SUNBURY - After March 1, all the Service Electric Cablevision channels above 28 are digital, and those with old analog television sets are only be able to receive the first 23 channels.
This is part of a initiative by the company to provide the highest quality television service to customers.
"That's why it's important to get the DTAs (digital transport adapter or a digital converter). The first two are free, but then it's $1.95 after that," said Dwight Walter, general manager of Service Electric's Sunbury office.
Last year, Service Electric started the initial stages of the switchover. They have worked on two major projects to provide those switchovers to their customers and hope to get the final group of customers taken care of in the coming weeks.
"We'll hopefully be over the hill soon," he said in February.
Additionally, Dwight said the company has been busy providing internal wiring and new lines to houses.
This initiative means more HD channels and increasing the speed of the Internet service, giving customers the availability to purchase a faster connection.
"People look for speed. It's a never-ending cycle. People want more and more. They want their programs to run better. The more bandwidth given, the more they'll take," said Walter.
The reason for the change is because it's "the wave of the future," he said.
"The movement today is toward more HD play. You see HD products and you know it's a better picture and better sound. Everybody wants the best. HD gives the best picture and there's more HD out there," he said.
There are more than 100 HD channels and a customer must get the classic cable for a selection of this and must have a digital converter.
There are several channels coming to Service Electric customers this year in the form of HD, including NASA HD, CSPAN2, Fox Sports Pittsburgh HD, BBC HD, Fox Movie Channel HD and Fuel HD. Fox Sports is included in the high-definition package.
Furthermore, said Walter, the company will be offering caller ID on television.
"If you have phone service and a converter box, the TV will display the caller 23 seconds before the ring on the bottom," he said.
If the number is blocked, it will indicate this and can be turned off if wanted.
The company will also be exploring the option of moving its Sunbury operation to a new building on Route 11 near Zartman Construction, 3000 Point Township Drive, Northumberland.
It will be a total complex complete with a warehouse, office, field and satellite dishes.
At this point, their operations are divided between two locations in Sunbury.
"From an operation standpoint, everyone will be there," said Walter.
However, no timeline for this has been determined, and Walter said they will be waiting until spring for more planning.
The company is constantly adding more and more fiber for Internet access, including in the Shamokin, Mount Carmel area and Northumberland areas.
They are establishing what Walter calls "redundant routes," which are alternate lines that create a circle. This way, if a line goes out, the service will still be able to travel through a different way.
The company has been in existence since 1948 when John Watson started it in Mahonoy City with the idea of hooking a cable up to an antenna on a mountain so he could sell TVs.
"I'm proud of the employees," said Walter. "They try to do the best they can every day to provide the service people want."