House Commerce Leaders Have DTV Transition Questions For FCC, NTIA, Broadcasters

House Commerce Committee Chairman John Dingell (D-MI) and Telecom Subcommittee Chairman Ed Markey (D-MA) still have some unanswered questions coming out of the September early analog cut-off in Wilmington (NC) and have asked the Federal Communications Commission, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration; the National Association of Broadcasters, and broadcasters to fill in the blanks. In the letters, the two chairmen note that the Wilmington test identified many problems related to the DTV transition, including matters concerning rescanning analog-to-digital converter boxes, adjusting or acquiring antennas and changes in the areas where stations' signals are available. They asked each stakeholder to outline the steps it will take to avoid similar problems when the rest of the Nation transitions to digital on February 17, 2009. They requested responses by Friday, November 14.