NAB: DTV Transition Needs Solutions

[Gregg Lengling]

At the Federal Communications Commission Wednesday, the National Association of Broadcasters commented on the digital TV transition and what may happen to consumers with analog TV sets when the switch occurs, saying something should be done for households that could be left behind by the change.

In comments on the issue, NAB said a substantial percentage of households with over-the-air (OTA) TV reception will likely have purchased DTV-capable receivers by the time analog broadcasting ends. But for the remaining OTA households, and for analog TV sets in all households, there must solutions.

NAB said one answer is to subsidize digital-to-analog converters for "non-digital" OTA households. Another measure is promotion and education about DTV, and to encourage consumers to purchase digital TVs. Also, a near term measure the FCC could adopt would be to require labels on analog-only TVs alerting consumers to the limited useful life of analog sets, the association said.

The NAB also used the DTV proceeding at the FCC to take aim at cable and its resistance to a dual carriage regime.

"Cable systems not carrying all DTV broadcast signals remains a disincentive to consumers' investing in DTV, knowing they won't necessarily receive all of the digital stations available in their markets," NAB said in its comments. "The affected industries and the government should work together to devise methods and stratagems to ward off and mitigate consumer disruption at all levels."

The FCC's Media Bureau is seeking comment on options for minimizing the disruption to consumers when the switch to digital broadcasting occurs.