On Friday, July 18th during the 6 p.m. newscast, KGW NewsChannel 8 briefly turned off its analog signal to help viewers find out if their TV's were digital-ready.

Did your TV go to "snow"?

Look below for the situation that best describes how you view TV to know what, if anything, you need to do to insure you still receive a TV signal after February 17, 2009.

•TV viewers using an antenna

Viewers watching the over-the-air signal using a TV antenna will need to either purchase a Digital-ready TV or get and install a digital converter box through the Federal DTV Coupon program by February 17, 2009.

The telephone number for those without internet access is 1-888-DTV-2009 (1-888-388-2009).

By mail at:

TV Converter Box Coupon Program

PO Box 2000

Portland, OR 97208-2000

•Cable viewers

If you watch TV on a cable system and your TV went to "snow" during KGW's test, you probably need not worry. Your cable operator may not have converted their system to receive our digital signal yet. ALL cable operators are expected to convert to digital signals prior to February 17, 2009. To be safe, you could check with your local cable operator to be sure. KGW will be talking with cable providers in the next couple of months to make sure they are ready.

•Digital TV viewers

If you have a Digital-ready TV and your TV went to "snow" or the image locked up during KGW's test, your Digital-ready TV is probably stil being viewed in "analog" mode. The Digital-ready TV manual should have instructions on how to set up your TV to receive digital.

•Apartment complexes, mobile home parks, and other such multi-family sites

If you view TV through a shared antenna system, for example at an apartment complex or mobile home park, you may not be on cable but rather on an analog TV system. You should contact the facility owner to make sure they are making plans to convert to Digital TV.

•TV Translator viewers

Translators rebroadcast our over-the-air signal to local communities. For example, Hood River residents can receive KGW on analog Channel 34. If you view KGW on a translator and your picture went to snow during our test, that translator has not been converted to receive digital yet. KGW plans to contact all local translator owners over the next few months to be sure they are prepared to make the digital conversion. According to KGW Director of Technology Eric Dausman, even though these translators will be converted to receive digital, translator viewers will still see an analog output for a few more years so they will still be able to watch local stations on an analog TV.

If you have more questions, you can email the KGW Technology team at: dtv@kgw.com

More about DTV

Why the DTV conversion?

Frequently Asked Questions

How converters/coupons work