Many in the dark about TV switch: U.S. lawmakers

MANY IN THE DARK ABOUT TV SWITCH: US LAWMAKERS
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Stephanie Beasley]
Not enough is being done to let American consumers know that soon they will be unable to watch their favorite shows on their old television sets because they can't receive the new digital signals, members of the Senate Commerce Committee said on Thursday. "The time to act is now -- before the digital transition devolves into a digital disaster," Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii), said at a panel hearing on public readiness for the switch. U.S. television stations are required to switch to digital only broadcasts by February 17, 2009. People who do not own digital sets will need to buy a converter box or subscribe to digital or satellite cable to be able to watch television. John Kneuer, assistant secretary of the National Telecommunications & Information Administration, and Cathy Seidel, chief of consumer and governmental affairs for the Federal Communications Commission, said that they are working with other organizations to target specific communities that are less likely to know about the transition. Sen. Gordon Smith (R-OR) and others expressed concern about the elderly being able to make the switch and possibly falling victim to scams. Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Missouri) suggested a tried and true method of preparing the public for the change. "It's not hard to educate the United States of America -- it's called: 'You do it over television."'
http://tv.yahoo.com/news/article/urn:newsml:tv.reuters.com:20070726:usa_...

* Lawmakers fret over digital TV transition
http://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUSN2738723820070727

* Inouye: Congress Will 'Do Something' to Address DTV Concerns
The term "disaster" was used twice and "train wreck" only once in a Senate Commerce Committee hearing Thursday that discussed how well consumers are being prepared for the analog-to-digital TV transition. The transition is now a little over 18 months away.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6463359.html?rssid=193

* Senators Worried About TV 'Train Wreck' (Associated Press)
http://www.wtopnews.com/?nid=116&sid=1201006

* Lawmakers decry digital-TV notification efforts
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-digitaltv27jul27,1,68...

* NAB: DTV PSAs To Launch in December
National Association of Broadcasters President David Rehr says the lobbying organization is identifying target populations so PSA campaigns can be tailored to them, opening a DTV speakers bureau; and doing outreach to other countries running campaigns. Rehr said the PSA package, at a minimum, would include: four to six 30-second spots and at least one 60 for "all 1,169" member station; a couple of 30-second donut spots (no, not plugging the new Simpsons' movie) with a hole in the middle for a sound bite from an official or anchor; "teaser" copy to plug the transition in newscasts and send viewers to www.DTVanswers.com; B-roll footage of towers, converter boxes and more to illustrate stories about DTV; a 25-minute special; and foreign language spots. Rehr also said NAB will work with networks to agree on the use of crawls during programs to give viewers the heads-up.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6463538.html?rssid=193

* Rehr Outlines NAB's Transition Efforts
http://www.tvnewsday.com/articles/2007/07/26/daily.9/

* FCC Proposes DTV Education Campaign Benchmarks
The FCC last Saturday approved a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) seeking comment on various proposals to hold the broadcast and cable industries to benchmarks for DTV education campaigns. FCC Chairman Kevin Martin revealed the NPRM to legislators at an FCC oversight hearing in the House Telecommunications & Internet subcommittee this week. The FCC proposals were prompted by a letter from Subcommittee Chairman Ed Markey and Energy & Commerce Committee Chairman John Dingell (D-MI).
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6463462.html?rssid=193

* Link to webcast and testimony
http://commerce.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Hearings.Hearing&...

* NTIA testimony
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/congress/2007/Kneuer_SenateCommerce_072...