Feb. 17 was the original deadline for all U.S. television stations to switch their broadcasting of free TV programming from analog to digital-only. However, the U.S. Congress moved the deadline back to Friday, June 12, because millions of households have not been able to get the federally-funded coupons for purchasing digital converter boxes.
This mandatory change will affect all U.S. households that use an analog TV with an antenna to watch television and do not subscribe to cable, satellite, or other pay-TV service. Those who use cable TV or other paid TV services do not need to upgrade, nor do those who already have digital TVs.
See these sites for more information about the transition to digital TV:
- Wikipedia.org’s DTV transition in the United States
- DTVanswers.com, the National Association of Broadcasters’ digital TV transition campaign
- The U.S. government’s DTV 2009 website, which includes the TV Converter Box coupon program
(to call for coupons: 1-888-388-2009, 1-888-DTV-2009) - How do I switch? includes a searchable database to find your TV set’s manufacturer name and model number, and determine if your TV has a digital tuner.
