Penn State Intercom......March 27, 2003
WPSX becomes nation's 100th
digital public television station 
Penn State Public Broadcasting is the 100th public television station to convert to digital transmission, according to John Lawson, president and chief executive officer of the Association of Public Television Stations.
Lawson said, "With this milestone, more than 27 percent of America's public television stations are transmitting a digital signal. Public television's progress in meeting the conversion is primarily the result of extraordinary support from state governments and local capital campaigns with some important support in the past few years from federal sources. The willingness of state and local communities to support local public television stations in the face of their own budget concerns demonstrates the value these communities place on their stations and the services they provide."
Since 1964, Penn State Public Broadcasting has grown from an educational television station with limited programming and broadcast range to serving one of the largest public broadcasting coverage areas in the nation. WPSX-TV reaches almost 500,000 households in central Pennsylv ania and southern New York, and for many rural Pennsylvanians, WPSX-TV is the only signal they can receive without cable.
"The potential of digital broadcasting is boundless," said Ted Krichels, general manager of Penn State Public Broadcasting. "We will have the capacity to deliver more programs via multicasting and to provide additional services, such as Web links, online discussions and educational materials for teachers."
However, there are 257 public television stations that still need to meet the federal government's May deadline for the conversion, Lawson said. He noted that recent budget constraints have eliminated funding for the Public Television Facilities Program, which in 2000, awarded WPSX a grant to assist in the conversion. The grant covered a transmitter, an antenna and tower, transmission line, test equipment and other items.