AFN Prepares to Transition to High Definition

NAPLES, Italy (NNS) -- Armed Forces Network (AFN) Europe aims to transition all of its channels from analog to high definition (HD) over the course of the next few years.

As part of the shift, Naval Support Activity Naples Housing Welcome Center began offering to exchange analog AFN decoders with the new HD decoders for off-base residents who have home leases through the Housing Welcome Center Jan. 2.

Currently, the only channel offered in HD for Naples area residents is AFN|sports.

There are four locations where off base residents can exchange their analog receiver/decoder for the new Cisco D9865 AFN receiver/decoder; Teverola Housing Warehouse (off base), Capo Bachelor Housing Office, Support Site Housing Welcome Center and the Gaeta Housing Office.

"Customers can pick up the new HD decoder box by taking your current decoder that was previously issued to you to one of the four sites listed to do the exchange," said Ricky Sizemore, NSA Naples housing department warehouse manager. "Exchanging decoders will not cost anything extra."

According to AFN's website, the availability of AFN|sports HD coincides with the launch of the new satellite serving Europe. The EuroBird 9A (EB9A) satellite gives AFN the bandwidth necessary to downlink AFN|sports HD to the AFN audience in Africa, Europe and Southwest Asia. While many customers in the Pacific region have AFN|sports HD, the previous HotBird satellites servicing Europe didn not offer that capability.

The website also states that local reception of AFN|sports HD is dependent on customers having the new receiver/decoder or access to a base cable system using those decoders. It is also necessary to have the proper infrastructure installed to carry high definition television.

For customers in Europe, the full transition to HD television for AFN is scheduled to occur between 2015 and 2017.

For more information on the HD conversions, visit AFN's website at www.afneurope.net.