Affected? What to Do

Remember, if you watch television via cable, satellite, or the Internet, you are not affected. You do not need to buy additional equipment or subscribe to additional TV services to receive over-the-air digital television.

Your Local Stations Have Switched to Digital Television

If your television has an integrated digital tuner, you can continue viewing local stations that have switched to over-the-air digital signals.

If your television does not have a digital tuner, but you wish to continue viewing local stations that have switched to digital signals, you have three options:

Install a Digital-to-Analog Converter Box

A digital-to-analog converter box connects to your television and converts digital signals so that they can be viewed on your analog television. If you have more than one television, you will need a converter for each one.

See the Digital-to-Analog Converter Box page for more information.

Buy a Digital Television

See the Before You Buy a Television page for more information.

Subscribe to Cable, Satellite, or an Internet-protocol (IP) Television Service

Contact your local provider for information on available services. Remember, there are normally fees to subscribe to cable, satellite or IP television service.

Your Local Stations Discontinued Their Over-the-Air Broadcasting or Changed Their Coverage Zone

If a local station is no longer broadcasting over-the-air and you wish to continue viewing the same network, you need to subscribe to cable, satellite or IP television service for each television set that is affected. You may also need to subscribe to one of these services if your station’s digital coverage area is different from its analog coverage area.

Shaw Direct has put in place an assistance program for eligible households. Information about this limited-time offer is available on the Shaw Direct DTV Web page.

Municipalities, band councils and community organizations may want to consider the option of operating their own TV transmitters and providing over-the-air TV signals to replace discontinued channels. For more information about this alternative, visit the Web site of the Canadian Association of Community Television Users and Stations (CACTUS).