we broadcasters must live with—we will make it happen.”

For all the latest news and insight on the repack, visit our repack silo.

RAYMOND, ME– Antenna and RF systems provider Dielectric has landed several key TV and FM radio deals in the Philippines in partnership with 90 Degrees North, Inc., a video and audio production, broadcast equipment supply and systems integration firm based in Manila.

90 Degrees North struck a partnership to sell and install Dielectric products last year to address a gradual DTV transition that is scheduled for completion in 2023, and a renewed investment in FM radio infrastructure by many broadcasters.

[Read: 2018 NAB Show: Dielectric Highlighting ATSC 3.0-Compatible Spectrum Repack Antennas]

Since striking the partnership, 90 Degrees North has landed several large RF contracts in the country. The most recent contracts include a Dielectric UT8D4-50 filter, Branch Combiner, Constant Impedance Filter (CIF) and Combiner, and transmission line deal with Broadcast Enterprises and Affiliated Media (BEAM), a subsidiary of the Globe Telecom conglomerate; and a turnkey FM radio deal with government broadcaster Philippine Broadcasting Service (PBS) covering antennas, filters and accessories.

The BEAM project will leverage Dielectric filters and combiners to simplify their DTV transition, allowing the customer to simultaneously broadcast analog and digital signals without requiring a complete tear down and rebuilding process along the way. 

JOHNSTON, IOWA—One of the mysteries that has perplexed me for a number of years is how traditional broadcasting became so uncool at the same time that wireless connectivity for watching content became cool. Our industry has been wireless since it began more than 100 years ago! What’s up with that? I could also make the case that the earliest wireless communications were done with Morse Code, a sequence of dots and dashes that equate to 1’s and 0’s and are therefore digital, albeit painfully slow digital.

But be that as it may, thanks to the cord-cutting and cord-shaving and cord-nevering that is going on, we may actually be seeing the beginnings of a bit of a renaissance of over the air broadcasting. Assuming this is actually happening, this may be just the groundswell our industry needs to begin embracing ATSC 3.0 and the capabilities it adds to the services that local broadcasters can offer. Like in surfing, if we start paddling as the swell is approaching we can ride the crest of the wave to completion.

BACK TO THE DARK DAYS

However, to help insure that this renaissance actually happens, I want to take us back into the dark days of the past and the birth of the Satellite Home Viewer Act, TV broadcast white spaces and the processing of waivers to allow for the importation of distant signals. For the most part these issues have gone away as satellite antennae became smaller and local-into-local became the norm. I would, however, remind you that one of the most common reasons given for why a viewer within the coverage of local television deserved a waiver: My homeowners association or condo association or local association doesn’t permit the installation of an outdoor television antenna.

[FCC Overrules Condo TV Antenna Rules]

In those dark times, the consumer was looking for a reason not to put up an antenna to receive a service that was theoretically available via their subscription to satellite. For most, they were looking for something to replace their cable service, which was too expensive or not available because they were too far from a high density population area to run the cable system past their house. Remember at this time, we were still using dial-up phone lines to access the internet and 24.4 kpbs was a relatively common connection.

Now we are seeing this rediscovery of over-the-air reception and thanks to the digital conversion, where there once were fewer than 10 program streams available over the air in all but the largest markets, there are now 30 or 40 depending on what stations are doing with their ATSC 1.0 services available at no cost. Couple that with the OTT and on-demand services available via broadband and suddenly both packaged cable service and satellite service seem unreasonably expensive and restrictive. This new generation of consumers will begin looking for ways to put up antennas. Guess what? Those homeowner, condo and local associations mentioned above probably still have those same restrictions against television antennae. Does the renaissance end here?

SEEKING ANTENNA WAIVERS

I spent a good portion of the 1990’s reviewing waiver requests and became intimately familiar with 47 CFR 1.4000, the Over-the-Air Reception Device Rule or “OTARD.” The rule has been in place since 1996 and while it has been through several amendments, it is still in place. The rule prohibits most of the restrictions that local associations place on members in regards to the installation of not only traditional television antennas but also direct-to-home satellite and MMDS antennas. It encompasses rental property as well as homeowner-owned properties.

The key with rental properties is that the renter must have an “exclusive use area” such as a patio or balcony where the antenna can be installed. While the rule isn’t perfect for every instance, I spent my last five years in commercial broadcasting working for the CBS affiliates in New Mexico where we had a network of a few full power stations and a plethora of translators throughout the state and the vast majority of time I was able to secure an agreement from the association that the viewer had the right to install the antenna. I would point out that this included military bases that had strict rules regarding antennas of any sort on base.

Now again, this work was done during the “dark days” where people were looking to get waivers to not watch the local stations, so they were not always happy when the waiver denial included a letter from their association stating that they could put up an antenna as further evidence of why their waiver was denied. However if the audience wants to put up an antenna to receive the free local stations so that they can cut, shave or forego the cord, they will be happy to have additional information that they can take to their association. And let’s also recognize that there are now options for over-the-air television antennas that are a lot less unappealing then the old multiband Yagi’s of the 1950’s and 60’s. Couple the new design with the increased robustness of the ATSC 3.0 service and suddenly broadcasting is cool again.

The FCC also maintains a webpage on the Over-the-Air Reception Devices Rule with an FAQ that provides some talking points. I would encourage anyone working in television broadcasting to consider using this information to put together an educational presentation to do to local community groups to promote the renaissance of over-the-air television and whet the appetites of the local audience for what is freely available to them now and the incredible potential of what is to come as ATSC 3.0 comes into its own.

Bill Hayes is the director of engineering for Iowa Public Television.

LAS VEGAS—At the 2018 NAB Show, Dielectric has chosen to spotlight its spectrum repack UHF/VHF compatible antennas engineered for the next-generation ATSC 3.0 broadcast standard. The antennas meet safety margins that withstand the higher peak to average power ratios (PAPR) of the new standard.

Since ATSC 3.0 uses OFDM modulation rather than ATSC 1.0’s 8-VSB, the PAPR is 2 to 3db higher. Dielectric’s ATSC 3.0-compatible repack antennas and filters meet these higher peak power demands and band-tunable filters are tuned to ATSC 3.0 before they ship to customers. Once installed, this equipment would not need to be re-tuned should the customer decide to switch to ATSC 3.0.

The antennas also include FutureFill, which increases power density by 7 to 9dB close to the tower, and reduces the main lobe gain by 1.2 to 1.4dB. The broadcaster can, if additional transmitter power is available, increase the TPO to overcome the main lobe gain reduction, or use Single Frequency Network (SFN) technology to enhance reception at the periphery of the service area.

This allows an existing ATSC 1.0 antenna to be adjusted so that its performance is boosted for ATSC 3.0, without having to be taken down from the tower or replaced.

The 2018 NAB Show takes place in Las Vegas, April 9-12. Dielectric will be in booth C2613. For more information, visit www.nabshow.com.

Read up on all of TVT's NAB Show Sneak Peeks and other 2018 NAB Show news here.

For more information on the repack, visit TV Technology's repack silo.   

In my last column I discussed some of the papers presented at the 2017 IEEE Broadcast Symposium related to the FCC TV spectrum repack. This month I’ll look at presentations that covered broadcast TV antennas.

DESIGNING ANTENNAS

If you ever wondered how antenna patterns are created and why certain patterns seem to show up more often, the presentation “Antenna Design for the FCC Repack and Facility Maximization” by Nick Wymant, chief technology officer at Radio Frequency Systems’ Broadcast Division provided the answers. He also showed techniques for modifying antenna patterns to protect other stations when maximizing a station’s coverage. 

Fig. 1: Typical patterns for slot antenna with 1, 2, 3 or 4 slots around

Wymant started by showing how the numbers of slots around a slot antenna’s pipe affect the azimuth pattern. Fig. 1 shows typical patterns for slot antenna with one, two, three or four slots around. Changing the diameter of the pipe will affect the shape of the pattern. For example, reducing the diameter of the pipe used for the three-slot pattern in Fig. 1 will reduce the depth of the nulls until it becomes a rounded triangle. Additional options for modifying the pattern include changing the amount of power going to the slot elements and adding wings or reflectors to the pipe to shape the pattern. The wide variety of patterns available with slots antennas is one of the reasons they are the most popular antenna type for high-power UHF broadcasting.

It is also possible to create custom patterns using panel antennas, which can be useful if they have to operate on more than one channel and support multiple stations. Panel antennas also offer the option of having different electrical or mechanical beam tilt at different azimuths. Wymant showed how panel antenna array patterns can be modified by changing the relative power and/or phase to each face, changing the array orientation and panel positions, or a combination of these methods.

Finding the right antenna pattern isn’t trivial. If options are limited to standard antenna patterns, a pattern that provides interference protection to a station in one direction will likely lead to reduced coverage in directions that don’t need protection. Wymant’s presentation showed the steps in optimizing antenna patterns to meet FCC replication requirements as well as maximizing coverage while still meeting interference protection requirements. The improved optimization method involves using the replication or interference-limited pattern template as a starting point instead of the end goal, and generating one or more customized patterns using powerful electromagnetic simulation software and evaluating to find the best pattern that meets coverage and FCC interference protection requirements. The paper is available to Symposium attendees and may also be available from RFS.

As a side note, I’ve developed software that uses the output of TVStudy to generate a template based on the minimum power reduction necessary on each radial to comply with FCC interference limits as well as maps showing the location and population of cells with interference. Anyone is free to download and use it. See my columns in IEEE Broadcast Technology (available in print and electronically to IEEE BTS members) or contact me for details if interested. Consulting engineer Merrill Weiss has also developed a program he uses—which was mentioned in Wymant’s presentation—that allows interactive modification of a pattern while viewing the amount of interference. This is useful, especially if the interference is present over a wide area, as it allows trading off more power reduction in one direction for greater power (and more interference) in a more desired direction.

WORLDWIDE EXAMPLES OF ANTENNA DESIGN & INSTALLATION

The presentation, “FCC DTV Repack, ATSC3-SFN Considerations & Worldwide Experiences – SFN” by Mark Fehlig and Ben Crease from Jampro Antennas and Alan Dick Broadcast Ltd. focused on the practical side of antenna selection and outlined some items to consider when designing antenna and transmission systems for ATSC 3.0 and single frequency networks. One of the slides shows DVB-T field strength planning requirements for different types of service. For portable outdoor reception, an outdoor field strength at UHF of 78 dBµV/m at 10 meters drops to only 61 dBµV/m at 1.8 meters. For portable indoor reception, an outdoor field strength of 88 dBµV/m at 10 meters will provide only 63 dBµV/m after reducing height to 1.8 meters and allowing for building penetration loss.

The presentation by Mark Fehlig and Ben Crease from Jampro Antennas and Alan Dick Broadcast Ltd. focused on the practical side of antenna selection.

The rest of the presentation shows some actual antenna installations and performance from around the world using broadband slot and panel antennas. The paper is available to Symposium attendees and should also be available from Jampro at the contacts listed on their web site. 

AMT REPACK STRATEGY

Many TV stations being repacked have their antennas on towers owned by American Tower Corporation. If managing the repack is difficult for one station, imagine what it is like managing the repack of multiple stations on one tower. Jim Stenberg, principal engineer, RF Broadcast at American Tower Corporation (ATC), provided a glimpse of that in his presentation “Adventures in FCC repacking! Broadband Antenna Solutions.” Stenberg’s analysis showed that of the 987 Class A and Full Power licensees moving to new channels, 217 of them are on 133 ATC towers.

Stenberg said the FCC’s timeline faces challenges, notably the impact of weather on scheduling and construction delays by non-repack and FM stations. He also said broadcasters should not undervalue their spectrum, as “cord-cutting” is increasing in almost all markets. He was concerned about broadcasters’ lack of interest in interim alternatives while work is being completed and the minimal value placed on auxiliary facilities that could keep a station on the air. 

The presentation used two ATC towers in Atlanta (Chester Avenue and Briarcliff 2) to illustrate ATC’s approach to the repack using broadband antennas. The goal was to minimize repack disruption by maintaining an optimal coverage contour during repack tower work while future-proofing RF systems to incorporate ATSC 3.0 capability into the design. Some key features include use of broadband antenna systems with dual feed lines and dual combiners capable of operating with different horizontal/vertical elliptical polarization ratios, azimuth patterns designed with low ripple and optimized beam tilt and null fill for the market.

I couldn’t quite follow all the moving pieces in the presentation and I’m sure as maximization applications are granted the pieces will move again. I know ATC is working with broadcasters to develop similar plans for other markets. If you weren’t at the Symposium, contact Jim Stenberg or one of other people in the broadcast division at ATC for a copy.

In my next column, I’ll wrap up my coverage of the IEEE Broadcast Symposium with a review of the papers on antenna pattern measurement with drones. With field measurements of signals a reimburable expense for stations replacing antennas as part of the repack, will stations opt for drone measurements rather than conventional ground measurement of signal strength? What are the tradeoffs? As always, your comments and questions are welcome. Email me at dlung@transmitter.com.

RAYMOND, MAINE—Dielectric is packing up and shipping 29 of its UHD and VHF antennas to Raycom Media in Montgomery, Ala., as the TV station prepares for the spectrum repack. Also in the order were Dielectric RF filters and transmission line.

The antenna order includes Dielectric TFU-WB UHF arrays, a sidemount UHF broadband pylon antenna that delivers higher voltage handling, 75 percent less windload and lower overall weight. The order also includes TFU-G, TFU-E, TFU-J UHF arrays, as well as THV VHF arrays. Most of the arrays incorporate elliptical polarization that works with ATSC 1.0 and will help prepare for ATSC 3.0.

The RF filters included in the order are waveguide designed for power rating and air-cooled for operational efficiency. Multiple runs of transmission line will also be part of the order.

Dielectric will ship the antennas to Raycom Media tower sites between September 2017 and February 2020. Raycom Media station assigned to the first or second phases of the repack will receive their antennas in Q3 and Q4 for this year. Stations set for the later phases will have the antennas three to six months prior to the respective deadlines.

For more information on the repack, visit TV Technology's repack silo. 

WASHINGTON—This Friday, Aug. 19, Little Rock, Ark., will be the launching site for the “Broadcast TV Liberation Tour,” a five-state, five-city tour on how consumers can access local broadcast TV channels with an advanced digital antenna in HD for free. The tour is a partnership between TVfreedom.org, Antennas Direct and local Sinclair broadcast TV stations.

NAB announced that it is also partnering in the antenna giveaway, with Executive Vice President of Communications Dennis Wharton saying, “Local television is the most trusted and reliable source of news and emergency information in America and we’re proud to partner in this tour with Antennas Direct, TVfreedom and Sinclair.”

Dish has also come out and endorsed the tour. Warren Schlichting, Dish executive vice president of marketing, programming and media sales, said, “TV viewers should have a choice on how to watch, and how much to pay for local TV.” Dish reports that it has distributed $7 million worth of OTA antennas to affected customers of the Tribune/Dish blackout.

In addition to Little Rock, the tour will also make stops in Macon, Ga., on Aug. 22; Charleston, S.C., on Aug. 24; Asheville, N.C., on Aug. 26; and Baltimore on Aug. 29. The first 300 patrons at each tour stop will receive advanced indoor/outdoor digital antennas with the ability to pick up local broadcast signals within 50 miles.

PLANO, TEXAS—Nine Earth station antennas will be installed in the outlying islands and remote areas of Taiwan by the ASC Signal Division of Communications & Power Industries after the company announced it won the contract from Transcontinental Enterprises Company. The installations are designed to improve basic telecommunications coverage in mountainous and remote areas of Taiwan.

Per the contract, CPI ASC Signal Division will provide five 4.9 meter, one 7.6 meter and three 3.7 meter antennas. All antennas will be equipped with CPI ASC Signal Division’s Next-Generation Controller, which provides a single, central device to control multiple antenna systems. Features of the NGC include built-in remote access and tracking capabilities, an internal spectrum analyzer, redundancy control systems and built-in support for fiber-optic inter-facility links.

ASC Signal Division, which was acquired by CPI in 2015, is a manufacturer of satellite Earth station, radar and HF antenna systems.

MERIDEN, CONN.—North American broadcasters are reviewing all their equipment and operations in preparation for the spectrum repack. Selecting antenna technology may be one of the most important decisions they face, affecting everything from installation and maintenance costs, to their ability to meet switchover deadlines and perhaps most importantly, quality of service through the transition and well afterwards.

Approximately 90 percent of antennas currently installed in the U.S. market are narrowband “slotted pole” or pylon antennas, most of which will need to be replaced in order to make frequency changes when new channels are assigned.

Sutro Tower, Broadband Slot Antenna

That’s because narrowband antennas are limited to single-channel operation. During manufacturing, slots are cut to exact dimensions prescribed by the operating channel. Once that is done, radiation characteristics and operating frequency are locked in, so reconfiguring radiation patterns or polarization ratios in the field is impossible.

Pylon antenna components and manufacturing specifications are also channel-dependent, so they can’t be ordered until the new channels are known. That makes it impossible to get ahead of the curve and execute a timely installation and transition. Switchover schedules will be strained by a known shortage of qualified installers—and as always, time is money—so early equipment purchases will help alleviate a host of ills. Plus, the FCC will reimburse broadcasters purchasing antennas before the auction, incentivizing early preparation.

GOING BROADBAND
Broadband antenna systems offer the flexibility to install early, ahead of the labor crunch, and make frequency changes later on when final channels are known. Designed to operate on any frequency in a given broadcast band, these frequency-agile antenna systems can be designed to allow reconfiguration of the radiation characteristics in the field after installation. Broadcasters located in international border regions can use this feature to optimize coverage and comply with interference protection constraints.

Broadband antennas using variable polarization technology (VPT) offer even greater advantages: they can be used by multiple broadcasters to share costly site infrastructure and significantly reduce operating costs.

There are three main types of broadband UHF antennas with the flexibility to accommodate the repack – broadband slot antenna (SBB), broadband pylon alternative antennas and broadband master panel (PEP) antennas. Each has its own set of pros and cons.

Broadband Slot Antenna—SBBs feature reduced wind load and fewer interconnections inside the antenna. They include antennas with wide cardioid, narrow cardioid and skull radiation pattern characteristics.

Because of wide bandwidth, low wind load, and good null fill performance, SBBs are ideal for temporary antenna use. At different times during the repack program, an SBBcould operate on the original channel, an interim channel, and the final channel, allowing flexibility in the sequence of upgrade events.

Low Wind Load, Broadband Pylon Antenna Photo credit: Jim Stenberg, American Tower

Broadband Pylon Alternative Antenna—Broadband pylon alternative antennas offer better performance compared to SBBs and less wind load than master panel antennas. They also provide flexible polarization configuration options including circular, elliptical, horizontal and vertical polarization. Upgrade capability for future MIMO or MISO operation is available. This antenna type is a good solution for a single station seeking the channel independence and flexibility of broadband or the ability to upgrade to EP, CP or MIMO transmission.

A broadband pylon alternative antenna could be shared by two full-power stations to reduce costs and tower loading. It could even be configured so that each station can independently define its own polarization ratio.

Broadband Master Panel Antennas—Broadband master panel antennas offer increased flexibility in attainable power ratings, radiation pattern configurations, redundancy, polarization options and future upgrade capability for MIMO or MISO.

High Power Wrap-Around Antenna with Variable Polarization Technology

Master antennas are particularly appropriate for repack and digital switchover (DSO) programs in regions where weather can have a major impact on scheduling, as their installation requires minimal tower work. UHF and VHF master antenna systems with Variable Polarization are currently being installed at the top of One World Trade Center in Manhattan.

MULTIPLE SHARED SITES
Two separate sites can be used to attain very high redundancy, equipping each site with a broadband master antenna and a set of transmitters. This makes it possible to switch off an entire site for simplified upgrade or maintenance without compromising system performance. Major cities around the world have used this approach to simplify repack procedures.

On a smaller scale, two stations can share multiple sites if each station installs a low wind load SBB and a backup transmitter at the alternate station’s site.

ANTENNA POLARIZATION OPTIONS

Broadband Cylinder Antenna with Variable Polarization Technology

VPT is important in the mobile broadcast market and for terrestrial broadcasters competing with satellite, cable and cellular networks. Both broadband pylon alternative antennas and broadband master antennas can be configured to permit future polarization ratio changes through simple modifications; and to allow independent polarization ratios for each channel when broadcasters share the antenna.

The same system can allow independent MIMO/MISO transmission. For example, one broadcaster could transmit horizontal polarization; another could transmit circular polarization, another elliptical polarization and another MIMO. This flexibility gives broadcasters at a shared site independent polarization control and the ability to independently upgrade to MIMO as future requirements dictate.

CONCLUSION
The spectrum auction and repack of frequencies offers an unparalleled opportunity to take advantage of new antenna technologies. By adopting variable polarization options, broadcasters can secure service to both fixed and mobile audiences. In choosing the most flexible antenna type, they can order antennas ahead of frequency allocation, install early, and satisfy loyal viewers with continued transmissions throughout the process. 

MERIDEN, CONN.—According to Radio Frequency Systems, the Durst Organization has placed an order for RFS antennas as part of an installation of a terrestrial broadcasting system at One World Trade Center. These RFS PEP antennas feature Variable Polarization Technology, which will reportedly enable broadcasters to set customized polarization ratios, independent of other broadcasters.

RFS began working with the Metropolitan Television Alliance (MTVA), the Durst Organization and independent broadcasters on UHF and VHF trial arrays at One WTC last year. The goal, according to RFS, was to demonstrate how the system and venue would perform in delivering terrestrial TV services to New York City’s entire coverage area.

After what RFS calls successful results, the installation of the company’s PEP40E variable polarization UHF array antennas, along with a 662-16D circularly polarized VHF array antenna, is the next phase of the plan. The order also includes radiation pattern testing at the RFS antenna test range and on-site installation supervision services by RFS field engineers.

Installation is planning to begin this summer, says RFS.

Durst previously announced that broadcasters CBS, PBS and NBCUniversal-owned WNBC and WNJU would be located at One WTC.

WASHINGTON—Kicking off a four-state, five-city tour on Friday, Oct. 16, TVfreedom.org and Antennas Direct’s “Broadcast TV Liberation Tour” will make its first stop in Aluquerque, N.M. As part of a public awareness and educational outreach campaign to inform consumers of the ability to access local TV broadcast channels via an advanced digital antenna, the two organizations will give away 2,000 broadcast television antennas over its two-week tour.

Here are the details for each of the stops on the “Broadcast TV Liberation Tour”:

• Albuquerque, N.M.
  7 a.m., Friday, Oct. 16
  Broadcast Partner: KOB-TV
  American Home Furniture Parking Lot, 3535 Menaul Blvd. NE, 87107
• Denver
  12 p.m., Monday, Oct. 19
  Broadcast Partner: KUSA-TV
  Pepsi Center, 1000 Chopper Circle, 80204
• Rapid City, S.D.
  
  

  7 a.m., Wednesday, Oct. 21
  Broadcast Partner: KOTA-TV
  Main Street Square, 512 Main Street, 57701

• Sioux Falls, S.D.
  
  

  6:45 a.m., Friday, Oct. 23
  Broadcast Partner: KELOLAND TV
  KELO News Station, 501 South Phillips Ave., 57104

• Oklahoma City
  
  

  10 a.m., Saturday, Oct. 31
  Broadcast Partner: KWTV
  National Weather Center, 120 David L Boren Blvd., Norman, Okla. 73072

The National Association of Broadcasters is also partnering in the antenna giveaway. For more information, click here.

Also Read:

San Francisco to Host Free Antenna Giveaway

Thousand TV Antennas Given Away in Washington D.C.

A resident of Washington D.C. picks up his free TV antenna.

WASHINGTON– TVFreedom.org and Antennas Direct will give away over 300 indoor digital broadcast TV antennas in San Francisco's Chinatown on Friday, July 3, 2015 at 9:00 A.M. PT. The giveaway will be held in conjunction with this week's 2015 OCA National Convention. This is the latest stop in the TVfreedom.org/Antennas Direct joint TV Liberation Tour that was launched last year and will include several new, yet-to-be-announced, tour stops in 2015. 

The event will feature a tour bus with big picture screen HD TV's, information on the local broadcast TV channels available to San Franciscans and other promotional giveaway items such as t-shirts and discount coupons to purchase additional antennas online. 

Antennas Direct will be giving away its ClearStream Eclipse TV antennas which will allow viewers to watch dozens of local broadcast TV channels in the San Francisco Bay area for free. 

TVFreedom.org and Antennas Direct have hosted similar giveaways in the past year, including one in Washington D.C. last November in which they gave away more than a thousand antennas. .