Only consumers that receive 100% of their TV programming from satellite or cable TV service will not be affected by the June 12th transition to digital most likely. (It is the responsibility of the cable company and satellite company to make sure they are ready to receive the local over the air broadcast channels when the switch occurs). At a future date some cable companies will switch from NTSC to 100% digital QAM but they will notify their subscribers before doing that. Verzion FIOS is already 100% digital QAM and Dish Network and Direct TV have always been 100% digital.
Now for consumers that receive all or some of their local broadcast channels with an indoor or outdoor TV antenna then they will need to own an ATSC tuner between Feb 17th and June 12th. Unless there is another delay for the switch, in theory on June 12th all full power existing NTSC analog TV stations will switch to 100% digital ATSC. The problem is many stations are going to switch as early as Feb 17th which will cause some people around the country to lose a few channels somewhere between Feb 17th and June 12th.
The 480I ATSC digital converter boxes only cost around $39.99 (some models cost around $50-$75). Some consumers that were able to get two free $40 coupons from the government now have two free 480I DTV converter boxes. Other consumers with an old HD display have purchased under $100 true 1080I HD ATSC converter box for their TV. Some consumers have made the decision to replace their TV set with a low cost TV with a built in ATSC tuner. Super Walmart stores have 14 inch 480I CRT RCA TV's with a built in ATSC/QAM tuner for only $114.97. Also a 22 inch VIZIO 1080P LCD TV with a built in ATSC/QAM tuner can be purchased at a few retail stores for under $300.
Perhaps the switch to digital will help the consumer electronics industry as millions of new converter boxes, TV's, and DVD recorders are sold with an ATSC tuner. This digital transition might help jump start the economy a little.
It is estimated that several millions of consumers this year will be purchasing converter boxes, TV's, and DVD recorders that contain an ATSC tuner so that they can watch their local channels. Of course most consumers will choose to get a $40 converter box (free if they were able to get a coupon). Still many people that have a twenty year old TV or a very old VCR might decide it is time to upgrade and get a new DVD recorder or TV set with built in ATSC tuner. It is too bad the Feb. 17th transition date was moved to June 12th. The TV manufactories are waiting to get rid of inventory. DTV Converter box manufactories and TV manufactories were counting on Feb 17th as the digital transition deadline. Delaying the transition to June 12th costs the industry more money.
Tomorrow is Feb 17th, if the FCC does allow as many as 368 stations to go digital early then between Feb 17th and June 12th the sale of DTV converter boxes and TV's will start to rise. Then on June 12th with 100% of existing full power stations scheduled to go digital demand for DTV converters, TV's and DVD recorders should greatly increase.
This entire switch to digital is going to cause a lot of confusion, especially with the partial switch delay until June 12th.
Yes, they sure did a favor for the television entitled Americans with this one. No one will be confused tomorrow in this market when some analog broadcasting shuts off and others remain. Especially good about it is that the one station switching tomorrow is going back to the VHF frequency, so those who installed UHF antennas may again be SOL.
You can always count on the good ol' government to fix things.
Under recent legislation, some television broadcasters will extend their digital TV transitions to June 12, while others will proceed earlier, by February 17. Yesterday the Federal Communications Commission released a list of TV stations that intend go all-digital next week, cutting off analog transmissions.
On the list are 190 stations that have either terminated antiquated analog signals, or will do so, before February 17. There are also another 491 stations that plan to terminate analog on February 17. Together, they total 681 stations, or about 38 percent of the nation's 1796 full-power television broadcasters.
Here's the FCC's list (Excel document) with the 681 soon-to-be all-digital stations indicated in red. The remaining 1117 stations, in black, presumably plan to continue analog broadcasting till June 12, as provided for in the DTV Delay Act, which cleared both houses of Congress last week and awaits President Obama's signature.
About 100 of the stations planning to keep analog till June are network-owned affiliates of CBS, NBC, ABC, and Fox. However, many other stations showing programs from these networks are independently owned and are at liberty to chart their own course. About half of PBS affiliates will stay in analog territory till June.
Markets are affected in various ways. Some, like Los Angeles and Chicago, are losing few or none of their analog signals next week. These tend to be the largest markets. Others are losing a significant percentage of analog transmissions but retaining several others—for instance, Tulsa, OK, which is losing CBS, PBS, and CW but holding onto NBC, ABC, and Fox. A few markets are losing all or most of their analog transmitters, including Madison, WI and the combined market formed by Plattsburgh, NY and Burlington, VT. These may get special attention from the FCC, as described below.
The stations going all-digital fall into two categories. Some have prearranged permission for "early termination" prior to February 17, and in many cases (such as the entire state of Hawaii) have already acted. Others plan to proceed on that date, which was the original deadline for the DTV transition. However, the FCC's list is not set in stone, as the Public Notice (PDF) states:
We remind stations that intend to terminate analog operations on February 17, 2009 that consistent with their public interest responsibilities and Congress' delay of the transition to June 12 to give consumers additional time to prepare, the Commission has reserved the right to limit or reconsider the partial waiver of the Third Periodic Review Report & Order’s early termination procedures granted in the February 5 Public Notice in the event that the Commission determines that analog termination on February 17 by a station or group of stations is contrary to the public interest. In such event, the Commission will promptly notify the affected station or stations. The Commission may consider such action if, for example, it finds that all or most of the stations in a market will terminate their analog service on February 17, and that the market is one in which many viewers are unprepared for the transition or at risk if the transition proceeds. In such case, the Commission may require affected stations to submit additional information to explain and justify how their early termination advances the public interest. Such additional information can include significant economic, technical, contractual and other business reasons that support termination on February 17, and efforts being made to protect consumers from service disruptions. The Commission will scrutinize such information closely in light of the important interests at stake to determine whether a compelling case has been made.
In other words, even stations that have complied with the law, obtained waivers, and invested heavily in making the transition on February 17 may still be forced to pay to keep analog going for several more months at the whim of the FCC. It would have been difficult, a week ago, to predict how the already botched DTV transition could lurch ahead even more chaotically, but the Federal Confusion Commission has found a way to do it.
To give a rough indication of the cost of the DTV transition delay, let's assume the extension will cost each station $200,000 for the cost of leasing and powering its analog transmission towers till June—this was the estimate given by a PBS affiliate in Oklahoma. Multiple that by the 1117 stations that have agreed to extend analog and you get $223 million. Add another $615 million for still more set-top boxes and yet another education program, as provided for in the economic stimulus bill, and we're up a pricetag of $838 million for the DTV transition delay.
That's the cost of serving a tiny minority of antenna-dependent analog viewers—a subset of a subset of a subset of the total viewing population—for three and a half months. The calculation does not include additional likely costs if the FCC adds further station extensions to the list on a market-by-market basis. It doesn't include the economic damage of withholding analog spectrum from new telecom users who had expected to have access to it after February 17. And it doesn't include the damage done to providers of emergency services, the "first responders" who had also expected to get new spectrum to improve their communications equipment but will have to wait three and a half months longer. Incredible as it may seem, this fiasco may actually cost lives.
This whole thing is crazy. and all that money just for a few people who's still not going to be ready in june?
they keep saying more time, how much more do you need.
February 17th was to be the final day of analog broadcasts. February 18th was to be the first day of all digital. Even if stations are still switching over now, you won't notice it until tomorrow.
Here in Hawaii it switched over on January 15th. A month before the proposed date that just got pushed back. I had to go a week without television before I got a converter box, it was hell.
im confused a bit, is this gonna effect my cable (no cable box)? i thought this effected over the air stuff only. I have crappy analog cable and the tv upstairs is pre digital era, is that gonna stop working?
im confused a bit, is this gonna effect my cable (no cable box)? i thought this effected over the air stuff only. I have crappy analog cable and the tv upstairs is pre digital era, is that gonna stop working?
""Thanks to the movement of the deadline, we did not have anything like the extent of disruption we would have experienced had every station in the country gone completely digital on Tuesday," he said."
Why Is the Media Lying About Digital TV? The nation's leading publications are unwilling to challenge local broadcasters and other industry heavyweights. By Swanni
QUOTES
"After roughly 36 percent of local TV stations switched early to all-Digital TV signals last week, the FCC received more than 70,000 complaints in the first two days."
"An Oklahoma City station said it received more than 900 calls from complaining viewers in the first two days. The Providence Journal reports that the Rhode Island Broadcasters Association was swamped with so many complaints that reporters were unable to get through for more than 10 minutes at a time."
"Other local stations from WSTR in Cincinnati to several stations in Nebraska have reported an overwhelming number of angry callers. And a 70-year-old man in Missouri actually shot his TV because he couldn't figure out how to use his digital converter box."
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June 12th digital transition date for US TV stations (some will switch Feb 17th)
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