TOWER TECHNOLOGY | RESCAN INSTRUCTIONS
Rescan Instructions
Many Bay Area television stations will be broadcasting on new frequencies to meet Federal Communications Commission requirements by July 2020
If you use an antenna or a converter box to watch free, over-the-air TV, you will need to do a simple rescan to watch local channels without interruption. You will not need to purchase new equipment or services.
If you are a cable or satellite customer, the changeover will be invisible to you — your service provider will do it for you.
When will this happen?
Television stations in the Bay Area are changing the frequencies in two stages: on March 9 at 10 am, and tentatively on April 29 at 1 pm. Broadcast frequencies in most of the country have changed already.
How does it impact me and what do I need to do?
If you rely on an antenna to receive free, over-the-air TV, you will need to RESCAN your television on both dates to continue to receive all local programming.
If you subscribe to a service such as cable or satellite, you do not need to do anything. Your service provider will do it for you.
How Do I Rescan My TV?
Rescanning is a simple process — just follow these steps:
Using the remote control of your television or converter box, press Menu (or Settings).
Locate the Channels or Tuner Setup option.
If the menu has an option of Antenna Type or Connection Type followed by either Antenna or Cable, make sure that the designated setting is Antenna.
Choose Channel Search (based on the manufacturer, alternate choices may be Channel Scan or Digital Channel Search.)
Allow the TV to complete the search. During the search, you may see a bar listing how many channels have been found.
When it’s done, press Exit. After you rescan your set, you’ll find stations on the same channel numbers as before.
What happens if I don’t rescan?
If you don’t see a picture or see a message that says “No Signal” on some channels, you need to rescan.
How can I get help with rescanning?
You can visit www.FCC.gov/TVrescan for more rescan instructions, or call the FCC Consumer hotline at 1-888- 225-5322 and press 6.