“how are you getting more stations without cable?”
I noticed that also when I hooked my digital TV up to a digital antenna. With digital over the air, each signal can carry multiple stations.
The CBS affiliate in may area is channel 4, but over digital there is 4-1, 4-2, 4-3, & 4-4. Four channels comming over a single signal. The religious broad casting station was sending out 6 channels over a single signal.
So, lets say there are 12 channel/signals in your area.
12 signals x 6 channels per signal = 72 channels!
I think this will be the eventual end of cable/satellite service. The marginal cost to add an extra channel to an existing signal is probably close to zero. Eventualy there will be so many free, over the air channels available that people will ask “why am I paying $50 a month for cable?”
Because it's not the number of channels that drive cable sales, it's what's on cable. People can't get ESPN OTA, so they'll pay for cable. ESPN drives cable sales.
Of course they aren’t really channels. They’re sub versions of CBS or whatever. There’s stuff on cable I want, not getting rid of it.