KCET faces interference case as KTTV settles its FCC issue.

SIGNAL interference issues for KTFV (Channel 11) could be reaching a resolution.

The local Fox affiliate is entering a negotiated settlement with station KGTV (Channel 10) in San Diego over the station's respective signals, which the Federal Communications Commission have identified as being too close to each other when digital broadcasting takes effect.

The settlement negotiations were disclosed in documents filed with the FCC by attorneys and engineers for both stations. Details were not disclosed, and officials with both stations declined to comment.

As part of the changeover to digital in 2007, the FCC has conducted a nationwide review of possible signal interference issues, which are more critical in digital than traditional analog broadcasts. Digital interference can make a station's signal unavailable to some viewers.

The FCC also identified KCET (Channel 28) as having a signal that would possibly interfere with other stations, although the PBS affiliate disputes this. Engineers for the station argued in FCC documents that the agency had exaggerated the potential for signal conflicts with KFFR (Channel 29) in Ontario and KYET (Channel 27) in Santa Barbara.

In both cases, the FCC has urged the stations to negotiate with their dial neighbors to resolve the signal bleed-over issue, and had set a mid-August deadline for resolving the conflicts. Although that deadline has passed, agency spokeswoman Rebecca Fisher said the FCC has not determined when it might impose solutions if KTTV cannot complete its agreement and KCET cannot make progress resolving its problems.

The scramble for dial positions carries significant consequences for television stations. Some will have to surrender channel numbers they've had for decades--a major component of their brand identity. Others face large increases in their power bills because broadcasting at higher frequencies takes more electricity.