I’m living in an apartment in Tokyo which is mostly for foreign expats. The TV is connected wirelessly to an NTT modem so I have Netflix etc available, but there’s no TV cable connected to the wall so I can’t watch Japanese TV. I really want to be able to watch NHK and other local TV programs. I went down the road to the electrical goods store and bought a 4k/8k TV antenna cable and plugged it in as I would back home. I did the channel scan but the TV didn’t pick anything up. I called the apartment manager who said something weird about having to pay to get it connected – I couldn’t understand what he meant. I’ve been following up with the manager but he’s not responding. Seems like a case of 面倒くさい.
Any idea about what is going on here? I’ve read other threads about buying an antenna, but I can’t understand why I would do that if there is a TV outlet already in the wall. What do I need to do to get a regular TV feed into my TV?
2 comments
A coax cable jack is just that — a jack.
It must either be connected to an external antenna (more likely if you live in a detached home) for over-the-air (OTA) broadcasts or connected to a cable TV provider (CATV).
In addition to the NKH license you must pay (or avoid paying), you’ll likely need to call a CATV provider and purchase a cable package.
Or you can buy an indoor antenna and connect it directly to your TV — although I have no experience using one in Japan and don’t know how effective they are).
You need to get a b-cas card. They typically come standard with TVs – or at least they did when I purchased mine way back in the day. Your TV antenna likely doesn’t work because many broadcasters no longer do analog broadcasts.
[https://ivcan.com/b-cas-card-reader-japan-isdb-t/](https://ivcan.com/b-cas-card-reader-japan-isdb-t/)