CHICAGO: READY FOR TRANSITION TO DIGITAL TV? Locally, Nationally - Many Still Not Prepared!
RECENT DTV TEST DREW 1,310 CHICAGO INQUIRY CALLS - OVER 55,000 ACROSS THE U.S.!
Digital Television! It is clearer, reliable, available in wide screen Hi-Def - and may STILL take many clinging to their old analog, non-cable-connected sets completely off guard when the Digital Transition takes place for real in 12 days, on Friday, June 12th.
Many with not-too-challenged short-term memory will recall the DTV Switchover was supposed to take place nearly four months ago, on February 17th. But, under the direction on no one less than The President of the United States, the switch was delayed. Then, as now, there was concern for the unprepared, as well as a shortage of government-sponsored $40 coupons that could have been used to defray the cost of roughly $60 for Digital TV Converter Boxes.
Just before the Memorial Day Holiday, as reported by Phil Rosenthal in his Tower Ticker Column and Blog in The Chicago Tribune, a temporary switch-off of the old analog TV signals generated over 1,300 "Hey, what's going on!" calls across the Chicago Metro Area.
Across IL, 4,849 calls came in. And, nationally, 55,374 TV viewers were caught unaware by the pending transition away from the rabbit-ear received TV signal that's been around since the late 1930's.
Most callers, according to the Federal Communications Commission, inquired about the $40 discount coupons - Monday, June 1st is the last day to submit them to get the refund in time for the June 12th switchover. Other callers were concerned about the strength of the digital TV signals where they live, while others asked for specific installation instructions on the new DTV Converter Boxes.
After the conversion, sets without the Converter Boxes attached, and without connection to digital cable or satellite TV service, will go dark, and will not receive TV signals. Quoting Nielsen Media Research, the FCC estimated last week that 2.9% of the households across the U.S. - nearly 3.3 Million Homes, are still unprepared for the digital switch.
Here in Chicago, one educational channel - WYCC, Channel 20 locally - made the switch to only digital broadcasts on April 16th, and received calls from a number of unprepared viewers. All of the other Chicago Broadcast TV Stations now offer a digital signal, but have yet to shut off their old analog broadcasts, planning to do so when mandatory nationwide on the 12th.
DEAN MOSS & DEAN'S TEAM CHICAGO
