Getting a clearer picture of challenges in digital TV rollout

The Federal Communications Commission said Monday that it has already learned from Wilmington's apparently successful transition about how to reach vulnerable groups that depend on free over-the-air TV. "The success of Wilmington is not what happens at 12 noon today when we flip the switch," FCC Chairman Kevin J. Martin told a festive gathering at City Hall awaiting what's been dubbed here The Big Switch. "The measure of success . . . is what's going to happen next February and what we're going to be able to learn from what occurs here in Wilmington that we can take around the country." "Once you talk them through this and they get their picture, voila, they're happy campers," said Gary McNair, general manager of WECT, the local NBC affiliate. The FCC plans to analyze the results of the test and report to lawmakers this month.