What is happening?
By Federal Law, nearly 1,000 television stations across the country are required to move frequencies, affecting free over-the-air antenna signals, to make room for wireless internet broadband services. (Viewers who subscribe to cable or satellite television will not be affected.)
As a result, ABC Action News/WFTS-TV moved frequencies on January 16th at 10 a.m. This move is happening behind the scenes, so the channel numbers you know (28.1-28.4) will not change, but you will have to rescan your TV. Rescanning is when your TV finds all of the available channels in the Bay area.
Viewers who watch TV over the air with an antenna will need to rescan their TV sets.
You will not need to purchase any new equipment or services. As we work to make this change, some interruption of service may be experienced.
Why is it happening?
Wireless internet shares the same spectrum as over-the-air broadcast television. In 2012, Congress authorized the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to hold an auction and reallocate broadcast TV airwaves for use by wireless services. At the conclusion of the auction, the FCC determined that nearly 1,000 TV stations must now move to new frequencies to make room for wireless internet carriers. These moves will take place beginning in 2018 and continue through at least April 2020.
What does this mean for you?
Viewers who rely on an antenna to watch TV free, over the air, will need to take steps to rescan their television sets when a local station changes frequencies. They will not need to purchase any equipment or services. Viewers who subscribe to cable or satellite television will not be affected. Rescanning is a straightforward process: select "scan" or "autotune" from your TV or converter box control menu to start the scanning process. Instructions are usually available by pressing the "set-up" or "menu" buttons on your remote control.
How to rescan
Select "scan" or "autotune" from your TV or converter box control menu to start the scanning process. You can usually find instructions by pressing the "set-up" or "menu" buttons on your television or digital antenna remote control. If you have difficulty, consult the owner's manual for more detailed instructions on how to run a channel scan, or contact customer service for your TV or converter box manufacturer.
After you rescan your TV set, the channel number for your local TV station will remain the same. If you haven’t rescanned your TV recently, you may discover TV channels that you didn’t know you were missing.
Because specific rescan procedures may vary by manufacturer, TVAnswers.org has provided links below to the online support pages of many popular brands.
- Channel Master Antennas
- DISH Network DTVPAL
- Elemental (Includes Channel Scan Video Instructions)
- Funai (Includes support manuals for Sylvania, Emerson, Durabrand, Symphonic and Funai television sets)
- Haier
- Hisense
- Hitachi
- Insignia (Includes YouTube Video)
- Insignia NS-DXA1-APT
- JVC
- LG
- Magnavox (This will redirect you to the Funai website)
- Panasonic
- Philips
- Polaroid
- Proscan
- Samsung
- Sanyo
- Sceptre
- Sharp
- Sony
- Symphonic (This will redirect you to the Funai website)
- TCL
- Toshiba
- Vizio
- Westinghouse
- Zenith
For more information
For additional help, please contact the Federal Communications Commission’s hotline at 1-888-CALLFCC (1-888-225-5322) and press "6" to speak to a help desk representative. The call center is staffed from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. Eastern time, seven days a week, to enable consumers throughout the country to obtain assistance during evening and weekend hours.
