House Passes Delay to Digital TV

[caliblue15]

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The effort to delay next month's scheduled death of analog television suffered a setback in Congress on Wednesday, despite warnings that millions of American homes will not be able to see broadcast shows in three weeks.
Will the end of analog television come in February, or sometime later? The answer is now up in the air.

Will the end of analog television come in February, or sometime later? The answer is now up in the air.

The bill, which passed the Senate unanimously Monday, failed to get the necessary two-thirds vote in the House on Wednesday afternoon.

It was not immediately known if or when another vote might be taken in the House.

Unless Congress acts quickly, older televisions won't pick up TV broadcasts after February 17 without a digital converter. The switch will not affect cable or satellite subscribers.

On that date, all local stations are required to pull the plug on the analog transmitters they've used since the invention of television. The stations have begun digital broadcasts over the last several years

The transition to digital-only broadcasts has been set for nearly a decade, but 6.5 million households, mostly lower-income, have not bought the newer digital TVs or converters for their old sets, according to a study by the Nielsen Company.

The bill, sponsored by Sen. John Rockefeller, D-West Virginia, would allow stations to keep their old transmitters turned on until June 12.
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* Senate OKs delay of digital TV transition

Senators, worried about the static they'll see when the plug is pulled on analog television broadcasts in the United States, had approved the emergency measure Monday and rushed it to the House floor for a vote Tuesday afternoon. But representatives put off the vote until Wednesday.

Two members of the Federal Communications Commission sent a letter to Rockefeller and Rep. Henry Waxman, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, this month "to express our deep concern" that the country is "nowhere near" ready for the signal switch.

Commissioners Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein called for a delay to give the government more time to get "boots on the ground" to help with the transition.

At least $200 million has been spent in recent years to explain to TV viewers how they need to prepare, but one key element of the federal government's transition plans hit a bottleneck in recent months.

The FCC ran out of money in recent weeks for the $40 coupons to help people buy converters for their analog TVs.

The new digital signals also don't reach some communities now served by the analog signals, the commissioners said.

The FCC opened a call center just last week to help consumers prepare for the analog-to-digital switch.

The four-month delay would come with a cost to local television stations. Keeping their old transmitters turned on would result in higher power bills and maintenance expenses.

Please do not make this a political thread as the other one on the Senate Passing was closed, this is just to inform everyone and have adult conversations.

[Y3k Bug]

Originally Posted by caliblue15

... and have adult conversations.

Will it cost me $9.95 a minute?

It will be interesting to see what eventually happens. It's out of the hands of us little guys anyway I suppose.

[MarkJ801]

Ehh, I just think this will cause even more confusion over the transition. I would have liked to have just gotten it done...

[caliblue15]

Originally Posted by mnx12

Ehh, I just think this will cause even more confusion over the transition. I would have liked to have just gotten it done...

What? The House stopped the date from changing, its staying the same...

[Blu-Benny]

Originally Posted by mnx12

Ehh, I just think this will cause even more confusion over the transition. I would have liked to have just gotten it done...

+1

[caliblue15]

Originally Posted by Blu-Benny

+1

Again, read my above post... it was denied changing...

[owa]

They shouldn't have tried to delay it in the first place (imo). So, hopefully this will end that but as someone else mentioned, it'll probably just cause more confusion.

[bajor27]

Originally Posted by Marquoz

Switch over to what if you aren't receiving signals? Somebody on a fixed income in a dead zone caused by a hurried switch over doesn't have the option to get cable or satellite. Just because you have a converter doesn't 100% guarantee you will get a signal for it to convert.

Sorry. Not fully versed in the whole situation and wasn't even aware of all of these extra deadzones, but as some others have mentioned, this definitely hasn't been a hurried switch - well, it at least shouldn't have been hurried as it's been planned for years.

My understanding of the delay was that it was just to give people more time to purchase converters though. The delay isn't to give broadcasters more time to fix dead zones.

[Silo5]

The House is supposed to vote again on this today. I wonder how it will turn out this time.

[blujacket]

My locals are cutting off their analog signals Feb 17th regardless of what the Govt. does.

[caliblue15]

Originally Posted by Silo5

The House is supposed to vote again on this today. I wonder how it will turn out this time.

That's stupid... 12 days before it. just let it run its course..

[Sonny]

My local channels were saying last night that they had cut there Analog signal by 50% already, I think anyway. Hell cut that shite off all the way!!

[Bobby Henderson]

The company that operates in the NBC and FOX affiliates in my viewing market are considering reducing the transmission power on their analog broadcasts after Feb 17. Their NBC DTV transmission is already at full power (1 million watts) and the FOX DTV transmission will go to full power any day now.

Depending on what actually gets signed into law (it looks likely the House bill will at least get a 50%+ vote) hundreds of TV stations in the US may end their analog transmissions after Feb. 17. The wording on the DTV delay act is foggy, giving the implication the delay is a voluntary one. The is a chance the delay could be mandatory. And that would really screw a lot of local broadcasters who are already suffering enough under tight budgets as it is. Cutting back analog transmission power to where only viewers within a few miles could receive the signals may be one workaround.

[tron3]

Originally Posted by Silo5

The House is supposed to vote again on this today. I wonder how it will turn out this time.

Well, does it really matter? A bill is a bill, not a law. Now, if they pass a law, we would all be upset. Part of me will be sad to see analog go, if only for the sake of my two or three remaining portable TV's.

[HorrorHead]

I work for a tv station and we are going ahead with the transition on the 17th. We are running PSA's so viewers know it's going to happen. It costs more to transmit in analog and because everyone thought the transition was a go, paying the additional cost for analog was never put into this year's budget. I imagine this is going to happen at a lot of stations across the country, especially smaller markets. Layoffs are happening industry wide. Advertising dollars are scarce. The money isn't there to hold off.

[ussrelativity]

Multiple stations in my area have already terminated their analog broadcasts.

The government needs to stop encouraging more laziness and pork spending with these coupons.

[tron3]

Originally Posted by HorrorHead

I work for a tv station and we are going ahead with the transition on the 17th...., paying the additional cost for analog was never put into this year's budget. ... Layoffs are happening industry wide. Advertising dollars are scarce. The money isn't there to hold off.

Uncle Sam needs to read this. Delaying the transition will result in even MORE layoffs. Which is worse for the economy? A few thousand MORE people losing jobs, or a couple of million people losing TV? Further more, lost recession jobs take YEARS to come back. Then they come back at lower salaries. People will spend less for the next 3 to 5 years - MINIMUM. Even IF they find a new job.

While those lost viewers represent lost revenue, the report of TV stations laying off people would be more catastrofic to the confidence of the American public. Thus making the recession feel even worse! C'mon, you never hear of TV stations laying off. Not on a large scale. It mostly gets done in silent. This is the Internet age. There will be NO WAY to keep mass layoffs quite in the TV industry. The panic of more layoffs is worse than a couple of million yahoo's who did nothing, and probably don't really care!

Don't delay digital!

[reiella]

Originally Posted by HorrorHead

I work for a tv station and we are going ahead with the transition on the 17th. We are running PSA's so viewers know it's going to happen. It costs more to transmit in analog and because everyone thought the transition was a go, paying the additional cost for analog was never put into this year's budget. I imagine this is going to happen at a lot of stations across the country, especially smaller markets. Layoffs are happening industry wide. Advertising dollars are scarce. The money isn't there to hold off.

Washington is in a similar blight, looking ~ 20 to 30k a month for each station. Course, none of them want to be the first ones to turn off, too big of a risk.

Originally Posted by DavidAg02

I thought TV is a luxury. Why are they delaying the switch for more funding of converter boxes?

I think our government has better things to do than sit around debating how our TV signals get broadcast.

TV is actually considered a necessity by HUD now.