Well-known face to help TV switch

Wanganui residents will have a familiar face on hand to help them through the change over to digital television in 2013.
Robin Winter, formerly manager of Mainstreet Wanganui has been employed by the Government to help implement their $13 million-dollar Going Digital campaign.
She and seven other "ordinary" people, without prior technological expertise, have been trained to help guide people through the technology they have, and what they need to make the change.
Although Wanganui is one of the last places in the country to undertake the changeover - it won't take place until September/October 2013, Ms Winter, who lives in Woodville, has already started the education process in her service areas, Tararua, Wanganui/Manawatu and the Rangitikei.
Ms Winter said she would be visiting Wanganui from Wednesday next week in her first trip back to the River City in her new capacity.
In her initial visit, she would be meeting with Mayor Annette Main, to organise making a presentation to council, and local electronics retailers and installers who would be dealing with the products people might need.
She would then be visiting the city once a month until the changeover took place in 2013. Ms Winter said it had been a huge learning curve for her.
She said she had learned a lot for how it would be for other people, and that it was vital to find ways to make the information about the digital changeover understandable to everyone.
"A lot of people are probably already [watching] digital and they don't know it, and they don't have to do anything for the change," she said.
Keeping the technological-lingo to a minimum and approaching questions in a way people could relate to was something she aimed to do, and would be speaking to retailers about.
But people had time to explore their options and find out exactly what they needed, she said.
Another development in the works for Wanganui was its own translator, which would provide more households with Ultra High Frequency (UHF) signal.
Wanganui currently gets its UHF signal from Wharite.
The Chronicle understands the proposed site for a new translator may be Roberts Ave in Aramoho.
Ms Winter said the Ministry for Culture and Heritage was currently in negotiations with the broadcasting industry about extending the digital terrestrial television network in Wanganui.
For more information, residents can call the centre on 0800 838 800 and, to speak to Ms Winter, ask to be put through to her mobile.
 
THE DETAILS
- Switching to digital will free up the radio spectrum in the 700mhz range for next generation mobile telecommunication services.
- Anyone already watching channels like TVNZ6 or TVNZ7, or using a Freeview compatible device like PlayStation 3's Play TV or TiVo, has also already gone digital
- To get digital television, analogue network users will have to buy either an ultra-high-frequency (UHF) aerial and set-top box, or a satellite dish and set-top box. Or they can sign up with a pay television service such as Sky TV, and they will install the necessary equipment.