This FRIDAY: TIMES UP! Are You Ready For Digital TV?

On June 12, 2009, Broadcast Television will change forever from the mundane caterpillar world of analog to the full multicasting butterflyspectrum of digital TV.  

Why? Television was, and has remained,, a free medium. When the meshing of radio and advertising occurred in the early 1920's, radio blossomed, more stations came on the air, and variety of programming exploded. Television, began like radio. Commercials paid and still pay for the content .

Television's programming has declined, as the broadcasters have fought an uphill battle against the variety and quality of “pay TV.” For many years they needed an “edge” to properly compete with cable TV, and this is where the story of Digital TV (DTV) begins. It was with the broadcasters, NOT cable TV, that digital television (DTV) was invented. HDTV was created for DTV. Digital TV will give broadcasters the competition-edge they've needed for years to realistically compete with Direct TV, Dish TV, FIOS, satellite TV, and cable. The FCC, who regulates broadcast television - FREE TV, not cable TV, has played an important part in the implementation of DTV. It is the FCC who has mandated the switch from analog to DTV, nationwide, on June 12, 2009.

The FCC regulates free TV, not pay TV. And, because broadcasters, your local TV stations, will be able to broadcast multiple programs, at the same time, broadcast TV will once, again, give the viewer quality programming.

There is a new bright future for broadcast television. Give them some time to make the switch to DTV, and in the not too distant future broadcast television will, too, become a viable option to pay TV.

The big digital switchover will occur this coming Friday, 12 June 2009. No longer will broadcasters of free TV have to present their programming in two different broadcast formats, analog and digital. It costs a lot more to use two formats. After Friday, no-more-analog.

If you haven't purchased a converter box for your analog TV, it will be useless after 12:01am on June 12. One of the trade-offs broadcasters had to give up in exchange for the whole switch to digital was the VHF TV band, channels 2-13. And, the UHF TV band changes too, from channels 14-83 to digital channels 14-51.

(If you have a DTV - HDTV and are planning to use only broadcast TV you'll need a UHF antenna, not the old VHF style. Many made were combos, and those will work.)

Still, your analog TV will not be able to receive the new digital UHF band. With no analog signals your old reliable analog TV is junk!

Most people who have not been able to afford the new wide-screen TVs, LCD, or Plasma, have saved their viewing-selves by subscribing to pay TV, either through cable TV, or one of the other subscription services.

And, by doing that, you miss the whole point of the digital switchover. This isn't about pay TV, not in the least, this is about free TV, over-the-air broadcast television.

Welcome, my friends, the the Twenty-first Century, a new beginning and a new century for free broadcast television. May they do well, and prosper.

This article was written by Joseph E. Howard and
is Copyright © 2009 Pink Taxi Communications - XCM Inc.

Links to help-sites:

Official Transition Site - FCC
http://www.dtv.gov/

Or, you can call your local TV stations, or visit their websites.