My Comcast Digital Cable box is showing the letters "EAS" on the front of it and I wasn't able to change the channel for a while but now I can, the EAS is still on the front though, does anyone know what this means?
Thanks for the great info, we just had a round of EAS's out here!
My "EAS" is some idiot preacher that I can't get rid of! Infuriating!
Here's an email sent by Comcast / Xfinity about today's EAS:
Dear Comcast Customer:
On Wednesday, November 9 at 2 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time), FEMA and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will conduct the nation's first ever Emergency Alert System (EAS) test. The purpose of this test is to help determine if the national-level system will work as designed, should officials ever need to send a national alert.
This test will last approximately three minutes and will be seen on all local, cable, and satellite TV stations across the country, as well as radio.
Here's What You Should Know
Your Comcast programming will be temporarily interrupted. However, as soon as the test ends, you will be returned to your regularly scheduled programming. While we do not anticipate an interruption in your service, in some rare cases, you may need to:
If you experience the Emergency Alert System message for more than five minutes, please do the following:
The guide data and Video On Demand content will take a period of time to fully restore. Please wait 20 minutes before choosing Video On Demand as this might result in other errors with your box. To watch a video and learn more on how to Power-cycle, CLICK HERE.
To learn more about the national EAS test, visit us at: http://www.comcast.com/nationaleastest or visit FEMA at http://www.fema.gov/emergency/ipaws/eas_info.shtm or the FCC at http://www.fcc.gov/encyclopedia/emergency-alert-system-nationwide-test
We thank you for being a loyal Comcast customer.
Comcast Customer Service
Thank You! Turning my power off for 30 seconds WORKED! I can now watch my favorite show (Days of our Lives) take me away! (:
Comcast is the most ed up company ever. I cannot wait for them to go out of business!!! Everyone needs to get Verizon, Dish, or Direct TV!
My screen is completely blank. Therefore, I'm not receiving the emergency information.
I did as suggested. I cut the cable box off, unplugged it for a few minutes and allowed for a long reboot both after plugging it back in and after cutting it back on. Bingo! Restored.
EAS stands for Emergency Alert System.
Olympus
Single & Not Looking
My Comcast Digital Cable box is showing the letters "EAS" on the front of it and I wasn't able to change the channel for a while but now I can, the EAS is still on the front though, does anyone know what this means?
The letters "EAS" stand for "Emergency Alert System". It's designed to happen if there's some sort of emergency (tornado, hurricane, nuclear bomb, etc.) and auto-tunes to a news channel of some sort to keep you aware of the current state of emergency. It's also designed to stay on that channel for the same reason (they wouldn't want you to just blow it off to go watch American Idol, Sesame Street or Jersey Shore while the world is coming to an end, or something).
(Ignore the dust)
From what I understand, Comcast also sends out a later signal to remove it. If it gets "stuck" for too long on yours, try unplugging your box from the wall for about 10 minutes, then after plugging it back in give it about half an hour for all your channels and other data to sync back up. If the problem persists give Comcast a call, they'll probably send some reset signals to your box while you're on the phone with them.
More info on EAS here and here.