NTIA Coupon Program May Start Slowly

NTIA COUPON PROGRAM MAY START SLOWLY
[SOURCE: tvnewsday, AUTHOR: Harry Jessell]
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration is promising to start taking requests for digital TV converter box coupons on January 1, 2008, but no one is sure if those boxes will be ready for purchase by then. “My sense is it will not be on Jan. 1,” says Marc Pearl, executive director of the Consumer Electronics Retailers Association. For the coupon program to work, NTIA needs the cooperation of every link in the broadcasting food chain—broadcasters, consumer electronics manufacturers and consumer electronics retailers. Participation is voluntary, although all segments are under heavy political pressure to do all they can to make it work. Retailers are not rushing to join the coupon program. To take part, consumer electronics manufacturers and retailers must be certified by NTIA. The NTIA wants to make sure the boxes work properly and that waste and fraud don't creep in. Broadcasting says they will do their bit, launching a major public awareness campaign to inform consumers of the transition, what their options are and the availability of the coupons.
http://www.tvnewsday.com/articles/2007/08/23/daily.5/