The public, education and government (PEG) station, which will remain on Channel 24 with Spectrum, now has all of its programming streaming on the Cablecast app in high definition. The Over-The-Top media service aggregates live and on-demand shows from PEG channels, streaming them in high definition on mobile devices.
HD viewing is not yet available on Spectrum Channel 24, but it’s eventually coming once what’s called a “channel build” is completed later this year, said Steve Colwell, TVHamilton’s director.
The upgrade to high definition happened because of TVHamilton’s move from 20 High St., which will be redeveloped into a hotel, to the basement the Hamilton city building at 345 High St. Steve Colwell, TVHamilton’s director, said Spectrum required the upgrade, which cost $28,000, because of the move.
TVHamilton showcases activities and events in the city of Hamilton, school concerts and sporting events to business openings and local government meetings and initiatives. Daily operations and programming for TVHamilton is done by Colwell, but it’s operated by a board of directors and the station is a partnership between the city of Hamilton, the Hamilton City School District, and the Hamilton Community Foundation.
It’s taken several months to transition from standard definition to high definition. Once the “channel build” (the process required with the equipment upgrade and relocation) is complete, Colwell said, “We’re going to be one of the first local (PEG) channels (on Spectrum) in the region that are in high definition.”
The equipment upgrades will allow TVHamilton the flexibility on a couple of fronts.
One, allows someone without cable to watch TVHamilton with the over-the-top app on devices like Roku and Apple TV, as well as smartphone. Viewers can stream live and watch on-demand programming on the app.
Two, they can go live at an event on multiple social media platforms, and eventually on Spectrum when the “channel build” is complete.
The inclusion of the Cablecast app does not replace TVHamilton’s social media presence, which is predominately on Facebook but also includes YouTube, Twitter and TikTok.
The Hamilton Community Foundation has had a longstanding partnership with TVHamilton, and helped fund half the cost of the switch to HD. John Guidugli, president and CEO of the Hamilton Community Foundation, said this “is just one more way we’re supporting their efforts to grow and continue sharing the important stories of our community.”
“TvHamilton has done an outstanding job of embracing new technologies and platforms, serving as a valuable source of information for audiences inside Hamilton and those outside our community,” he said.
TVHamilton programming schedules can be found online at TVHamilton.com or every Monday in the Journal-News.
Hamilton School Board member and TVHamilton board member Laurin Sprague said TVHamilton makes not only the city look good, but the Hamilton City Schools, which is one of the channel’s funders.
“Part of the strategic plan for TVHamilton is to promote education, specifically us but other education institutions,” he said. “This whole thing with Cablecast is an incredible opportunity for us to get our word out even more.”
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