Back On Schedule
At least it looks like we're back on schedule. Over the past week there
have been rumors that the Feb 17 transition to DTV might be delayed by
either the new President or the new Congress due to fears that people
weren't ready. Today the FCC chairman says he wants the transition to
proceed as scheduled, and he's right.
If a household hasn't been able to get ready over the past year or two, what will change if they have another 4 to 6 months? The only thing that will motivate them to change with the rest of us is if they can't watch their old TV any more. Delaying the transition only delays their situation -- it doesn't fix it. I read that some TV stations would incur a cost of $100,000 to $300,000 if the transition were delayed until the end of the year because they are having to broadcast their signal on both analog and digital. Those kilowatts and megawatts aren't free.
One thing the transition team could have done a better job with is informing people about their antennas. Many people who now have an antenna (either a rooftop antenna or rabbit ears) may think they'll be fine with a converter box, but that's not necessarily true. The problem with rabbit ears is that they often aren't strong enough to pick up the digital signal. A larger, outside antenna is often needed. Even then, a rooftop antenna may only be designed for VHF stations, but most new digital channels will be broadcast on UHF frequencies. So, if you're used to getting local channels (2, 8, 12 in the Triad; or 3 and 9 in Charlotte) with your old VHF roof antenna, you may find that it doesn't work for the new digital signals of those same stations. That's because the digital signal will usually be broadcast on a different channel which is then decoded by the TV or converter box which will display the channel number we're all familiar with. Over 90% of the digital signals will be broadcast within the UHF band (between 14 and 51), and unsuspecting viewers may be disappointed to learn that they still have problems after Feb 17.
There will be problems and complaints following the transition date, but that will be the case regardless of when it happens. There would be even more confusion if this well-publicized date were suddenly changed.
If a household hasn't been able to get ready over the past year or two, what will change if they have another 4 to 6 months? The only thing that will motivate them to change with the rest of us is if they can't watch their old TV any more. Delaying the transition only delays their situation -- it doesn't fix it. I read that some TV stations would incur a cost of $100,000 to $300,000 if the transition were delayed until the end of the year because they are having to broadcast their signal on both analog and digital. Those kilowatts and megawatts aren't free.
One thing the transition team could have done a better job with is informing people about their antennas. Many people who now have an antenna (either a rooftop antenna or rabbit ears) may think they'll be fine with a converter box, but that's not necessarily true. The problem with rabbit ears is that they often aren't strong enough to pick up the digital signal. A larger, outside antenna is often needed. Even then, a rooftop antenna may only be designed for VHF stations, but most new digital channels will be broadcast on UHF frequencies. So, if you're used to getting local channels (2, 8, 12 in the Triad; or 3 and 9 in Charlotte) with your old VHF roof antenna, you may find that it doesn't work for the new digital signals of those same stations. That's because the digital signal will usually be broadcast on a different channel which is then decoded by the TV or converter box which will display the channel number we're all familiar with. Over 90% of the digital signals will be broadcast within the UHF band (between 14 and 51), and unsuspecting viewers may be disappointed to learn that they still have problems after Feb 17.
There will be problems and complaints following the transition date, but that will be the case regardless of when it happens. There would be even more confusion if this well-publicized date were suddenly changed.
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