Stations preparing to move to new frequencies as part of the spectrum repack should expect and prepare for an increase in viewer questions. On the phone and through e-mail and social media, viewers are raising issues ranging from the conceptual to the technical—and training station staff to handle higher inbound question volume is one key way to ensure a smooth transition.
Reno’s KTVN did a particularly excellent job handling viewer queries, and their experience may help stations preparing for repack anticipate and respond to over-the-air viewers who run into issues while rescanning their antenna televisions. To learn more about KTVN’s plan of attack, we sat down with its General Manager, Lawson Fox.
And while localized information direct from a station is preferred, there are additional resources to help viewers. They include:
- Consumer FAQs from the FCC
- The FCC Consumer Hotline: 1-888-225-5322, option 6
- TV Answers FAQs
- TV Answers also responds to viewer questions at this blog, on Facebook and Twitter
Approximately how many repack-related viewer questions did KTVN receive?
I think it was about 250. It was significant but not overwhelming. We coached our staff on how to handle viewer questions, posted information to our website and ran educational PSAs. It seemed most people were able to rescan successfully. The calls that required our help were generally from older, less tech-savvy viewers. The one problem that was nearly impossible to overcome was a lost or damaged remote control. This was often the issue faced by people with the fewest resources to solve problems themselves or buy a replacement.
What did KTVN do to prepare for an increase in viewer questions?
We distributed talking points to our staff. We used NAB’s TV Answers materials edited to include information relevant to our specific situation.
For how many days did you receive rescan questions?
We received questions from the time we increased our on-air campaign. The heaviest promotion effort covered the two weeks prior to the transition. Most calls subsided within a week, but we still get an occasional call today. Sometimes people turn on a lightly-used set and discover their channels are gone, or they have been travelling for a long time and come back wondering what is going on.
What did viewers need help with the most?
Working their way through the menus on their TVs or converter boxes. The viewers who could not do it on their own probably had not accessed the menus on their TV sets since they took them out of the box. And different manufacturers use different terminology. These calls are often lengthy, but with patience most can be coached through it on the phone.
What, if anything, surprised you about how viewers responded to the transition?
I was surprised how many must have rescanned successfully without our help. Twenty percent of viewing is done through an antenna in our market and we did not take tens of thousands of calls. Also, stations should remember to provide TiVo and other guide providers with your transition information as they have to update the receive frequency in their guide for their tuners and DVR functions to work properly with your new channel.
You actually sent station employees to viewers’ homes to help them with rescanning. What prompted you to take this step?
We did make about 15 house calls. The people who could not find our channels were, for the most part, elderly and relied on antenna-received TV. Our station often was about the only joy some of these people had in their lives. We took it on out of a desire to help people in need.
May you share with us the experience you had with the senior viewer who needed a new converter box?
There was a disabled, 92-year-old woman who lived about 35 miles away. She was desperate after losing our channel as she lived on a very fixed income. Her converter box was likely a very early one as its white plastic case had turned yellow. Her remote control no longer worked. This box had no discernable means for accessing its menus to execute a rescan without the remote. She needed a replacement converter box if she was going to be able to continue to watch the channels that she loved, so we went and bought her one. She was most appreciative. I was glad to discover that converter boxes are still available in local stores.
What advice may you give to stations preparing for their transitions?
Follow the NAB guidelines regarding viewer education. The material on TVAnswers.org is excellent and it really guided us through a successful transition. Luckily, we were transitioning from one VHF channel to another VHF using the same antenna location so people who successfully watched us in the past were very likely to be able to continue to do so without any effort beyond doing a rescan. For stations changing bands or transmitter site locations, the challenges will be much greater so take your planning and execution effort seriously. Best wishes for a successful transition.