The agency has certified 11 brands of converter boxes from eight manufacturers, including Zenith and Magnavox, as eligible for the program. He urged people to check their local stores and see what boxes are available before applying. “We want to make sure that folks have the time to go in and redeem the coupon during that time period,” Forbes said. The coupons will expire 90 days after they are issued to assure they don’t go unused. But officials are urging people to wait before applying. The federal law that mandated the digital conversion required NTIA to start offering coupons Jan. Many of those sets can receive only analog signals, although sales of high-definition TVs, which include digital tuners, have soared in the last two years. of Broadcasters has estimated there are as many as 70 million TVs hooked up to antennas, including extra sets in homes with cable or satellite. The rest of the program’s $1.5-billion price tag is for administrative costs.Īlthough there is enough money for 33.5 million coupons, the National Assn. After the first $890 million worth of coupons are distributed, the federal government will allocate an additional $450 million in coupons, but only to households that rely on over-the-air signals. Applications also can be filled out online at Each household is eligible for two coupons, regardless of whether it has cable or satellite service. Pacific time on Tuesday, will be staffed by live operators who can take requests in English, Spanish, Vietnamese and four other languages. They have set up a toll-free number, (888) DTV-2009, which, starting at 3 a.m. “You’re not thinking of just your immediate comfort zone, just watching television - you’ve got to think in case something happens.” “I’m going to apply definitely, for back-up,” he said. That’s the reason Eric Matsuoka, 58, of Montebello plans to get a converter box coupon even though he has cable service.
Sears analog to digital converter box tv#
But there are as many as 26 million households in the United States that only receive over-the-air TV - and millions more that may want the option for emergencies or power outages when cable and satellite transmissions are down. Satellite and cable customers won’t need converter boxes for TVs they have hooked up to those systems. Those boxes are expected to be available starting in February at more than 14,000 government-certified retail outlets, including Best Buy, Circuit City, RadioShack, Sears, Target and Wal-Mart shops. Ones without a built-in digital tuner will no longer be able to receive over-the-air signals unless they get a special box to change the signals back to analog. It will also deliver clearer pictures and additional broadcast channels for people who don’t have pay-TV service.īut some TV sets might have trouble making the technological leap.
Sears analog to digital converter box free#
The program - the biggest change in broadcast TV since the advent of color - will free up valuable airwaves for public safety agencies and new wireless phone and Internet services. That’s when broadcast TV stations turn off their analog signals and start transmitting only in digital. The $1.5-billion program is designed to ease the major change coming on Feb. 1,” said Bart Forbes, a spokesman for the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, the Commerce Department agency running the program. Via a toll-free hotline and a website, the Commerce Department will begin accepting applications for coupons worth $40 off a no-frills converter box to allow older televisions to receive digital broadcast signals. The federal government doesn’t usually give things away, but starting Tuesday broadcast TV watchers can apply for a gift that could keep their sets from going dark in 2009.