Thursday, January 15, 2009

Congress Wants to Make More DTV Converter Box Coupons

This is an update to my post about staticacrossamerica.com and the Feb. 17  analog to DTV transition.

The U.S. Congress is seeking $650 million to make more converter box coupons.

According to the report from Reuters, the coupons are part of the economic stimulus legislation released by Democrats on the House Appropriations Committee today. Millions of Americans complained they needed more time and money for a converter box, and Barack Obama asked for an extension of the analog cutoff date, currently set for Feb. 17

Former FCC chairman Kevin J. Martin was an opponent of the extended deadline, but his term is over and Obama picked Julius Genachowski  to serve as the new FCC chairman.

If the economic stimulus legislation passes: I have a few questions:

• How long will it take to produce and distrbute the coupons?
• Will there be enough coupons to meet the current demand?
• Will the the transition occur Feb. 17 since the residents have their discount?

Personally, I think if the new coupons are distributed by the end of January, it's the responsibility of each recipient to purchase a converter box by Feb. 17. Broadcasters shouldn't be forced to prolong analog broadcasts until every single resident is ready for the switch.

Posted By Matt O'Hern at 03:16 PM
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