WPVI News Goes HD in Philly

WPVI-TV , the ABC O&O in Philadelphia, began airing its local newscasts in 720p last weekend, becoming the first station in the market to offer HD news. The station ("6abc") had already inaugurated some limited HD news coverage when it started using its Chopper 6-HD high above the City of Brotherly Love last winter.

Author:: TVTechnology
Publish date:: Jul 25, 2006

WPVI-TV, the ABC O&O in Philadelphia, began airing its local newscasts in 720p last weekend, becoming the first station in the market to offer HD news.

The station ("6abc") had already inaugurated some limited HD news coverage when it started using its Chopper 6-HD high above the City of Brotherly Love last winter. WPVI has now added HD studio cameras, new graphics, and the 16:9 aspect ratio for all its regular news programs.

WPVI also operates three digital channels (in addition to analog channel 6): 6abc DT, 6abc Plus, and Action News Now. The broadcaster said it's also devoting more of its news resources online, and is the first TV outlet in its market to offer a Web site for wireless devices such as cell phones and PDA devices.

MSNBC became the last of the three major news/talk cable channels to take the HD plunge this week

KXAS ramped up its local news, sports, and talk broadcasts in 1080i last weekend with the longtime broadcaster’s mid-morning talk show in Dallas-Ft. Worth (Nielsen DMA No. 5).

KGO-TV last weekend became the second broadcaster to begin offering its local news in HD in the San Francisco market, the nation's fifth largest (following KTVU-TV, the Fox affiliate in nearby Oakland).

WNBC in New York City this week became the first local broadcaster in America's largest TV market to go HD for its local newscasts, following only a relative handful of other local stations nationwide. WNBC, an O&O of NBC Universal, will produce up to 30 hours a week of news, entertainment, and sports programming t

The Reno station is the smallest market so far to broadcast locally in HD.

Fox News Channel wasn’t being conservative, technically speaking, when it jumped into 720p transmissions on May 1, joining competitor CNN to make the next-gen DTV leap.

This HD upgrade follows the broadcaster's jump to HD for its local news, weather and sports last winter.

WFTS-TV in Tampa has transitioned its local evening news to 720p, becoming the first broadcaster in the market (DMA #12, which includes St. Petersburg and Sarasota) to make the leap, and one of only a handful of Florida stations to do so.