 In December of 1984, Dan Peyton of Mount Zion and Bob Metz of
Decatur started the business known as P&M Communications. The
business began part time from an office in the Decatur home of Metz,
retailing 10- and 12-foot C-band satellite TV systems. In 1986 P&M
purchased MidState Satellite and opened a storefront location in the
former MidState building on Main Street in Decatur.
Metz became the sole owner of P&M in 1987, purchased Tamora
Satellite in Decatur and rolled their customer base in with the
MidState and P&M customer base.
In July of 1988, the Decatur store had outgrown its facility on
Main Street and was moved to a brand-new location at 2235 West Mound
Road, a building that was eight times larger than the original
store.
Also in 1988, Metz purchased the Lincoln-based Home Link
Satellite store. The Lincoln location is currently at 616 N. Chicago
St. Both of his stores now offer an extensive display of
high-definition and giant-screen televisions, in addition to
satellite television installation and cellular phone service through
Verizon.
It is this experience with satellite broadcast and televisions
that allows Bob to explain in layman's terms what changes are coming
in the digital field and what we all must do to be ready.
"Probably the thing that we currently get more questions about,
more than anything else, is about the shut-off of analog TV service
and the switch to digital on Feb. 17, 2009," Metz explained. "All TV
stations currently have both analog and digital transmissions at
this time, with the analog side ceasing to exist in 2009. The only
real concern for this changeover will be for those people who get
their TV programming from an outside antenna and not from cable or
satellite. These people will have to have a TV with a digital tuner.
These tuners are built into all current televisions being sold. For
people who have an older TV without a digital tuner, they will need
a converter box by 2009 in order to continue watching their
programs."
Metz wanted to stress that this box is only necessary for
over-the-air channels, and he did have some good news for people who
don't have dish or cable and older televisions. "The government is
assisting with people who plan to keep analog TVs after Feb. 17,
2009. These people can apply for a $40 government discount coupon to
use to purchase the converter boxes -- limit of two per household --
to offset the cost to switch the TVs to receive digital signals. The
current promoted price for converter boxes is $99, before the $40
coupon or coupons are used."
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Metz wanted to point out, "P&M is signed up to have these converter
boxes, and we plan to have them available for less than $99 sometime
in this coming April."
Metz also wanted to dispel a myth no doubt perpetrated by
unscrupulous television salesmen. "People who have satellite TV or
cable should have no concern, as these services will convert the
signals regardless of whether a customer's TV is analog or digital."
And, he wanted to dispel another rumor. "To watch high-definition
programming, naturally a HDTV is necessary. The converter box
program is to prevent consumers from having to replace every TV in
their home, as many have secondary TVs that are still good TVs but
simply do not have digital tuners -- but it won't turn their
televisions into high-definition sets."
Metz looked back on his 20-plus years in the satellite business.
"When we began retailing satellite TV Systems in Decatur, there were
14 other satellite TV retailers. Now we are the only full-time
satellite retailer in this area, and we still have our own
installers. We believe that our survival has been through good
customer service and keeping our installers and store employees
continually trained and schooled to know our products inside and
out. DISH Network is our largest seller, as they are very
'dealer-oriented' and not strong on box store sales. Each year our
employees attend a four-day training seminar that DISH sponsors to
keep employees trained and on top of the newest innovations. Our
store employees receive updates from our TV reps quarterly so they
can keep up with ongoing changes."
Bob invites everyone to stop at the store at 616 N. Chicago St.
if they still have questions. He also invites them to look at the
huge display of HD big-screen televisions in stock for immediate
delivery -- just in case you don't want to miss out on HD digital
broadcasting. Bringing your own popcorn as you decide which set to
have delivered is optional.
[By MIKE FAK]
Past related article:
Readers can find more of Mike Fak's writing at
www.searchwarp.com
and www.problogs.com.
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