Congress mandated that full-power television stations will no longer broadcast in analog -- over-the-air television broadcasts will be in digital only . If you have one or more TV sets that receive free over-the-air television programming with a roof-top antenna or “rabbit ears” on the TV, the type of TV you own is very important. A digital television (a TV with an internal digital tuner) will allow you to continue to watch free over-the-air programming after February 17, 2009 on TV20 Detroit, but if you have an analog television, you’ll need a digital-to-analog converter box to continue to watch broadcast television on that set. This converter box will also make it possible for you to see any additional multicast programming that your local stations are offering.

To help consumers with the DTV transition, the Government established the Digital-to-Analog Converter Box Coupon Program. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), a part of the Department of Commerce, administers this program. Every U.S. household is eligible to receive up to two coupons, worth $40 each, toward the purchase of eligible digital-to-analog converter boxes.

You can place a request for the coupons at www.dtv2009.gov. The coupons may only be used for eligible converter boxes sold at participating consumer electronics retailers, & the coupons must be used at the time of purchase. Please note that the coupons have an expiration date.

Digital-to-analog converter boxes sell from $50 to $80 each. This is a one-time cost. For more information on the Digital-to-Analog Converter Box Coupon Program, visit the NTIA’s website at www.ntia.doc.gov/dtvcoupon, or call 1-888-388-2009 (voice) or 1-877-530-2634 (TTY).

Cable and satellite TV subscribers with analog TV's hooked up to their cable or satellite service should not be affected by the cut-off of full-power analog broadcasting.






To find out more information on DTV, click HERE