Analog to Digital Television: A Wired Look at the Transition

"How We Bungled the Digital Television Transition"
Wired (February 20, 2009)

"America's transition to over-the-air digital television signals, which netted the government $19 billion in a wireless spectrum auction, was doomed from the start, thanks to a flawed voucher program and a time frame that left the country stranded between administrations...."

I think this is a pretty good analysis of what happened, and what went wrong: and surprisingly free of finger-pointing.

There's also something that we didn't hear from Washington: " 'These findings from local stations, coupled with the FCC data, paint the picture that by and large TV households affected in those markets were ready," stated NAB digital television transition vice president Jonathan Collegio. "A relatively small percentage of viewers so far have needed assistance.' "

Oh, well, when June 12, 2009, rolls around, and someone in Blackduck, Pangultch, or Oxnard, still doesn't have a converter box: I suppose we'll go through the whole thing again.

Related posts:

• "Analog to Digital Television: Technology, Congress, and A Little Common Sense"
  (February 17, 2009)
• "Analog-to-Digital Television Switch - Back to February 17"
  (January 28, 2009)
• "Digital Television Delay Vote Delayed"
  (January 27, 2009)
• "Congress May Delay Television Digital Switch - I am Not Making This Up"
  (January 26, 2009)
• "Analog-to-Digital Television Switch: Oh No! How Will I Ever Afford a New Television Set?!"
  (January 8, 2009)
• "Analog-to-Digital Television Switch Coming February 17 - Or Not"
  (January 8, 2009)