Yea!!! CBS HDTV on Directv in time for Superbowl!!!!

http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/040107/nyw077_1.html

The news is good,however they state in "owned and operated markets"....meaning if you live where CBS is an affiliate (not owned by CBS)you will need a waiver from that station and they are very seldom co-operative in doing so.I also believe that more of the country is in the latter category.Hopefully we can get clarification soon and at least it's heading in the right direction!

I got a waiver rejection from an O&O (KPIX), and they always wait the full 45 days allowed before notifying you. Waivers are still a big hassle. (I didn’t challenge the rejection since I eventually, through a Herculean effort, got an OTA antenna to work.)

I called DirecTV to find out more information and they know nothing of this new press release. Did I talk to the wrong person, or is it likely the employees at DirecTV have not heard anything? I got the Analog CBS waiver as my area does not have locals on DTV yet, and am sure I will get a waiver for the HD channel, just need to know who to talk to at DirecTV to get it started. Any ideas?

I'm still unsure as to what this means. Since I'm in the remote canyonlands of Southeast Utah, 26 miles from the nearest town and 250 miles from the nearest local station, I get no OTA material(or I guess I should say that it is unwatchable even with big antennas, boosters, etc.)...DirecTV is my only source. I have both the national network package (New York and LA) and the local networks (Salt Lake) via DirecTV. Will I be able to get the HDTV feed via both? If so, will it be on different channels than the standard signal? I see that the OTA digital channels are different. Does anyone know if we have to make special arrangements with DirecTV to receive the network HDTV broadcast?

I often marvel at how far we've come since I got my first TV at the cabin in 1974...for years, I thought those snowy, intermittent pictures were fabulous. Now I have trouble watching anything other than high-def material.

It's about time DirecTV got on the HDTV bandwagon...I've been considering switching providers because of their lack of HDTV content...and I'm sure I'm not alone.

If you already have national CBS then you're probably ok. They'll have to send you non-local CBS programming which could interfere with local CBS programming. So if you can receive both you need a waiver. I'm sure it's exactly the same reason.

As for DirecTV getting on the bandwagon that depends on your situation. I have no HD capability with cable. I already have an OTA antenna. Most cable companies don't have all the networks nor do they have all the "cable" channels like HDnet, discovery HD and ESPNHD. So I think they're about even right now.

The best combination is OTA plus satellite. That gives me the following HD channels:

ABC
CBS
FOX (digital at least)
TBS
WB
UPN
HBO
SHO (if I wanted it)
Pay Per View (1 channel)
ESPN
HDNet
HDNet Movies
Discovery HD

IF (and that's a big IF) DirecTV gets their new satellites and adds network HD feeds they'll be way ahead of cable.