Broadcasters are planning an ad campaign to inform people that their analog TV sets will quit working in 2009 when programs begin airing only in the digital format. The effort comes amid congressional concerns that too little is being done to let the public know that the TV system Americans have known since the mid-20th century will change on February 17, 2009.
The National Association of Broadcasters, a lobbying arm of the broadcast industry, announced the $700 million campaign just before House and Senate hearings this week on preparations for the changeover. The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation panel and a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee will bring in regulators and interest groups Wednesday for progress reports on consumer education.
The campaign is endorsed by nearly all the major networks and broadcast TV groups and will include regular public service announcements, crawls and news tickers.
A 2005 report by the Government Accountability Office found that 21 million households--about 19 percent of the nation--rely on an antenna rather than cable or satellite to receive television signals. The poor, elderly and minorities typically depend on the over-the-air signal more than the well-to-do.
If owners of analog televisions do not get a converter box, subscribe to satellite or digital cable, or replace their TV with a digital television by the 2009 changeover date, they will not be able to watch television.
The federal government plans to subsidize the cost of buying a digital-analog converter box by offering $40 discount coupons to anyone who owns an analog television.
