Two Years And Counting

TWO YEARS AND COUNTING
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: Glen Dickson and John Eggerton]
The eventual success of high-definition television (HDTV) rides on the country's conversion to digital TV (DTV). Last December, when Congress voted to set Feb. 17, 2009, as the hard date for turning off analog TV broadcasts and completing the switch to DTV in the U.S., it set a finish line for the long slog that has been the digital transition. But local broadcasters, network executives and Beltway insiders all say the home stretch of this marathon will be a steep climb. Most large broadcasting groups are confident that they will make the analog-to-digital deadline, but some smaller stations remain a question mark. Regardless of size and capacity, it'll be a fight for everybody, with every legal or commission decision or deadline facing a host of technical roadblocks. And if too many stations are not ready to pull the plug in February 2009, look for legislators to move the finish line rather than face the wrath of constituents, particularly if consumer-friendly Democrats are still in charge. With varying levels of attention given to legal and logistic issues in this uphill battle, there is a danger in forgetting arguably the most important group needing conversion to HD: the American public. Consumer education about the DTV transition hardly appears to be a thumbtack on the national map. A lot of Americans still don't realize they're going to need a new TV set or converter come February 2009. Congress has allocated a paltry $5 million to the cause, but HDTV-policy maker Dick Wiley expects the industry to step up. He predicts the National Association of Broadcasters will name a VP for digital transition and that NAB President David Rehr will “run this like a campaign.”
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6394584.html?display=Feature

* Wiley Defined Hi-Def
A Q&A with former FCC Chairman Dick Wiley, a driving force behind the transition to digital television.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6394598.html?display=News