President Barack Obama on Wednesday signed into law the DTV Delay Act, a bill postponing the date on which television broadcasters will have to transition from analog signals to digital signals.
The legislation moves the transition deadline from February 17 to June 12. Democrats, including the administration, supported the measure out of concern for the millions of people who are not prepared for the switchover.
"During these challenging economic times, the needs of American consumers are a top priority of my administration," Obama said in a statement. "Millions of Americans, including those in our most vulnerable communities, would have been left in the dark if the conversion had gone on as planned, and this solution is an important step forward as we work to get the nation ready for digital TV."
The law, however, allows broadcasters to proceed with the changeover if they are ready, and more than a third of the nation's television stations will make the switch next week as planned. The vacated analog spectrum will be allocated to public safety services.
"Next week is not going to be pretty," Michael Copps, the acting chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, said at an event in Washington on Wednesday. "There is going to be consumer dislocation and confusion next week."
He said the only thing that would have been worse than the confusion he anticipates next week would have been the fallout had the DTV Delay Act not been passed.
More than 3.7 million people are still on a waiting list to receive coupons for digital converter boxes from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, according to NTIA data from February 4. The NTIA ran through the $1.3 billion allocated for the coupons weeks ago, though a Senate panel last month approved an additional $650 million for the coupon program as part of the so-called stimulus package making its way through Congress.
"Our next few days are pretty much spoken for at the FCC," Copps said. "That's not how I would have hoped to be spending my time as acting chairman."
Updated at 2:25 p.m. PST with comments from lawmakers and regulators.
With less than two weeks left before the scheduled national transition to digital broadcasting, Congress on Wednesday approved a delay of the DTV switchover.
The House of Representatives voted 264 to 158 to push the transition back from February 17 to June 12. The Senate unanimously approved the delay last week.
House Republicans blocked an earlier attempt at delaying the transition, saying pushing back the date would create confusion for consumers and burden television stations that would have to continue broadcasting both analog and digital signals. The initial vote on the measure required a two-thirds majority to pass under "fast-track" rules, but Wednesday's House vote required only a simple majority.
The bill now awaits the president's signature.
Democrats, including President Obama, were concerned that consumers were not prepared for the transition and that millions of people would be left without television service if it were not postponed. Nielsen reports that more than 6.5 million U.S. households are still not prepared for the transition.
Furthermore, millions of consumers are still waiting for coupons for digital converter boxes from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, which ran through the $1.3 billion allocated for the coupons. A Senate panel last weekapproved an additional $650 million for the coupon program as part of its so-called stimulus package.
"It is unfortunate that Congress had to take additional action on this issue, but the prospect of leaving millions of consumers in the dark was simply unacceptable," Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), a senior member of a congressional Internet panel, said in a statement after Wednesday's vote. "This was a foreseeable problem and should have been anticipated and acknowledged by the Bush administration long ago. However, the Bush administration simply left us with insufficient time to make the needed adjustments on a national basis without this short, one-time delay."
The bill allows television stations to switch from analog to digital signals before the June 12 deadline if they are ready to do so. The vacated analog spectrum will be allocated to public safety services.
"I know we will do all that we can to minimize the inevitable disruption and confusion this transition will cause," said Federal Communications Commissioner Robert McDowell. "In the meantime, if you need a converter box, get it today and hook it up today and start enjoying the benefits of digital television today."
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