Friday, February 6, 2009

Digital TV Transition Update

The federal government recently passed a law giving TV stations the option to delay their switch to all-digital transmission until June 12 instead of the original February 17th date.  But delaying the switch is optional, and each TV station can make their own decision on when they make the switch.  (IMHO, this only adds to the confusion, and doesn’t help to resolve the situation.)

Many other markets in the US are going to delay the switch, but stations here in Utah, for the most part have elected to stick to the original February 17th date.  Those still turning off their analog transmissions in February as originally planned are: KUTV Channel 2 (CBS), KTVX Channel 4 (ABC), KSL Channel 5 (NBC), KTSU Channel 13 (Fox), KJZZ Channel 14 (Ind), and KUCW Channel 30 (CW).  The stations that will continue their analog transmissions until June 12th are KUED Channel 7 (PBS), KUEN Channel 9 (Ind), and KBYU Channel 11 (PBS).

If you live in another market, please contact your local broadcaster for information on when they will be making the transition.

Trivia: A recent study indicated that it is primarily younger adults that are not “ready” for the transition, not the elderly as is commonly believed.  This seems to be attributed to the fact that younger viewers are more likely to get their entertainment from other sources such as the Internet or digital video services like iTunes.

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