Reviving the classics

NEW YORK — Everyone knows that the national transition to digital broadcast television will promote sexy new technologies including high-definition TV (HDTV).

But few could have imagined that it might also revive some of the creakiest movies and series ever committed to celluloid, including “The Lone Ranger,” “McHale’s Navy” and “The Addams Family.”

Vintage reruns and other inexpensive shows are in vogue, though, as stations and programmers rush into a potentially important new business: multicast networks.

Executives at services such as MGM’s This TV, Retro Television Network (RTN), NBC’s Universal Sports and the Local AccuWeather Channel say that they can change the TV habits of millions of viewers once stations stop broadcasting analog signals next year.

Multicast services piggyback on digital signals from local stations, including those offering HDTV versions of ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC and PBS. Most stations also have room in the airwave spectrum the government has allocated to transmit two standard-definition channels. That could mean up to a dozen stations for a moderate-size market.

That means someone who receives over-the-air digital signals and wants to watch “Bachelor Father” on RTN would punch 3.2 into the remote – subchannel 2 of channel 3. Cable and satellite services assign distinct channel numbers to multicast services.

Programmers say their ventures will appeal to people who feel overrun with TV options. “We’re hitting the mother lode,” says RTN Executive Vice President Mark Dvornik. “A lot of cable networks have drifted to first-run and reality shows. But there’s an audience that wants classic shows.”

Most should reach everyone in a community, not just cable and satellite subscribers. And local broadcasters have a strong incentive to promote them on their popular newscasts as well as syndicated and network shows. NBC and AccuWeather are counting on local weather to be a big draw.