One Week to Go Until DTV Transition
June 5, 2009
June 5, 2009
INDIANAPOLIS –With one week to go before the transition to digital broadcast television (DTV), Congressman André Carson today encouraged residents to stop by local community events this weekend organized to help people prepare for the switch-over.
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration have set up Mobile Assistance Centers (MACs) in the Indianapolis metropolitan area to promote the June 12 DTV transition and provide information to local residents. The MACs will have staff on hand to help consumers apply for coupons that help defray the cost of a DTVconverter box, which is needed to receive over-the-air broadcast television. The MAC representatives will also be able to answer questions about the converter box installation process and have equipment on hand to demonstrate how the technology works.
"Television is more than just a medium for entertainment—it's a vital communications tool that plays a key role in keeping our community informed and safe, especially when the threat of severe weather is involved," Carson said. "We have one week to go before the DTV transition, so I'm encouraging any Indianapolis residents not ready for the change-over to visit these mobile centers to get prepared."
Recent reports state that Indianapolis remains one of the least-prepared cities for the June 12 transition.
The MAC schedule for the Indianapolis metropolitan area includes the following stops:
· Friday (today), June 5, 8 a.m.-6 p.m.
Indianapolis Air Show, Mount Comfort Airport
3867 N. Aviation Way
Greenfield, Indiana
· Saturday, June 6, 11 am-2pm
Lafayette Square Mall
Corner of Lafayette Rd. and 38th St.
Indianapolis, Indiana
· Saturday, June 6, 5 p.m.-8 p.m.
College Park 14 Cinemas
3535 W. 86th St.
Indianapolis, Indiana
· Sunday, June 7, 3 p.m.-6 p.m.
Hamilton Town Center Mall
13901 Town Center Blvd.
Noblesville, Indiana
NOTE: Converter boxes will not be available for pick up at the MACs. Residents can apply for the coupon at the MAC and they will receive it in the mail within a few weeks. All converter boxes will need to be purchased at participating local retailers.
More on DTV transition
Nielson released data last month that showed Indianapolis as the 16th least-prepared market in terms of the percentage of households that still remain unable to receive a digital signal. Nearly 3.6 percent of the Indianapolis market, or more than 40,000 households, are not ready for the switch-over on June 12. The Albuquerque/Santa Fe market ranked number one with 8.5 percent of its households not prepared.
To help struggling households defray the costs of the digital converter boxes, the Congressman has encouraged qualifying residents to take advantage of the Department of Commerce's TV Converter Box Coupon Program, which provides $40 coupons to cover most of the cost of the set-top boxes. So far, more than 55 million coupons have been used nationwide.
Anyone who has television service through a cable company or satellite provider is ready for the transition—all signal conversion will be handled by their provider.
Only households that rely on free, over-the-air TV and use "rabbit ears" or a rooftop antenna to receive a signal need to take additional measures to be ready for DTV. These households have three choices to prepare for the transition:
1) subscribe to cable, satellite or Internet-protocol-based TV service;
2) purchase a television with a digital tuner; or
3) buy a converter box which plugs into your analog TV and will convert the signal to digital.
Residents can purchase the set-top box at a partnering retail store, all of which are listed on the official DTV Web site, www.DTV2009.gov. The Web site, set up by the Department of Commerce as a clearing house of information about the DTV transition, also allows people to apply for coupons and find the closest retail location to them to make their converter box purchase.
For those without Internet access, there are two toll-free numbers available to provide information about DTV:
· 1-888-DTV-2009 – This number should be used to apply for coupons and locate nearby partnering retailers.
· 1-888-CALL-FCC – Residents who have more general questions about the DTV transition and the steps they need to take should call this number.
In February, Congressman Carson went to the floor of the House to encourage his colleagues to delay the DTV transition. That delay was passed and signed into law. Since then, the Obama Administration has worked with Congress to proactively push education on DTV and set aside money under the Recovery and Reinvestment Act to allow the Department of Commerce to help more Americans with the transition so they can continue to receive important local television news and emergency information.
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