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Do Any Canadian TV Stations Have Secondary Digital Channels?

G

Gregg

In the U.S., I'd say about half the TV stations are now sending out at least one and possibly more secondary digital channels.

In NYC, WNBC has a youth-oriented news and gossip channel called "NY Non-Stop," plus the Universal Sports channel. WABC-TV has a continuous weather channel using their weathercasters and Accu-Weather feeds. WABC-TV also has "Live Well," a health, diet and excercise channel.

Are any Canadian TV stations experimenting with secondary channels yet? My cable system also carries these channels on its digital tier.


Gregg
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The short answer is no - the CRTC hasn't allowed it.

Some stations, however, have an SD feed on one subchannel and an HD feed on another subchannel. That's the extent of it though.
 
Canada has rules about the amount of Canadian programming that must be aired, so the only chances you'll see a second subchannel is if its all Canadian progamming, and Im not even sure if they could do that.

It would be nice if channels with a common owner or an agreement shared the same carrier channel if they don't plan on/aren't allowed to have subchannels. With PSIP they could both have their own channel number, and that way it would save on electricity to broadcast. Im pretty sure you can fit 2 720p channels on the same carrier channel, not sure about 1080 though.
 
spunker88 said:
Canada has rules about the amount of Canadian programming that must be aired, so the only chances you'll see a second subchannel is if its all Canadian progamming, and Im not even sure if they could do that.

It would be nice if channels with a common owner or an agreement shared the same carrier channel if they don't plan on/aren't allowed to have subchannels. With PSIP they could both have their own channel number, and that way it would save on electricity to broadcast. Im pretty sure you can fit 2 720p channels on the same carrier channel, not sure about 1080 though.
Click to expand...

Indeed, the CRTC has suggested just that. Not that I know of anyone doing it.
 
That would make sense, especially for stations transmitting just outside a market but really targetting it, or for stations that have inferior power levels.

For instance, CKVR 3 Barrie, co-owned with CITY, could be a secondary channel on the CN Tower, as 57.2, along with its Barrie transmitter. Or CHCH 11 could be on a secondary channel also on the CN Tower, in addition to its Hamilton area transmitter.

In Montreal, CFTU 29, Canal Savoir, an educational station, has long been on a weak signal. Maybe it could piggyback on a higher power TV signal as a secondary channel?

And why not allow CBC News Network and SRC Reseau de l'Information to piggyback on CBC/SRC signals? They certainly have Canadian content. Should you HAVE to subscribe to cable or satellite to get those stations?

And who's to say CTV or Global couldn't develop a secondary channel like "This TV" running old Canadian TV shows and movies. Shows like Street Legal, Danger Bay, E.N.G, Tommy Hunter, King of Kennsington, Friendly Giant and Mr. Dressup might still have life in them for viewers who only have over-the-air TV and not cable/satellite. These shows have disappeared from the airwaves in the last few years but could be packaged into a secondary channel like Sea Hunt, Patty Duke and Mr. Ed are packaged into "This TV," a secondary channel available in many U.S. cities.

Gregg
[email protected]
 
That sounds pretty viable to me.

Here's one party of thought though. I read somewhere (might've been on the Canadian "Digital Forum" sight) that perfectionists of video see issues with U.S. stations, and the plethora of sub-channels, only serving to squash the available bandwidth, thereby causing diminished quality of their signals. IE; SUB-channels deliver SUB-quality! Canada seems to watch carefully what the U.S. pushes ahead with, and then treads gracefully trying not to mimic our activity, or enter into what may become potential problems. They can then say, "we have the best HD picture ... by not stretching our capabilities too thin like the Americans do".

Does that hold water? --- ???
 
They can used one of the Radio-Canada stations in Kamloops, Prince George, BC Medicine Hat AB, and Brandon, MB which doesn't have a full-time CBC affiliate. Also some of the smaller stations in Canada only has CBC or SRC in Quebec.
 
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