A $1 million grant will help Ball State University's public broadcasting television station move into the digital age and significantly expand the number of homes receiving its over-the-air signals.

WIPB-TV, which operates under a license granted to Ball State, has received a grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to fund construction of a new 800-foot-tall tower. The station's existing tower cannot support a new digital antenna and transmission line.

The new tower is necessary to comply with Federal Communications Commission (FCC) mandates for all public television stations to broadcast a digital signal. Construction on the tower and a building to house equipment should begin May 1 with completion expected in early September. The station's new digital signal is scheduled to begin Sept. 26.

"This is a very exciting time for WIPB-TV and our viewers," said Alice Cheney, the station's general manager. "We will be able to provide exceptional quality programming to many new viewers. At the same time, our current customers who have purchased digital televisions will see a remarkably better picture."

The new tower will expand the station's reach into the Indianapolis metro area, western Ohio and as far north as Fort Wayne. The station could reach one million households with a total population of 2.4 million people.

The station will continue to broadcast an analog signal from its existing 600-foot-tall tower until the FCC phases the older system out, which is tentatively scheduled for 2006.

"Our existing customers don't have to worry about losing access to their favorite programs," Cheney said. "However, we believe the digital transmission will make our product a much better one."

She said the digital project is part of the station's plan for continuous upgrades to improve WIPB-TV programming. The next phase in the digital transformation is acquiring additional equipment for the station's studios in order to implement high definition television (HDTV). HDTV is a high-resolution format that transmits images in a wide-screen theatre-like format.