Wed, 18 Feb 2009

Confusion Reigns As Analog TV Begins Shutdown

Botched politically, eh? That's because the entire transition was a political process, not driven by technology, markets or economics, but by political motivations for political ends. What'd they expect?

As TV stations across the country switch off their analog signals, uncertainty reigns. Some 691 stations will have converted to digital broadcasting by midnight tonight (some interpreted the mandate as going digital by Feb. 17, not during Feb. 17, and shut down yesterday). This represents about a third of TV broadcasters nationwide. No one can say how many of the estimated 5.8 million households unready for the transition are in areas served by the stations that are switching now. The FCC added to the uncertainty by imposing extra conditions, making it unclear until last Friday exactly which stations would be switching at the beginning of the transition period. The article quotes a former analyst at Barclays Capital who said the whole process has been "botched politically."

(link) [Slashdot]

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