Now Hear This Electronic Newsletter, April 10, 2008 Posted by Bob at 04/10/08 01:26 PM

Earlier this week the two top government officials in charge of the upcoming transition to digital television trundled up to Capitol Hill to report on how it’s going.

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin and National Telecommunications and Information Administration Acting Director Meredith A. Baker demurred when requested to give a letter grade to their agencies efforts so far. Both artfully answered “incomplete.”

Led by Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii), who called the hearing, several lawmakers told Martin and Baker they are extremely worried millions of consumers who depend on free, over-the-air television will be left in the dark when full power broadcasters are required to switch to all digital signals in February 2009.

“I've just got my fingers crossed,” Inouye said. “I hope everything turns out well.”

We have our fingers crossed too, but we would feel a lot better if the lawmakers and government bureaucrats in charge of this landmark transition – arguably the biggest change in broadcasting since the advent of color television – were doing a whole lot more than they have so far to make sure this massive conversion comes off as problem free as possible.

At the top of our list would be immediate action by NTIA and/or Congress to address the problem of a 90-day expiration date on government-issued coupons intended to help consumers purchase digital converter boxes so their old-style, analog televisions will continue to work after the digital transition.

Currently, the $40 government coupons, which are issued as part of $1.5 billion program run by NTIA, expire 90 days after they are issued, with no option of replacement or reissue.

NTIA has the authority to allow consumers to reapply if their coupons have expired but not been used, or Congress could extend the 90-day deadline. Both options would allow consumers to have greater access to a wider variety of converter boxes, which have been slow to come on the market.

While the conversion is less is than a year away, many retailers have only one or two models of the converter boxes in stock, forcing consumers to choose from pricier converter options to prevent the coupons from expiring.

A brief sample of online retailers Best Buy, Circuit City, Radio Shack, and Wal-mart by our sister organization, Consumer Reports Online, found that each had just one or two boxes. Of the boxes listed, all but two cost $60; only Wal-mart had lower-priced models, for $50 and $53. With these four retailers, the coupons cannot be used if making the purchase online, the government coupons must be redeemed in person at the retail store, or by phone from Radio Shack and Best Buy.

Echostar has said it will be releasing a converter this summer that will cost about $40, which would mean no out-of-pocket expense for consumers with a coupon, but the introduction of that model has already been delayed once due to manufacturing problems and it remains unclear when it will actually be available.

“There are a limited number of coupons and they expire,” said Joel Kelsey, a policy analyst for Consumers Union, the publisher of this blog. “Consumers that were proactive and requested coupons early will have fewer choices when they go to buy the boxes,” added Kelsey. “We are expecting more converter boxes on the market in a few months, which might be too late for consumers who requested their coupons early.”

Several senators also voiced concerns that not enough was being done to reach out to consumers, especially seniors and low income consumers, who are generally much more dependent on over-the-air broadcasting.

We share those worries, in no small part because of a Consumers Union survey put out a few weeks ago.

Among the more troubling findings was that 74 percent of the respondents who said they were aware of the upcoming transition to all digital broadcasting have serious misconceptions about its actual impact on them and what steps they need to take to keep their TVs working after the switchover.

Both Martin and Baker told the Senate panel their agencies were working hard to educate consumers. They said broadcasters, electronics manufacturers and other industry players are also working hard on getting the word out.

If you are a consumer who wants to know more about the digital transition and what to do – besides crossing your fingers – you can go to Consumer Reports Online’s DTV transition web page.

And it might not be a bad idea to rub your rabbit ear antenna for luck, just to be on the safe side.

comments (6)

1 Posted by David Aylward at 04/10/08 02:30 PM

What does CU think about defective devices?

We now have two immediate examples of why digital televisions and related devices should be able to have their software upgraded, “repaired and patched, as cable boxes, digital video recorders, and computers are today,” as Chairmen John Dingell and Ed Markey wrote 1 1/2 years ago. The first arises if consumers don’t buy a digital television, but instead rely on the $1 billion+ government-funded digital converter box program to keep their analog TVs when analog broadcasting ends next February. The second arises if they do buy a digital television.

Digital Converter Boxes

November 15, 2006: Agreeing with leaders of consumer, disability and other public interest groups, House Committee and Subcommittee Chairmen John Dingell and Ed Markey wrote a letter to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) of the Commerce Department, suggesting that NTIA include upgrade capability in the federal specifications for digital converter boxes to be subsidized by more than $1 billion in taxpayer funds. They wrote:

“In addition, we suggest that NTIA also consider cost effective measures to ensure that digital converter boxes have the capability to be updated, modified, or repaired in circumstances where problems arise. If boxes are not capable of software updates, the emergency alert system, television ratings information, closed captioning data, or other technology or services may be vulnerable. As you know, millions of consumers will be relying upon such boxes when the transition occurs and analog broadcasting ceases. NTIA should seek to safeguard the interests of consumers, the public’s safety, and the integrity of the converter box program by analyzing mechanisms by which boxes may be repaired and patched, as cable boxes, digital video recorders, and computers are today. Dingell and Markey letter to Administrator Kneuer. (page 2)

March 25, 2008: The CEO of Microtune, the leading US manufacturer of digital tuners, wrote to Kneuer’s replacement at NTIA saying its testing of imported digital converter boxes showed they would not function, and in many cases the software problems would not be apparent for some time.

“Through our testing, we have discovered significant performance shortfalls in NTIA-certified converter boxes, including those in the [CECB Box Model A]1 boxes, which were acquired in [a large national retail chain’s stores] across the country. We have found the [CECB Box Model A] to have numerous and pronounced test failures. (See test results in Appendix A).” (pages 1-2)

“As a result of our testing, we are confident that the non-compliant results observed in the boxes tested will result in loss of television reception in large areas of many metropolitan areas throughout the United States. Some of these failures will be noticed immediately, but others will not be noticed until after February 2009, when broadcasters move to their final channel assignments.

“The stakes for American consumers are high. Sales of non-compliant converter boxes could mean that millions of American television households that rely on over-the-air broadcasting may not be able to receive all terrestrial TV channels available in their local reception area, a fact recognized by the FCC and the NTIA. More significantly, many TV reception problems could remain undetected until after the DTV transition concludes on February 17, 2009.” (page 3)

V-Chip 2.0

Overcoming violent opposition from the television and consumer electronics industries, in 1996 Congress required all televisions to contain an electronic chip (now just a part of the overall software of digital televisions) that allows parents to block specific channels or shows of certain ratings they do not want their children to see.

March 16, 2006: Recognizing that ratings would (or should) be improved to provide more detail over time, the FCC required that after March 16, 2006, all digital TVs sold in the US contain a “V-Chip 2.0” that allows upgrading the ratings systems in those existing TVs. The inventor of the V-Chip, Canadian Professor Tim Collings, has always been focused on this advanced capability. “Parents want to choose good programming, not just block bad shows,” he said recently. The idea was to develop a large installed base of 2.0-equipped TVs so it might make sense for a better ratings system to be implemented.

2006-2007: Most TV manufacturers successfully test automatic software upgrade capability; all but Sony hold off on installing it to avoid extra 50 cents to $1 per unit cost.

2007: owner of V-Chip 2.0 patent discovers wide gaps between royalty payments and sales of digital TVs in US. Ironically, at the very time when so much attention is being paid to the digital video transition, a very large percentage of the digital televisions sold in the US over the last two years lack the V-Chip 2.0 software; in other words, their “firmware” is defective. Problem could be solved easily and cheaply if software upgrade capacity was in TVs (and thus far more sophisticated ratings and program selection systems could be downloaded in the future; along with any other improvements needed).

2007: FCC investigates TV manufacturers for non-compliance with V-Chip rules and allegedly discovers widespread non-compliance.

November, 2007. FCC issues modest fines against Funai for V-Chip violations. No recall or other remedial action is required. Status of other investigations unclear.

2 Posted by Bob High at 04/10/08 04:42 PM

I continuously see reference that having an analog TV which is connect through a cable TV service provider, that we should not worry about being connect when the transition to digital occurs next year. I called our local Time-Warner Cable service to see if they were providing the set-top converter box free of charge. They informed me that I would have to lease each box (3 in our case) for $7 something or so a month. I feel we are already overcharged for the cable service we now receive and now they will be adding a $30 of so additional fee for our service. I think the idiots in government who passed and implemented this legislation mandating this transition should be voted out of office.

3 Posted by Angelo Hahnle at 04/10/08 07:10 PM

Since this is a government program why isn't the government providing the digital converters of a quality that provides equal or better reception?
I think as a citizen with good reception now (pre digital signal) that should be the minimum acceptable standard not just "whatever we in Washington think you should have". I'm forced to live with too many programs already that are "whatever we think" programs..

4 Posted by Jeff Hayes at 04/10/08 09:01 PM

YES, Congress needs to do MUCH -- ESPECIALLY either extend the deadline or give people the option to apply again.

When the VERY VOCAL promotions on TV about the upcoming conversions and the $40 coupons late in 2007, there was NO MENTION on the "public service ads" that there might be an expiration date to them -- much less a 90-day expiration date! Being someone who overpays for cable (yet has a few older TVs that aren't hooked up to anything), I figured I'd get the coupons, but wasn't in any hurry, and once the problems started coming to light, I was really glad I hadn't.

The saddest part of this is that most of the people who have gotten these coupons are now quite likely STUCK unless Congress DOES act... AND, as your Blog states, many of those who need this the worst will likely not get the converter coupons at all -- or maybe not until it's too late...

And then there are THE LIES.

I've talked to people... friends, people I just run into in the stores and so forth, who truthfully BELIEVE they're going to HAVE TO BUY A NEW TV -- WHY??? Because THAT'S what the SALES PEOPLE at Circuit City, Best Buy, or wherever else HAVE TOLD THEM!

Some people, no matter how much TV they watch, and how many times they see those public service ads, they WON'T SINK IN... I believe there have been surveys showing that some folks have to see an ad HUNDREDS of times before it makes A CONNECTION.

Trust me on this: Come Feb. 19, 2009, there will be MILLIONS OF FURIOUS television viewers -- particularly the elderly, poor and ignorant -- calling their TV stations, local government, and ANYBODY ELSE THEY CAN THINK OF, wanting to know WHY they can't get TV any more!
Jeff Hayes
Spartanburg, SC

5 Posted by Jean L at 04/11/08 03:23 PM

I agree that people are going to left in the dark, either by not hearing about the transition or not understanding it.

6 Posted by Michael S at 05/29/08 05:22 PM

This boondoggle is a "house of cards" from camera through to display (note: I did NOT say "TV"). All it will take is one too many digital bits out of place and our consumer gets to watch the "No Signal" show instead of all the fun things he/she can see right now on analog TELEVISION.

I pray this won't happen... but won't be surprised if it does:

"Stand by for a very important message from the White House. This is NOT a test."

"My fellow Americans, our military radar has just intercepted {pixellation, stutter} over the Pole. You are urged immediately to {freeze, stutter, blank, "Digital Sound"} I repeat... {"No Signal"} Take shel..{stutter/freeze} I repeat..."

Yep. For want of an errant bit, a frame was lost. For want of a frame, some words were lost. For want of some words... many lives were lost.

And don't get me started on the "alphabet soup" those of us on the "sending side" have had to deal with already. Or the incompatible formats. Or the lack of "customer support" when overpriced, foreign-designed and -manufactured pretty bitboxes go batty. (Oh, right. Just buy a newer box! Got a coupla' thousand petty cash bucks right here in the cookie jar...)

Idiots.