by Jim Puzzanghera
President-elect Barack Obama today asked Congress to delay next month's planned switch to all-digital broadcast television, warning that the TVs of millions of Americans could go dark because of major problems in the government's preparations.
In a letter to Congressional leaders, John Podesta, co-chairman of Obama's presidential transition team, urged that the Feb. 17 conversion date be extended. A major reason was the announcement this week by the Commerce Department that it had run out of money for a government program to provide $40 coupons for low-cost converter boxes to allow older TVs to receive the new digital signal. But Podesta also cited problems with the government's effort to educate the public about the switch and help prepare people, particularly the elderly, poor and those living in rural areas.
"With coupons unavailable, support and education insufficient, and the most vulnerable Americans exposed, I urge you to consider a change to the legislatively-mandated analog cutoff date," Podesta wrote to the chairmen and top Republicans on the Senate Commerce committee and the House Energy and Commerce committee.
Congress decided in 2005 to require all TV stations to broadcast only in digital to free up valuable airwaves. People with cable, satellite or phone company TV services will continue to get broadcast stations. But those who rely on antennas to watch TV must have either a newer set with a digital receiver or get a digital-to-analog converter box.
No frills versions of those boxes cost between $40 and $70. To offset the cost, the federal government allocated $1.5 billion to provide households with up to two $40 coupons. On Monday, the agency running that program announced the program had reached its limit and new requests would be put on a waiting list. As existing coupons reach their 90-day expiration, the Commerce Department has said it could send out coupons to those on the waiting list.
But time is running out. Podesta said in the letter that 1 million requests are on the waiting list and the number could climb to more than 5 million by early February. Obama supports waiving federal rules to allow the Commerce Department to start sending out more coupons and is planning to include additional money for the digital TV switch in the economic stimulus package it is drafting.
The problems with the converter box coupon program led Consumers Union to call for a delay in the Feb. 17 date. And Rep. Rick Boucher (D-Va.), the incoming head of a House subcommittee with oversight over telecommunications, said today he is considering a delay.
But broadcasters, who have spent billions of dollars preparing for the transition and are eager to turn off their old analog signals, oppose a delay and are pressing for Congress to quickly provide more money to make sure people who need coupons get them.
Comments
With the ecomy like it is ,,why don't they just leave television like it is as lot of Americans out of work can't aford a new high price TV.
Posted by: Inky | January 8, 2009 4:48 PM
How many presidents do we have at a time?
Improvident people may not be able to see TV come Feb. 17 - gotta get involved with that.
Throw more money at the economy - requires attention before the inauguration.
People killing each other in the Middle East - Hands off! There is only one president at a time!
Posted by: DaveB | January 8, 2009 5:06 PM
Yes DaveB, there is a difference when it comes from foreign policy; and I'm sure if Obama started trying to infuence events in the middle east, you would be the first to criticize him. So live with it til Jan. 20.
Posted by: rupert | January 8, 2009 6:14 PM
Good. I always thought this was bogus...someone else was making a bundle off of it. Kind of forcing you to buy something you didn't want...like my grandma fighting to keep her rotary dial telephone.
Posted by: lochnessmonster | January 8, 2009 7:37 PM
So the 'Communications Industry Profit Enhancement Project' isn't going according to plan.
Thanks Repubs and Clinton for the 1996 time bomb mess.
Originally they were supposed to provide the analog signal along with the digital signal in parallel until something like 2017, but the money interests didn't want to pay for providing both signals and that stipulation was dropped by the Bush admin a few years ago.
Of course the whole bill was aimed at allowing consolidation of the communications industry.
With every one of the half dozen mergers our cable company has undergone in every case the new company said it would provide cheaper, better service. In every case the price of basic cable has gone up.
My first cable bill to the local company was about $12 per month.
My current basic cable bill is over $60 per month. Same '57 channels with nothing on'. ♬ But now there's 90 with nothing on.
BTW, note that they dropped the whole original rationale of 'high definition TV'. That WAS the original reason. Analog signals can be 'High Def' as well as digital signals.
Once again the American people have had another profit enhancement measure for somebody else crammed down their throats disguised as a benefit.
Posted by: C.Morris✈ | January 8, 2009 9:19 PM
FYI, you do not need to buy your own Television. In my opinion the FCC should have made the switch already. If people will not take the initiative to go outside and pick up a converter box, maybe they shouldn't be watching television anyways.
Posted by: John Doe | January 8, 2009 10:02 PM
Rupert, you distort my views. My question is simple: Is there, or isn't there, one president at a time?
Posted by: DaveB | January 9, 2009 10:25 AM
DaveB, be honest, you aren't upset about people killing each other in the Mideast, you're only upset about the threat to Israelis. You support the killing of Palestinans, including civilians and children. You think they are getting what they deeserve. You've said so in the previous thread. So stop the crocodile tears for what's going on in Gaza. You support whats going on there. You suppoort every action Israel is taking, and every dead Palestiian civilian.
Posted by: Salaam | January 9, 2009 11:08 AM
Salaam, if you're going to represent my views, at least represent them accurately. I do not support the indiscriminate killing of Palestinans or Palestiians or however you want to spell them, but I do support the right of Israel to defend itself from terror attacks, just as I support the right of the United States to defend itself from such attacks, and have pointed out that if the Gaza Palestinians harbor terrorists, inevitably some of them will be hurt or killed when Israel defends itself. Their fate is in their hands; all that they have to do is tell Hamas that they can't do this any more.
Good day.
Posted by: DaveB | January 9, 2009 5:28 PM
Dave B, yeah those Palestinian kids should just march over to the local Hamas office and tell them to stop. The infants should rise up in rightous indigmation and throw Hamas out. Until they do, the bombing and starving of the Children is surely justified, right?
Meanwhile the Israeli opeople have no obligation to try and restain the actions of their leaders. Nope, the fact that their leaders authorize unrestrained fire into civilian areas, and block needed food and medicines, none of that is the Israeli citizens fault. They should be protected from any danger. Collateral damage is only for the worthless Palestinian civilians. That's no double standard. None at all.
Posted by: Salaam | January 9, 2009 7:13 PM
Salaam,
It's like in Vietnam; A dead Vietnamese must be VC.
Posted by: C.Morris✈ | January 9, 2009 10:08 PM