Fcc To Vote On Digital Tv Plan

[Gregg Lengling]

Michael Powell, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, plans to hold a vote this year on a proposal to require U.S. television broadcasters such as Viacom Inc.'s CBS to convert to digital signals by January 2009, a Powell aide said.
Powell, who supports the plan, has decided to schedule a November or December vote, even after a Senate committee rejected a similar proposal last week, said Jonathan Cody, a legal adviser to Powell on media regulation, in an interview.

The FCC staff proposal seeks to impose a deadline after unsuccessful efforts by Congress and regulators to prod TV stations and viewers to convert to digital technology.