What is a LPTV or Translator?

LPTV/Translators are stations that transmit with a fraction of the power of a full power TV station. In many cases these stations transmit only a few hundred or few thousand watts of power as compared to the hundreds of thousands or even million watts that typical full power TV stations are authorized to broadcast with. LPTV/translators stations are usually found in small communities to act as relay stations for full power signals. They have been around for years in Oregon and primarily supply Portland broadcast signals to the coastal, central, and eastern Oregon areas. There are also LPTV stations in Portland that specialize in niche programming such as Spanish language and home shopping services. Most of these signals are on UHF frequencies, but some are on VHF frequencies.

When will LPTV/Translator stations convert to digital?

LPTV/translator stations are on a different time table then full power stations. Full power stations are required to be fully converted to digital by February 17, 2009. LPTV/translator stations are allowed to switch to digital at any time, but the FCC has not yet set a exact date. We expect that most stations that are going to convert to digital will do so within the three years following the full power conversion date.

Should I get a converter box if I watch LPTV/translators stations?

We recommend that everyone get a converter box if they do not plan to get a new digital TV, disk recorder, or other device that would have a built in digital TV tuner. Not all LPTV/translator stations will convert to digital at the same time, so if you choose to just get set top converter box, you should make sure that it has what is know as “analog pass-through.”

When will KGW convert their LPTV/translator network in digital?

KGW is carried on approximately 25 stations in Oregon and SW Washington. We do not own all of these stations. Many are community owned or owned by non-profit groups that serve individual communities. We plan to convert our stations within the next three years. We have spoken to many of the other groups, and they also say that they will be converting their translators to digital on a similar timeline.

Why didn’t the FCC require LPTV/translators to convert to digital on the same timetable as full power stations?

That is not completely known, but the basic answer is that the FCC had there hands full making sure that full power stations transitioned successfully to digital. When that process was figured out, they began coming up with regulations for LPTV/translators.

Where can I get more information on the conversion of LPTV/translators?

The NTIA has great information on LPTV/translator conversion at www.lptvanswers.com.