1. A method for acquisition and display of an on-screen program guide on a television comprising: A) receiving broadcast raw data of an on-screen program guide; B) processing the raw data to obtain data necessary to create a generic program guide screen; C) storing the data necessary to create the generic screen in memory; D) constructing a generic virtual screen of a program guide from the necessary data; E) translating the generic screen to a displayable screen; and F) displaying the screen on a TV.