Countdown to Digital

Can you hear the countdown yet? At the time of this writing, we are at 320 days closer to February 17th, 2009. What happens then? The history of Television and Technology in general adds a new chapter/era to its historical files.

Feb 17th 2009 is the day that “Broadcast Television as we have known it since 1939 will cease to exist”. Every Television Broadcaster is required by law to convert their analog signal to digital and any over-the-air televisions that have been created to pick up an analog signal will no longer work the way they have in the past. Hmmmm. You don’t even need to own a television to appreciate the historical aspects of this.

What exactly does that mean? Well, you know that little battery powered TV on your counter top that you may even take with you on road trips? It will stop working. How about those extra TV’s scattered around your house in various rooms? Yep, they will stop working too, but the good news is, you don’t have to just toss them in the trash and run out and buy a bunch of LCD or Plasma TV’s, you do have some options to keep them working.

Read below courtesy of http://www.dtv2009.gov/

What are my options?

How do I request a coupon?
Between January 1, 2008 and March 31, 2009, you can request a coupon while supplies last in one of four ways:

Apply online http://www.dtv2009.gov/

Call the Coupon Program 24-hour hotline 1-888-DTV-2009 (1-888-388-2009).
Mail a coupon application to: PO BOX 2000, Portland, OR 97208-2000. Download a Coupon Application here at http://www.dtv2009.gov/

Fax a coupon application to 1-877-DTV-4ME2 (1-877-388-4632)
Deaf or hard of hearing callers may dial 1-877-530-2634 (English/TTY) or 1-866-495-1161 (Spanish/TTY). TTY Service is available from 9 AM - 9 PM Eastern Time Monday through Friday.

Will the transition affect me?

You will need to take action before February 17, 2009 if you currently watch TV on an analog TV set that is not connected to cable, satellite or other pay TV service. If you own a television with a digital tuner or subscribe to a pay TV service, you will likely continue to receive TV programming as usual after the transition.

If you think you need a converter box, go to http://www.dtv2009.gov/ to apply for a coupon.