Dear Educator:
Over the last couple of months, you may have read news reports or seen and heard announcements on GPTV and Georgia Public Radio about the loss of the satellite that delivered our television, radio and education services. Since its owner, LORAL, declared their satellite a total loss in September, we have been working hard to restore service to all of our audiences.
Using a land-based back-up delivery system, GPTV and Georgia Public Radio have remained on the air with varying levels of service in most areas of the state. Most affected has been GPB's PeachStar Educational Services, which transmits instructional programming directly to schools. Since the satellite was PeachStar's primary delivery system, service to all Georgia's 2,400+ educational satellite sites has been interrupted. However, to continue to serve Georgia's schoolchildren, Georgia Public Broadcasting has expanded the PeachStar over-the-air service, overnight on GPTV. Seven days a week from midnight until 7 AM, PeachStar's instructional programs air on GPTV's nine stations, which are universally accessible.
We have taken steps with another satellite to restore our signal delivery, and as you read this, both television and radio should be back up and running. However, since the new satellite is in a completely different position than the previous one, all of the 2400+ satellite receiver dishes at the educational sites will require repositioning and reprogramming, a process that will take a number of weeks. During this time, GPTV will continue to broadcast PeachStar's instructional programming overnight, providing this invaluable service to Georgia's schools.
We've appreciated your patience as we've worked toward solutions. If you have any questions, please give us a call 1/800/222-4788, for questions about GPTV and Georgia Public Radio programming; 1/888/501/8960 for questions about PeachStar programming.
James M. Lyle
