[RTC List] FCC/Digital TV Service

[William Van Hefner]

For those of you who do not have HDTV television sets or that own one or
more older analog TVs that will not receive digital broadcasts, the
federal government is here to help. Every household in the United States
is eligible to receive up to two (2) coupons good for $40 towards the
purchase of a government-approved "CECB" converter box. This box will let
you watch digital TV signals on older, analog TV sets. Think of this as a
bonus on top of your IRS "economic stimulus" check.

You will NOT be able to see the "High Definition" portion of available
broadcasts (if any are ever available locally) any more than you would be
able to listen to a stereo TV broadcast with a TV that has only one
speaker, or a color broadcast with a black-and-white TV. It will at least
let you watch programming in standard resolution after the old VHF and UHF
analog channels have stopped broadcasting in 2009 though, and you will be
able to use them to receive most local TV stations in Humboldt County
right away. Keep in mind, these converters are only meant to pick up
OVER-THE-AIR, local broadcasts. So, you will still need an external
antenna of some type to pick up a signal. If you are not currently within
range of analog TV reception, the converter will likely not be of much use
to you.

You can receive your coupons via mail from a program run by the National
Telecommunications and Information Administration, which is a division of
the U.S. Department of Transportation. Why the program is not administered
by the Federal Communications Commission, I have no clue. In any event,
you can apply to receive your coupons online at the website address: 
https://www.dtv2009.gov/ApplyCoupon.aspx , or call 1-800-DTV-2009 to get
the forms mailed to you.

Once having filled out the form, you will be placed on a waiting list to
receive your coupons. You will have 90 days to make use of the coupons
once you receive them. As a practical matter, most "CECB Certified"
converter boxes sell for a bit more than $40 at the moment, so it will
likely cost you somewhere between $10-$50 out of pocket (plus tax and/or
shipping) to buy one, depending upon the brand name and number of extra
features the box includes.

I have not done an extensive investigation when it comes to shopping for
these boxes. I have heard that you can buy some of the cheaper ones at
Wal-Mart for $50, which ends-up costing you $10 out-of-pocket after using
the coupon. If you can find them in stock, you may be able to get them at
Radio Shack. If you want to purchase one over the internet, the situation
is a bit more muddled, since most online checkout systems have absolutely
no clue as to how to handle discounts from a government coupon. You can
currently find many units available on Amazon.Com though. Off the top of
my head, the only company I know of that handles the coupon process online
is solidsignal.com . For the record, NO, I do not own the company or
receive any commissions from them. I have bought cable, wiring, outdoor
antennas and a number of other products from them in the past though, and
they are pretty reliable.

I currently use a standard HDTV set at my home in Eureka, and receive most
all of the local stations in digital using a fairly large, outdoor,
mast-mounted UHF Yagi antenna. I can't say as I am all that impressed with
the type of signal that I receive from most  local broadcasters, but it is
better signal than I get on many of the older analog simulcasts. Either
way, it's nice to have the choice, for now at least.


-- 

William Van Hefner
President

Vantek Communications, Inc.
Eureka, CA 95501-3838
707.476.0833 ph
e-mail: vantek at humboldtonline.com