San Francisco - In a land where television has long been a
basic necessity of life, millions of people may find themselves
without access to television Friday when the US switches from analog
to digital broadcasting.
The change is part of a long-delayed update in the allocation of
the wireless spectrum, which is used to broadcast everything from TV
signals to mobile phone services and emergency radio traffic.
It is designed to free up valuable frequencies previously used by
televisions stations to broadcast their signals and which will now
become part of the information superhighway on which users of
iPhones, Blackberries and other smartphones and mobile laptops will
increasingly get the information they need to stay connected 24/7.
Those broadcast spectrums have already been sold by the US
government to mobile phone companies for billions of dollars. But at
least for now the scheme is far from a win-win situation on the road
to communications nirvana. Critics complain that it is the poor and
disadvantaged who once again are paying the price for progress, as
the analog signals of local and network stations are terminated -
forcing people to either subscribe to costly cable or satellite
service or to buy and install digital converters for their TV sets.
Industry trade group DTV Across America estimates that between 20
and 30 million household faced the need to transition to the new
system.
Aware of these issues, the US government has spent more than 2
billion dollars on a voucher programme, in which every household can
get two vouchers worth 40 dollars each to buy two converter boxes.
However, despite a massive advertising campaign and a three-month
postponement of the switch date, millions of households are estimated
not to have availed themselves of the new service and are set to lose
their signal entirely when analog broadcasting becomes a relic of
history on June 12. The latest survey by the Nielsen Company
indicates that as of the end of May, more than 10 per cent of the 114
million households that have television sets are either completely or
partly unprepared.
Many of those are likely to turn to a 4,000-person call centre set
up by the Federal Communications Commission to help people make the
switch.
In an interview with the New York Times, acting FCC chairman
Michael J Copps conceded that the impact was likely to be hardest on
poor families, the handicapped, the elderly and in homes where little
English is spoken.
'We are much better prepared than we were in February, when the
original transition was to have occurred, but there will nonetheless
be significant disruptions,' Copps said. 'In the past five months
we've tried to accomplish what should have been done over the last
four years.'
There are advantages and disadvantages to watching TV through
these converter boxes. Firstly, the boxes can be a hassle to install
- especially for those not fond or adept at moving their televisions
and dealing with the mass of cables in the back. Numerous companies
do offer installation services for the new converter boxes but these
services bump the cost of conversion far above the 40-dollar value of
the coupons.
In some areas the digital signal can be better than analog -
though in others it can be worse or even nonexistent. Many digital
boxes do offer a useful viewing guide - though some elderly people
complain that learning how to navigate the system with a new remote
control is fiendishly complicated.
'It has all been a nightmare, and it's very, very upsetting,' said
Frances Lim, a 72-year-old woman in San Jose California. 'We don't
have money for cable or satellite and were very happy with the few
stations we have been getting for years. Now we have to change. I
didn't know how to do it. Luckily my grandson helped me. But I'm
still learning the new remote control.'
US president Barack Obama is helping the effort to prepare for
the switch.
'The number of households unprepared for digital television has
been cut in half. Still, some people are not ready,' said Obama in a
statement last week. 'I encourage all Americans who are prepared to
talk to their friends, family, and neighbors to make sure they get
ready before it's too late. I urge everyone who is not yet prepared
to act today.' Obama said.
USA
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