Feds to start mailing digital-TV upgrade funds
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Next week, the government plans to begin shipping $40 coupons to anyone who requests help buying a basic converter box that keeps older TVs alive after the digital switch next year.
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It may soon be easier to watch "Sesame Street," "Masterpiece Theater" and other public television programs in sharp, digital images.
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The United States led calls on Monday to allocate a prime tranche of the radio frequency spectrum for use by digital television, in a move that would create a multi billion-dollar market for that technology.
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The U.S. Federal Communications  Commission on Tuesday set a road map for making vacant  television airwaves available for other services by early 2009,  when broadcasters are due to switch to digital signals.
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Millions of Americans will need digital converter boxes when television stations make the switch from analog to digital signals in February 2009. Demand will skyrocket and companies that will supply those converters hope they're up to the task.
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The cable television industry has launched a $200 million advertising campaign to assure customers they will still be able to watch their favorite programs after the transition to digital broadcasting.
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Cable companies are planning to charge more for set-top boxes to help pay for new, more expensive versions mandated by the Federal Communications Commission.
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In an early move to corner the high-definition television market in the United States, DirecTV said Wednesday that it will spend more than &#36;1 billion to launch four satellites with the capacity to offer every home in America more than 1,500 local and 150 national HD channels.
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PHILADELPHIA -- Cable companies are planning to charge more for set-top boxes to help pay for new, more expensive versions mandated by the Federal Communications Commission.
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No. 1 US satellite television provider DirecTV Inc. says it will launch four new satellites to expand programming capacity, particularly for high-definition channels and interactive services.
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By Arshad Mohammed, Washington Post Staff Writer  Verizon Communications Inc. plans to announce today that its Fios TV service will carry new digital channels that public television stations plan to offer, including programming aimed at children and Hispanic viewers.
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WASHINGTON -- Mailing a letter will soon cost a penny more.
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The DTV transitionis still on schedule for next year, except now some of the major retailers involved in getting new DTV broadcast converter boxes distributed, are worried that the US government won't be able to pull this off.
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In a broad discussion at the Consumer Electronics Show, U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC)&#160;Chairman Kevin Martin on Tuesday confirmed that the deadline for the country&#39;s switch to digital TV next year will not be postponed, explained the rationale behind the requirements for the current 700MHz auction, and gave hints about his thinking regarding various communications megamergers.Interviewed at the show by Consumer Electronics Association President Gary Shapiro, Martin said the February 2009 deadline for the digital TV switch is a &quot;hard deadline.&quot; He said a postponement would &quot;dis-incentivize&quot; industry to make the transition.&quot;After all of our efforts we couldn&#39;t just turn around and say &#39;We&#39;re just kidding,&#39;&quot; he said.About 50 percent of all homes in the U.S. now have digital TVs, and the CEA forecasts that some 28 million digital TVs will be bought in the U.S. this year, Shapiro noted.The transition to digital will not only improve picture quality for consumers, but also free up spectrum that can be used for wireless broadband, Martin stressed. He also noted that the extra spectrum provided by the switch would be used to improve public safety, allowing for better communications between fire departments and police. The need for better coordination among law enforcement and safety officials was a major point made in the 9/11 Commission report, he noted.Requirements related to the auction for 700MHz spectrum blocks in the U.S. will play an important part in bringing broadband access to more people, such as inhabitants in rural areas, who have limited wireless options now, he said.The spectrum auction has been broken up into blocks. One block, for example, has open-access rules and is broken up into 12 regional licenses across the U.S. There are also &quot;buildout&quot; requirements that will ensure that auction winners will actually put the spectrum to use in a reasonable timeframe, Martin said.He declined to comment directly on the planned merger of Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio, currently under review by the Department of Justice. But he noted that the companies have been talking about a la carte pricing plans for shows, which would give consumers a wide range of options to choose different bundles of programs and prices. Martin said he would encourage content providers -- especially cable TV companies -- to offer this type of program-options plan.One disappointment in the wake of communications industry deregulation has been the rising price of cable TV, he said.Martin stopped short of saying that approval of the Sirius-XM merger would set a regulatory precedent for a rumored merger deal between satellite TV companies Echostar and DirecTV. But he did say that it would be important for the satellite TV companies to give consumers more pricing and program bundle options as part of any merger plan.&quot;This is the type of thing we&#39;d be looking at,&quot; he said.
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By Mark Albright, St. Petersburg Times, Fla.  Sep. 15--Prices of flashy, high-tech TV gear may be plummeting, but  Americans are spending more on digital sets than ever.
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Is CBS adequately addressing digital distribution?
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U.S. Senate Commerce Committee  Chairman John McCain is pushing for up to $1 billion in aid to  ensure consumers are not left in the dark when television  stations broadcast only new, crisp digital signals, according  to draft legislation obtained on Sunday.