A Flashback…
I’m sure several of you recall that statement I made in one of our impromptu Starbucks meetings a few months ago about the possible outcome of the impending digital TV signal switch-over.
While it seemed that many of you thought that it was a “done deal” (and indeed, it really doesn’t impact many people, for a variety of reasons!), there were a few that suspected that Congress would come through and allow the switcheroo to happen sometime much later. And, of course, I tossed out the third option:
I think… okay, this is going to sound weird, but you’re probably used to it by now, right? … Congress will vote to allow for a delay in the DTV switch, and it’ll be approved… but any stations that are going to switch over on February 17th will still get the chance to do it, as well as any stations that want to switch any time after that– up until the government-stated date.
So, let’s just say that the government decides that July 1st is the new deadline. If a bunch of DC stations weren’t quite ready to switch on February 17th, but they decided they were going to flip the switch on March 17th, then they’d be able to do it. Easy, right?
Fast Forward to Today…
So, guess what happened yesterday? 
Yep. It’s been delayed. Until June 12, 2009.
Here’s what KVBC-TV says about their stance on the reversal of fortune.
But Wait! There’s More!
There’s an option available for stations who are threatening to go forward with the transition on the original February 17, 2009 date… CNBC reports that stations may opt to switch on February 17th with notification to the FCC. The rationale that a lot of stations have given is that the cost of maintaining the analog equipment is too expensive to delay past the original date.
So this will be certainly an interesting tangle of on-and-off TV signal service for folks who’ve had broadcast analog signals until now…
