The End of  Analog Television as We Know It.

By John Duffy, Vice President, Technology & Operations.

You probably have heard by now that on February 18, 2009 television stations will stop broadcasting analog television and transmit only digital signals. This is true, but what does that mean for all of us who watch TV?

Firstly, if you are a cable or satellite TV subscriber, you should not be affected by the cut-off date for analog broadcasting.

A digital television (a TV with an internal digital tuner) will allow you to continue to watch free over-the-air programming after February 17, 2009. However, if you have an analog television, you will need a digital-to-analog converter box to continue to watch broadcast television on that set. This converter box will also enable you to see any additional multicast programming that your local stations are offering.

To help consumers with this transition, the government established the Digital-to-Analog Converter Box Coupon Program. Every U.S. household is eligible to receive up to two coupons, worth $40 each, toward the purchase of eligible digital-to-analog converter boxes. For more information on this program, visit the NTIA’s website link.

Take a couple of minutes, and go to this website link.

It is a short quiz to help you decide what you need to do to make sure you are able to receive free over the air television after February 18, 2009.

If you have any questions, please e-mail me at john_duffy@wcny.org 

I will be glad to discuss what it all means.

Next time, we’ll make sense of what our digital multi-cast channels are and how to get to them, and talk a little about high-definition television.