A decision to switch off analogue TV transmitters before most people have digital sets may cost US consumers at least $3.5 billion.
Congress is expected to approve proposals to shut down existing terrestrial analogue TV transmissions at the start of 2009, and replace them with digital broadcasts. The big question is what will happen to the millions of analogue-only sets, which will require an adapter to receive the new signal. Each adapter is expected to cost $50 or more.
The Consumer Electronics Association, which represents TV manufacturers, claims that as most people subscribe to satellite and cable, only 33 million sets still depend entirely on analogue terrestrial broadcasts. Satellite and cable networks provide customers with their own adapters.
Advertisement
But a survey last month by the Consumer Federation of America puts the total much higher: it says 15 per cent of households can only receive analogue broadcasts, and that many homes with cable or satellite have not hooked up all their sets. Some 80 million sets rely purely on analogue broadcasts, the survey says.
The government is expected to raise at least $10 billion when it auctions off parts of the spectrum after analogue broadcasts are switched off. Congress is considering whether part of this revenue should be used to compensate consumers for the cost of adapters.
The remaining surplus spectrum will be set aside for emergency communication systems.
