What do you think of the Digital TV law starting 2/17/09?

Question

What do you think of the Digital TV law starting 2/17/09?

Answer 1

As you know there are pros and cons or You wouldn't have asked this question.

Now I live in a laboratory condition location, in a high point of the city and less than 20 miles from the transmission towers.

I converted last winter as soon as the boxes were available. Less reception problems than analog with adverse weather. I live in Seattle.

I am having signal problems more in the hot drier summer with fade, go figure.

For me the cost of the box which EVERY American has the chance to be subsidized by the fed's IF they apply. I got my DTV units for $1.00 each with the fed coupon. So that is not an issue for me nor the need for a new antenna. My current works OK. I was already equipped to receive UHF signals

As for the reception I am extremely pleased along with the onscreen programing guides. I get 28 channels now, I only had 12 before..

Some of which are of no use to me, I don't watch god on TV.

With everything we have today that is "wireless" I understand the need to change and free up bandwidth for the future. I think that it was unnecessary to do now, 15 - 20 years in the future would have been OK too. They (feds) could have mandated that the manufactures equip the new TVs long before they did. say 7-10 yrs before the change. Attrition would have put the new tuners in many more homes, with no conversion hassles.

Viewers that live in fringe areas mostly already have a satellite or cable anyway..

Overall I am satisfied , not overjoyed but OK with it.

It is still FREE TV

Answer 2

Responding to some of the other answers:

What "chosen provider" are you talking about? The same set of market participants are involved as with analog. I see no preferential treatment here.

So how is $20 (after the govt coupon subsidy) expensive. That's less than half a tank of gasoline.

If you've actually seen DTV, you can't help but be impressed. The quality is way above analog, even in SD. With HD, there's no contest.

I got one of the converter boxes and went from snowy, wavy reception to rock solid pictures. And I'm 65 miles from the transmitters. All it needed was a rooftop antenna.

Answer 3

I hate it.  That is why I don't plan on getting the ( to me) very expensive converter box.  I will watch movies, skip tv.  I am a full time student with a part time job.  I don't that kind of money to pay for something that used to be free!

Answer 4

Smacks of anti-trust, governmental collusion with a chosen provider and prevention of any and all competitors as well as discrimination against the poor and aged to me.  What was free is no longer free even with the government sponsorship of help with the converter box expense.