|
IF YOU ARE A CABLE SUBSCRIBER, YOU SHOULD BE AWARE –
-
For the digital (DTV) transition, only full-power TV
broadcast stations were required to switch from analog to digital
broadcasting by June 12, 2009.
-
The DTV transition does not require cable companies to
switch their cable systems to digital.
-
For voluntary business reasons, your cable company may
move some cable channels from its analog tier onto a digital tier, or may
switch to all-digital service and stop providing any analog service.
These changes are not required by the government.
-
As long as your cable company offers any analog
service, it must provide you with your local broadcast stations so you can
watch them without a cable set-top box.
-
Any analog television not hooked up to cable, must use
a digital to analog converter box to continue to receive broadcast signals
after June 12, 2009.
The DTV transition has many benefits. It frees up
frequencies for police, fire, and emergency rescue communications, provides
frequencies for advanced wireless services, and allows TV broadcast stations
to offer more programming with better picture and sound quality.
If you have an analog television that receives free
over-the-air programming with a broadcast antenna (such as “rabbit ears” on
your set or an antenna on your roof), you need to purchase a
digital-to-analog converter box in order to watch digital broadcast
television.
If you subscribe to cable service, the DTV transition
should not have affected any TV sets that are connected to your cable service.
Only full-power broadcast television stations – stations that use the public
airwaves to transmit their programming for free to viewers through a broadcast
antenna, were required to stop analog broadcasting on June 12, 2009.
Cable companies are not required to switch their
privately-owned systems from analog service to digital service. In fact, if
your cable company offers any analog service, it is required to provide you
with your local broadcast stations in analog so that you can watch them on an
analog TV without a cable set-top box.
Some cable companies have decided to switch to digital
service. This is a business decision made by the cable companies and is not
required by the federal government. Your cable company may decide to move
certain cable channels off of its analog service tier and onto a digital
service tier, or it may decide to switch to all-digital service at once, so
that there is no analog service tier for any subscribers. If your cable
company moves some or all of the channels it provides onto a digital service
tier, it may notify you that you need to get “digital cable” equipment to
continue receiving that cable service, including renting or purchasing a
digital cable set-top box or purchasing a digital cable ready TV equipped with
a “CableCARD” slot. This digital cable equipment is different from the
digital-to-analog converter boxes discussed above, and digital cable equipment
is not eligible for the $40 coupons. If you have a digital TV, you may be able
to view broadcast stations through your cable system without additional
equipment. You should ask your cable company about the equipment options that
may be available to you, including any options to purchase equipment from a
retailer if you do not wish to rent equipment from your cable company.
For more information about the DTV transition, go to
www.dtv.gov or contact the FCC by e-mailing
fccinfo@fcc.gov; calling 1-888-CALL-FCC
(1-888-225-5322) voice or 1-888-TELL-FCC (1-888-835-5322) TTY; faxing
1-866-418-0232; or writing to:
Federal Communications Commission
Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau
Consumer Inquiries and Complaints Division
445 12th Street, SW
Washington, DC 20554.
 |
Federal Communications Commission · Consumer
& Governmental Affairs Bureau · 445 12th St. S.W. ·
Washington, DC 20554 |
|
1-888-CALL-FCC (1-888-225-5322) ·
TTY: 1-888-TELL-FCC (1-888-835-5322) · Fax: 1-866-418-0232 · www.fcc.gov/cgb/
|
|
Federal Communications Commission
