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How to get free HDTV<!-- LANDSCAPE IMAGE FOR THE ARTICLE--><SCRIPT type=text/javascript>var imageL= '/images/00/7f/84ffb9d9461fb5bfa56eb172258a.jpeg'if(imageL) {document.write('');} else{document.write('');}</SCRIPT> RICK EGLINTON/TORONTO STAR Karim Sunderani uses an outdoor antenna model to get HD TV at his Save and Replay store in Mississauga. He says antenna sales are soaring. <!-- ABOVE ARTICLE TOOLBOX --><!-- ARTICLE TOOLBOX --> Print Choose text size <SCRIPT type=text/javascript> document.write('Report typo or correction'); </SCRIPT> Report typo or correction License this article<SCRIPT type=text/javascript>var addthis_pub = '';</SCRIPT><SCRIPT src="http://s9.addthis.com/js/widget.php?v=10" type=text/javascript></SCRIPT> HDTV broadcasts near Toronto <!-- SIDE BAR CONTAINER -->HDTV: THE COST, THE SERVICEBell TV: $199 for basic HD receiver, plus $33 a month Basic HD satellite comes with 100 channels, 16 of which are HD: CBC Toronto, CBC Vancouver, CTV Toronto, CTV Vancouver, CityTV, Global Ontario, Global BC, APTN, TQS, TVA, SRC, ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, PBSRogers Cable: $249 for basic HD receiver, plus $29.99 a month 15 HD channels included in basic package in GTA: CBC, CBC Newsworld, CTV, CityTV, Global, SRC, ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, PBS, Sportsnet Ontario, Raptors NBA TV, OMNI 1, SunTVAntenna: $55HD channels you could pick up, depending on where you are in the GTA:CBC, CTV, CityTV, Global, SRC, E! Channel, OMNI 1, OMNI 2, SunTV, NBC, CBS, ABC, FOX29, CW23, PBS, Think Bright, CTSMay 26, 2009 04:30 AM Comments on this story (43) Kenyon Wallace <!-- CREDIT 1-->STAFF REPORTER<!-- ARTICLE CONTENT -->Karim Sunderani flicks through channels on a 40-inch high-definition flat panel television at his Mississauga electronics store, Save and Replay. The picture is crystal clear, the sound powerful. But the stunning HD images don't come via cable or satellite. They come over the air. For free."All you need is an antenna, just like in the old days, and an HD television with a digital tuner," says Sunderani, adding that he has sold more than 1,000 antennas a month since March. While there aren't any official government or industry figures, electronics stores across the GTA are reporting surges in demand for antennas, metal grids about one metre by half a metre with several protruding spokes. No technical savvy needed ? just plug into the back of your HD TV and enjoy as many as 18 high-def channels. And not a cent goes to the cable companies."In the poor economy, people are looking for ways to cut back. When they see the clarity you get from HD channels using an antenna, it blows them away," said Paul Schukow, a salesperson at Radioworld on Steeles Ave. W. in Toronto.He said the store has been selling hundreds of antennas every month since last fall.The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) requires networks to broadcast locally over the air in either analogue or standard definition in order for networks to enjoy low channel placement and must-carry status on cable and satellite providers. That means you can pick up the channels for free if you have an antenna. Here's why you can pick them up in HD: as of August 2011, all Canadian stations must convert to digital, and high definition is becoming the digital standard. The United States is expected to complete its transition to digital next month.Sunderani says most people with an antenna in the GTA can pick up about 18 HD channels broadcast from towers in Toronto, Hamilton and Buffalo. These include CBC, CTV, Global, CityTV, ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX and PBS. Customers can expect to spend a mere $55 on an antenna and another $8 for a good co-axial cable to run into the back of a television, he says. Some older HD TVs don't have digital ATSC tuners, but a good digital converter box can fix this and will set you back about $85. Cheaper "rabbit ears" antennas will also pick up a few HD channels. Viewers might have to walk around their homes carrying the antenna to figure out where to get the best signal, he says. Jon LeBlanc is the moderator of digitalhome.ca, a popular discussion board about the airwaves. He says that, in the five years the forum has been open, he has seen a "huge increase" in interest from people asking questions about how to take advantage of the free HD signals. The Delta, B.C., resident gets 14 HD channels using an antenna and contends the over-the-air signals he gets are superior in sound and picture to compressed HD signals from cable and satellite providers."There has been an unfortunate misconception that one must pay a monthly fee to get television," says LeBlanc, who has a background in high-tech. "What we're seeing is the curtain being drawn back. It's a renaissance."Thousands of Canadians are starting to reject the 500-channel universe in favour of a more "manageable" number of channels with a local flavour, he says. He acknowledges that free signals don't provide the choice of programming that many viewers want, but says over-the-air broadcasts are a threat to cable and satellite providers.Not so, says Julie Smithers, a spokesperson for Bell TV. "For a very long time, Canadians have been able to pull in conventional TV reception using antennas and aerials. We've seen very little impact on our business," she said.David Purdy, vice-president of video product management for Rogers Communications, says only 6 per cent of TV viewers get their signals over the air, a number he predicts will decline as Canada switches from analogue to digital."The long-term phenomenon that's been created by both digital cable and the Internet is that people are demanding more choice, not less," he said. "I believe that a linear television offering, whether that be through an antenna or even satellite, is not going to meet customer expectations in the short, medium and long term," he said, adding that "on demand" capability is the future of digital television.
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