# When your locals become available



## tampa8 (Mar 30, 2002)

I'm looking for an answer from someone who is in this situation or directly knows the answer.

If your locals are not on the bird yet, and you qualify for distant nets (your in a white area) can you keep the distants when the locals are put up for your DMA? This would give you three channels for each network - the two distance and now the local.

Thanks to all that reply! :shrug:


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## scooper (Apr 22, 2002)

Short answer - yes. However, this also depends on your DBS provider being willing to sell them to you. In some cases, when YOUR locals become available, some DBS subs have lost their Distant nets. Some of this may be due to Retransmission agreements - but we don't necessarily know the whole story.


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## spanishannouncetable (Apr 23, 2002)

I kept my distants with Directv. I've had all 4 since the PT24 days, then got waivers for 2 in 1999 when Directv said I needed them.

I added my own locals when Directv 4s started up in December - no muss, no fuss 

As long as you qualify for distants, whether by "white area" or waiver status, Directv will not take them away REGARDLESS of whether your DMA locals are on satellite. They are 2 seperate things, judged by 2 seperate standards, and having either one of them has no bearing on the other.


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## TNGTony (Mar 23, 2002)

I kept my distants when Cincinnati became available and I ordered them

The only network I lost much later was PBS (Last March)

See ya
Tony


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## RichW (Mar 29, 2002)

Yep, I get the Portland locals and Distant nets from Denver and Chicago.


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## Rusty (Apr 26, 2002)

You nice folks have just made my day. I live in Parkersburg, WV, DMA #185, where the only truly local station is an NBC affil. They were nice enough to give me a waiver so I get all four major nets as "Distants". Under the pre-merger plans, DirecTV would have never gotten this far down on the list to provide so-called "locals". But, since they are pulling out all stops to try and get merger approval, they have promised to provide locals in all markets. That's the main reason that I have been strongly anti-merger. If what you say holds true, I will retain my NY & LA channels. Thanks for the good info.


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## jrjcd (Apr 23, 2002)

unfortunately, after six months, i lost my distants(the main reason i'm considering going expressvue, to be honest)and i suspect those who have locasl in their dma and still have distants are just falling thru the cracks and getting them on borrowed time-i suggest you don't bring attention to yourself or change your programming package as this might be the trigger to you losing the distants-and don't cry "i'm grandfathered" should it happen-that defense ended about two months ago...


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## Chuck W (Mar 26, 2002)

> _Originally posted by jrjcd _
> *unfortunately, after six months, i lost my distants(the main reason i'm considering going expressvue, to be honest)and i suspect those who have locasl in their dma and still have distants are just falling thru the cracks and getting them on borrowed time-i suggest you don't bring attention to yourself or change your programming package as this might be the trigger to you losing the distants-and don't cry "i'm grandfathered" should it happen-that defense ended about two months ago... *


Grandfathered(ie, from a few years ago) is a whole different situation. I'm not sure how they deal with that, but if you have actual waivers from the networks, then you can keep distant nets. Distant nets and you local channels are 2 seperate issues.

The only way you would lose them, if you did have waivers, is if the networks recinded the waivers. I suppose they could do this, but to date, I have yet to hear it happen to anyone. The exception to this is PBS. I had a waiver for the national feed, but after my locals came on(Hartford), they recinded the waiver, saying that was part of a deal they worked out with Directv.

Hey Rusty, 
how did you get a waiver from the NBC station? My inlaws live in Beverly(they used to live in Marietta) and while ABC, CBS and FOX have granted them waivers, NBC won't budge. Just wondering if I can give them some advice on how to get them that waiver.


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## jrjcd (Apr 23, 2002)

well, once locals become available in a DMA, it's easier to get a sit down with the pope than to get a network waiver...lol


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## Chuck W (Mar 26, 2002)

> _Originally posted by jrjcd _
> *well, once locals become available in a DMA, it's easier to get a sit down with the pope than to get a network waiver...lol *


It depends on the area. I requested waivers thru Pegasus the day BEFORE Directv announced Hartford locals were on the way. This means the networks considered my waiver request, ALREADY knowing Hartford was coming to Directv, yet every one of my waivers were granted.


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## Rusty (Apr 26, 2002)

> _Originally posted by Chuck W _
> *
> 
> Hey Rusty,
> how did you get a waiver from the NBC station? My inlaws live in Beverly(they used to live in Marietta) and while ABC, CBS and FOX have granted them waivers, NBC won't budge. Just wondering if I can give them some advice on how to get them that waiver. *


Hi Chuck,
At first I let DirecTV apply for the waiver. This request was turned down. I then went to the station's website,www.wtap.com and looked through their list of e-mail addresses. I then sent an e-mail to the general manager in which I shamelessly groveled. To my pleasant surprise, several weeks later, I received a letter via snail mail that contained my waiver. I then sent the GM a thank you letter, also via snail mail. I heard of one other guy getting a waiver. He actually went to the station and made his request in person.


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