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Hotel "Cable" Report - Philadelphia - 2/24/2011

KML0224

KML0224

I stayed overnight at the Holiday Inn Stadium on Packer Avenue in Philadelphia. My view out of the south-facing 10th floor window? A straight-on view of Citizen's Bank Park (home to the Phillies), the I-95 viaduct behind that and the Girard Point Bridge in the distance to the right. Anyways...here's the "cable" I had, via a 32" Philips LCD HDTV, analog lineup and a stretched picture I put into a 4:3 ratio:

2- ESPN [which was kinda fuzzy]
4- WTXF-TV (FOX) channel 29 Philadelphia
8- WPSG-TV (CW) channel 57 Philadelphia
9- TBS
11- TNT
13- HBO
14- ?
15- CNBC
16- MSNBC
17- WPHL-TV (MY) channel 17 Philadelphia
18- Fox News Channel
20- The Weather Channel [with a local 19148 zip code insert]
21- Discovery Channel
22- ESPN 2
23- ESPN U
24- ESPN News
25- Golf Channel
26- Cartoon Network
27- USA
28- VH1
29- Lifetime
30- Nickelodeon
31- History
32- Universal (?) [This was not Universal Sports]
33- HLN
34- A&E
35- KYW-TV (CBS) channel 3 Philadelphia
36- WPVI-TV (ABC) channel 6 Philadelphia
37- WCAU-TV (NBC) channel 10 Philadelphia
38- WHYY-TV (PBS) channel 12 Wilmington, DE [although the channel was just a black screen]
42- Hotel Welcome/Information

I noticed how the Disney Channel was missing, as well as any Spanish stations (Univision from Vineland, NJ and Telemundo).
 
Am I the only one who notices that they carry all of the cable news channels except CNN? Even this hotel knows CNN's best days are behind them! :D (That, or CNN is carried on Channel 14... which explains that question mark...)

Also, I like how they've got VH1, but no MTV. Like it makes a difference - same crap, different targets...

As for Channel 32, it could be that Universal HD channel... it was an HDTV set, right?
 
It was hooked up to a Philips 32" LCD HDTV, but that's where the fun ended. Trust me when I tell you that this lineup was all analog, with ESPN all fuzzy and a weak signal on another channel channel or two.
 
DToTheJ said:
Am I the only one who notices that they carry all of the cable news channels except CNN? Even this hotel knows CNN's best days are behind them! :D (That, or CNN is carried on Channel 14... which explains that question mark...)
Click to expand...

Makes sense, since it'd be right next to CNBC et al...

Or maybe they were waiting for CNN to fire Kathleen Parker, and they'll bring it back now. :D
 
KML-224 said:
Trust me when I tell you that this lineup was all analog, with ESPN all fuzzy and a weak signal on another channel channel or two.
Click to expand...

What do you expect from a Holiday Inn? I don't recall ever staying at any hotel that offered an actual HD picture.
 
I've stayed at hotels that had clear QAM HD locals, including a Comfort Inn and even a Motel 6 (their newly renovated locations have flat screens).
 
Ken said:
Surprise no one caught this, ESPN's college network (ESPN U) is on the channel list.
Click to expand...

And ESPNews right next to it, the classic sign of a LodgeNet system.

But KML probably would have noticed that, based on his previous reports.
 
KML-224 said:
I noticed how the Disney Channel was missing, as well as any Spanish stations (Univision from Vineland, NJ and Telemundo).
Click to expand...

No Univision but Philly is not a large Hispanic market compared to New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Miami, Chicago, Houston or Dallas. I stayed in No. Cal last year and many locals were missing (from the SF market) but the Univision station wasn't. I'd guess Univision is like NBC on most hotel lineups in the state.
 
Right. I know the Philly market has WUVP-TV (UNI) channel 65 from Vineland, NJ and Telmundo channel 62, which is licensed to Atlantic City if I'm not mistaken. TBN channel 48 from Burlington, NJ wasn't on that lineup either, come to think of it. As for a TV having HD available, I had that only once. It was at the hotel I stayed at in Nashville last August. They had a Sanyo 32" LCD HDTV, which is nearly identical to the 2006 model I have except for the screen size. Naturally, I saw the remote, adjusted the picture, did a digital tuner scan and went to work! :)
 
KML, did you see any signs of LodgeNet...the telltale remote, the LodgeNet box? The multiple ESPN channels with analog - that's a general sign of the LodgeNet deal.
 
The remote didn't say LodgeNet. Neither did the TV itself. There was a box attached to the back of the TV though.
 
I like how KML 224 figured out how to get more channels. How many times am I in a hotel and nobody has recently scanned the available channels? Amazing. Management adds or changes channels and neglects to go to each room and update the TV sets! I suppose they don't want to disturb a room that's occupied, then the worker forgets to go back when the room is empty.

Also missing from the Philadelphia Holiday Inn line up is WNJS, the New Jersey PBS station. I'm sure from the hotel's location they could get a clear signal from Waterford Works, Camden County, where the station has its tower.

Maybe the hotel can't get a clear signal from Vineland for Univision? I'd assume they'd also have trouble picking up an Atlantic City signal for Telemundo.

Gregg
[email protected]
 
I did see a lot of ads for Direct TV, if that means anything.

Unlike Philadelphia, the hotel where I stayed last August in Nashville was a huge break. It just happened to be a TV nearly identical to mine, with no attached box from the hotel and the original TV remote. Naturally, I knew what to push, adjust the picture for its proper ratio, etc. I'm sure the next person who stayed in that room would've appreciated it! :)

As for other TVs in other states, it almost worked in Brattleboro, VT at the Super 8. They had a Haier branded 32" LCD HDTV. I wasn't able to get any channels to appear in digital. I was able to do a channel scan and get them into their proper 4:3 ratio, since the channel received were analog.
 
Gregg said:
I like how KML 224 figured out how to get more channels. How many times am I in a hotel and nobody has recently scanned the available channels? Amazing. Management adds or changes channels and neglects to go to each room and update the TV sets! I suppose they don't want to disturb a room that's occupied, then the worker forgets to go back when the room is empty.

Also missing from the Philadelphia Holiday Inn line up is WNJS, the New Jersey PBS station. I'm sure from the hotel's location they could get a clear signal from Waterford Works, Camden County, where the station has its tower.

Maybe the hotel can't get a clear signal from Vineland for Univision? I'd assume they'd also have trouble picking up an Atlantic City signal for Telemundo.

Gregg
[email protected]
Click to expand...

There is also the WPPX 61. From Philadelphia, there should be no problem picking up WNJS WGTW WPPX WUVP WMCN along with the big 7 stations. The only one that is difficult to pick up is WWSI Telemundo. But, if the hotel is receiving the channels from Comcast or satellite, it doesn't matter.

Anyways, hotel systems can choose not to carry the full broadcast lineup. They are not obligated to must-carry :)
 
I stayed in Northern California, and KFTY was missing from the hotel lineup even though it is the local station of the area. The reason is KFTY negotiated with Comcast for full Bay Area coverage and thus they were moved to Ch.199 on all systems. However, that banished them off of analog cable, and thus it lost the low number coverage in its immediate area as well.

In doing so, I'm sure the hospitals, fitness centers and hotels in the region likely weren't carrying the local station- KFTY in the limited 30 channel packaged lineups.

In Philly, I'm sure Reading licensed WTVE could arrange a deal like that to get full market coverage, but imo, it's probably not worth it in this situation.
 
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