FCC Providing Assistance to Consumers with Transition from Analog to Digital Broadcasting

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(Durham, June 10, 2009) — The national transition from analog to digital broadcasting for full-power TV stations will occur June 12th. To assist consumers, the FCC has contracted with vendors to provide DTV assistance at walk-in DTV help centers and clinics, as well as free, in-home DTV converter box installation. If you are unable to connect your converter box to your antenna and analog TV, an FCC contractor may be able to come to your home and do the following free of charge: • Connect up to two of your converter boxes to two TVs and antennas in your home; • Perform a channel scan or rescan on your converter box in order to pick up the digital TV stations in your area; • Make minor adjustments to your antenna; and • Show you how to operate your converter box and features such as closed captioning. These services are paid for by the FCC, and an FCC contractor will not request any payment from you for their services. Details of the FCC program are available at http://www.dtv.gov/. New Hampshire Public Television completed its conversion to digital in February and has been transmitting digitally on channels 11 (WENH-Durham), 48 (WLED-Littleton), and 49 (WEKW-Keene) and 50 (Hanover). Although NHPTV is not changing its broadcasting service this Friday, viewers will need to re-scan their digital converter box or digital TV by early Saturday morning (June 13th) to ensure they are receiving the other local broadcast stations that are converting. Information about NHPTV and the DTV transition is available at www.nhptv.org/dtv. Viewers who need assistance in receiving NHPTV’s signal may also utilize a free FCC contractor as detailed above. The switch from analog to digital television (DTV) is mandated by the federal government and affects broadcasters nationally. Digital picture quality, sound and reception are usually superior; signals are less prone to interference and reception problems. DTV also allows stations to offer more channels and programs to viewers. DTV will enable stations to transmit additional data services. As a result of the switch, bandwidth will be freed up for use by public agencies and emergency first responders.

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