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Digital TV Switch Less Than One Month Away

Government pushes outreach to communities lagging in DTV readiness

By Mark Huffman
ConsumerAffairs.Com

May 13, 2009

The switch was originally scheduled for February 17, but Congress voted to delay it after it appeared millions of consumers were unprepared.

"With just 30 days to go, Americans who haven't prepared for the transition to digital need to act now to ensure they will be able to continue to receive the television programming they count on," said Commerce Secretary Gary Locke. "We are aggressively reaching out to the most unprepared communities across the country to educate consumers and help them to get ready for the June 12 national switch."

The president's American Recovery and Reinvestment Act set aside $650 million to help millions of unprepared Americans get ready for the transition from analog to digital television. The money funded the creation of an additional 12.25 million coupons to help consumers offset the cost of buying digital-to-analog converter boxes and has allowed the Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to eliminate the waiting list for coupons.

During the final month before the end of analog broadcasting, NTIA will focus its outreach efforts on communities that are lagging in DTV preparedness. NTIA will send mobile assistance centers to more than two dozen cities and their surrounding metropolitan areas, where staff will help consumers apply for coupons toward the purchase of DTV converter boxes and learn how to install the boxes.

These cities include: Portland, Ore.; Seattle, Wash.; Boise, Idaho; San Jose, San Francisco, Sacramento, Fresno, and Los Angeles, Calif.; Las Vegas, Nev.; Phoenix, Ariz.; Salt Lake City, Utah; Colorado Springs, Colo.; Albuquerque, N.M.; Monroe, La.; Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, and McAllen, Texas; Tulsa, Okla.; Joplin and St. Louis, Mo.; Minneapolis, Minn.; Des Moines, Iowa; Cleveland, Canton, and Akron, Ohio; Baltimore, Md.; and Indianapolis, Ind.

In addition, the Commerce Department is running Public Service Announcements in buses, transit shelters and benches; airing radio ads in both Spanish and English; and will launch a text message campaign to raise awareness about how to prepare for the transition.

The government's program to manage the transition to digital broadcasting has been plagued by confusion and missteps. In particular, groups like Consumers Union have criticized the fact that the coupons for the converter boxes expire after 90 days.

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