APTS Stations Utilize USDA Grants for Digital Conversion

 

 

 Smoky Hills Public Television (Bunker Hill, KS)

 

(January 2004) Smoky Hills Public Television (SHPTV) has received a $1,470,094 grant to assist in the conversion to a digital broadcast signal. 

 

SHPTV, like all television stations, faces the FCC mandate to convert from the current analog service to a digital signal by the end of 2006. This funding will fund a full power digital television transmission facility near Colby to serve the northwestern area of Kansas that is currently served by six low power translators. The funding will cover a new tower, building, transmission equipment and associated processing, monitoring and test equipment.

 

Lloyd Mintzmyer, Interim General Manager of SHPTV, said this phase of the digital conversion is a long-range project for SHPTV. "Even though the replacement of the translators was not directly part of the FCC mandate, we believe that replacing the six low power translators with one translator is a more effective use of spectrum," Mintzmyer said. "This new tower will cover 16 counties that have a population of less than 60,000 people, so financially it would have been almost impossible to provide this improved service without this grant. The USDA funding is the key factor in getting this project started."

 

 

  KUAC (Fairbanks, AK)

 

(March 2004) KUAC has been awarded an equipment grant from the U. S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in the amount of $703,000 to fund digital translators and digital television (DTV) distribution equipment to aid in the conversion to digital broadcasting.

 

"KUAC plans to fund four rural DTV translators and purchase a video distribution server which can be used to distribute multiple Standard Definition and High Definition Video Streams to the stations transmitters, translators and other Alaska One sites," said Greg Petrowich, general manager & CEO of KUAC TV9/FM 89.9 and president of Alaska One Public Television

 

The grant will allow KUAC to deliver a digital public television signal to four rural areas already served by KUAC's analog signal. KUAC will also eventually produce a more enhanced stream for UATV (educational television for the University of Alaska) and its educational content.

 

 

 

WCTE & WJLT (Tennessee)

 

(March 2004) Through the USDA Rural Utilities Service, the Upper Cumberland Broadcast Council (WCTE) and West Tennessee Public TV Council (WJLT) received a $1.8 million grant. The grant funds will allow both stations to conduct a full-power transmitter upgrade and provide multicast and high definition service to their regions in addition to installing digital encoders to originate high-definition programming.

 

WCTE and WJLT are working with the state of Tennessee to develop a network for training and professional development for teachers, emergency responders and homeland security. In these efforts, the grant will provide a fiber connection from these stations to WNPT Nashville, the state’s network operations hub.

 

 

 Penn State Public Broadcasting

 

(March 2004) Penn State Public Broadcasting (PSPB) was awarded a check for $940,814 today from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

 

“This grant will be invaluable in helping us extend the reach of digital broadcasting to all the communities we serve,” said Ted Krichels, PSPB general manager and associate vice president for Outreach. “We signed on WPSX’s digital signal Channel 15 in March of last year, becoming the 100th public broadcasting station to do so, and we look forward to using digital technology to expand our educational services.”

 

PSPB will use the grant to fund on-channel repeaters to transmit its digital channel, WPSX-DT, to the Johnstown-Altoona region, in order to provide non-commercial, educational digital broadcasting service to additional counties including Blair, Cambria, Huntingdon and Bedford. The station has already funded digital distribution to its Clearfield and Pine Grove transmission facilities.

 

 

 

West Virginia Public Broadcasting

 

(March 2004) West Virginia Public Broadcasting will help rural schools expand their digital technology resources through a $1,660,000 grant from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

 

The schools are located in these counties: Berkeley, Brooke, Grant, Hampshire, Hardy, Jackson, Jefferson, Marshall, Mineral, Morgan, Ohio, Pleasants, Ritchie, Wirt and Wood. These schools will be the first in the state capable of receiving content through this technology.

 

“Through these digital translators, we’ll be able to broadcast course-related materials to teachers and students, programming information, and selected portions of the World Wide Web to homes and schools in these 15 counties. This significant grant continues our mission to provide high quality educational material to the classroom,” said Rita Ray, executive director of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

 

 

 

Read the APTS press release on USDA grant program

 

Visit the USDA Rural Development website