Feds Share Coupons to Help TV Transition

[Terri]

By JOHN DUNBAR
Associated Press
January 2, 2008

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Millions of $40 government coupons become available Tuesday to help low-tech television owners buy special converter boxes for older TVs that might not work after the switch to digital broadcasting.

Beginning Feb. 18, 2009, anyone who does not own a digital set and still gets their programming via over-the-air antennas will no longer receive a picture.

That's the day the television industry completes its transition from old-style analog broadcasting to digital.

The converter boxes are expected to cost between $50 and $70 and will be available at most major electronics retail stores. Starting Tuesday, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration will begin accepting requests for two $40 coupons per household to be used toward the purchase of the boxes.

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[javajoy]

My personal opnion is that the Gov't should NOT be providing coupons to anyone for the switch over.

People should either provide their own or the cable company should provide them for free. Lord knows the cable companies collect enormous fees already and only provide trash anyway.

Don't forget there is always radio. What a unique idea!

If every houehold saved five bucks a month they could be ready to buy a converter box or two by 2009. Why should the American people pay for them out of tax money?

[Terri]

Dunno but I just saw an email from a conservative who wants the government to come install it for him.

[CleosMom]

Well. . . . . . I was just on their website or at least I tried. Apparently there's a lot of people trying to access it.

While I agree that it isn't the government's role to provide coupons for this, I'm enough of a tightwad to at least try to get a coupon.

If only I could get on.

[schillerbjr]

More government meddling, another "disaster"
in the making!!! GOD HELP US!!!

[azwhitewolf]

People should either provide their own or the cable company should provide them for free. Lord knows the cable companies collect enormous fees already and only provide trash anyway.

This has nothing to do with the cable or satellite companies. These boxes are for people who have neither, and rely on television for news, weather reports, emergency broadcasts, and local news.

With the "big switch", broadcasters are switching from the NTSC system (analog) to the ATSC system (digital). As a result, the "rabbit ears" people will have a worthless TV unless they get an ATSC tuner box and hook it up to their TV.

Most people have cable or satellite, in which case, they hook the box up via Cable input, Component input or the HDMI input - SO NO TUNER is ever used.

19 million other people in the country watch TV the old fashioned way - via rabbit ears.

Myself included.

The whole "Your TV won't work after Feb. 09" campaign is a little overblown - some TVs simply won't work - and those are TVs that you can't even hook up a converter box to. Think $50.00 13" from 7 years ago with no composite, component or RCA inputs. But most people CAN keep their TV, they just have to get an $80.00 converter box.

It's easy to blame poor people and say that they could come up with $5.00 a month if they'd just plan, but it's not their fault that the bandwidth and frequencies are changing. Some are just lucky to have a TV. Congress made a killing selling that bandwidth to the cellphone companies (which is why you can now watch TV on your cell phone) and to Homeland Security. The amount taxpayers are paying for Homeland's share, to my knowledge, remains undisclosed. But it's taxpayers dollars, and I imagine, a LOT of them.

So a $40.00 voucher doesn't seem like such a kick in the pants. Until you realize that 22.5 million vouchers will be available, and if needed, Congress can authorize another 11.5 million.

Personally, I find it more offensive that we've sold that bandwidth for billions of dollars with yearly accruing fees, taxes and regulations. But we'll never see a dime of that either. So if they give 19 million people boxes to see TV after making an enormous profit, well, at least it sounds like its benefiting somebody.

[makamends]

Government simply doesn't belong in any of this business.

[righton]

As far as I'm concerned, the frigging government can stay away from my TV. I only watch about 5 hours a week, and I don't want this short time screwed up.

L&L

[azwhitewolf]

You'll be watching 5 less hours if you're using a regular rabbit ears antenna.

Otherwise, your cable or satellite company has already made the transition necessary for you.

Back to the point, let me ask this.

Is it fair for government to transition a standard and potentially block 19 million people from using technology that they've paid for without any compensation whatsoever?

The people who purchased a TV in the early 2000's for hundreds or thousands of dollars should be penalized... why?

This is like upgrading from Windows 3.1 to Windows XP. If 3.1 worked for you, you didn't need to upgrade. But imagine if every copy of Windows 3.1 was spontaneously expired.

Or if government phased out the production of gasoline, and the only blend available was diesel - so you have to convert your engine to accept diesel. Do consumers just bite the bullet because the federal government made a decision that negatively impacts many citizens?

Is that "just how it goes"? I'm asking, because it seems like government made the choice, and if it effects people, there should be some kind of compensation.

The FCC mandated this change. This was not a "the will of the people" decision, either. The government went ahead with this without any consideration - and figured a last minute rebate was the best solution.