When the problem is Off-Air indoor DTV/HDTV reception for metropolitan/suburban consumers, where line-of-sight to the transmit source is blocked, the best solution is Winegard’s new SharpShooterTM Antenna Platform.
Getting the best DTV/HDTV reception is all about the right antenna. And the best antennas are now necessities, not accessories.
The single largest contributing factor to successful indoor digital antenna installation and DTV/HDTV reception today is the ability of these metropolitan/suburban consumers to buy the right antenna to successfully deal with multi-path or reflected signal. This will be a major issue and significant challenge for installers and DTV/HDTV customers, until the SharpShooterTM is introduced at CES 2005.
The SharpShooterTM SS-3000 addresses this issue by allowing the customer or installer to aim the antenna properly to choose the cleanest reflected digital signal off a wall in the room or a building across the street. This is made possible by the SharpShooterTM’s ability to selectively look at each bounced multi-path signal, one at a time and by design, reject all unwanted multi-path signals. This is very critical for the reception of the best DTV/HDTV picture for downtown urban locations, especially for apartment or condominium dwellers on the wrong side of the building.
As you know, the metropolitan/urban market is the biggest segment of the HDTV market. It was not being served well by existing digital antennas until the release of Winegard’s GETDTV/HDTv TM Series, starting with the outdoor SquareShooter last year, which is now our best selling Off-Air antenna. Getting the best indoor DTV/HDTV Off-Air picture also starts with the best antenna for the job.
To solve this indoor multi-path problem, Winegard will offer at CES 2005, the next and best innovation in this Series, the SharpShooter SS-3000 indoor All-Band DTV/HDTV Digital/Analog Directional/Bi-directional Antenna Platforms.
Why do we say the new SharpShooter is the best indoor DTV/HDTV antenna? Because it solves indoor DTV/HDTV problems no other indoor antenna can solve. The SharpShooterTM incorporates, for the first time together, both an “E-Field” Ultra-Low Noise Amplifier and the same “Scatter Plane” technology found in Winegard’s SquareShooter Series, to deal with these multi-path issues.
The unique reception characteristics of this 26.75″ wide SharpShooter allow it to receive and resonate indoor analog and outstanding DTV signals up to 30 miles from the transmit source. This fact is unheard of in an antenna package of this size, making it a true engineering marvel. The SharpShooterTM’s technical performance, esthetic design and ease of installation, absolutely make this antenna more unique and better suited for the indoor metropolitan/urban segment than any other antenna platform on the market today.
And there is a huge need in this market for an indoor antenna that successfully addresses these issues. Outperforming all, all-band indoor digital antenna systems, there is no other indoor digital antenna platform that can do what the SharpShooterTM can do. This is why Winegard feels that Off-Air antennas should no longer be thought of, by the trade media, as an accessory. Retailers will persist, considering the high profit margin represented by the nature of accessory purchases.
Because they had no where else to put them, the CEA originally put antennas in this category, We guess we’ll remain an accessory to them also, although we will vigorously attempt to make this same educational point to them. The FCC, in their press conference launching their digital HD “GET IT” educational campaign, did touch on the need for the right antenna. As a matter of fact, our SharpShooterTM was shown and discussed during their press conference on C-SPAN last month. Winegard will continue to help the FCC educate consumers by supplying information to them about our Off-Air antennas, the does and don’ts of selection and installation and the right antenna’s very important role in getting free local HD reception.
Our only point here, is that the right DTV/HDTV antenna, considering the role reflected signal plays, is not an option, it is now a requirement. Most of the DTV/HDTV antennas returned to retailers are either the wrong antenna for the location or are in perfect working order and returned because of faulty installation techniques. This means there is a huge need to educate consumers and retailers alike about receiving free Off-Air Digital and HDTV signals. 
