Four of Madison’s six full-power television stations turned off their analog signals and made the highly anticipated switch to digital transmission Tuesday.
Digital conversion is when stations that have been granted full power licenses from the Federal Communications Commission switch the transmission of their programming from analog to digital, according to WMTV (Channel 15) Director of Operations Geoff Shield.
WMTV, WISC (Channel 3), WKOW (Channel 27) and WBUW (Channel 57) have officially converted to digital transmission, according to the government’s digital television website, www.dtv2009.org.
WHA (Channel 41), Madison’s public television channel, will convert sometime after March, and WMSN (Channel 47) will transmit programming in both analog and digital until the governmental transition deadline on June 12, according to Bob Goessling, operations manager for WKOW.
Congress passed a bill in 2006 requiring all stations to convert to digital programming by Feb. 17, according to Mark Lueth, electronics engineer for the Federal Communications Commission.
The Delay TV Act enabled television stations to still switch to digital transmission conversion date from Feb. 17 to June 12 after Nielsen Media Research surveys revealed approximately 6 million American households were unprepared for the conversion.
WMTV was the first Madison station to convert, switching over at 11:59 p.m. Monday night, Shield said. He added the conversion was necessary because preparations to switch to digital analog have been in place for the past two years.
“We already had contracted companies to come in and update or replace our equipment so we would be prepared for the February deadline,” Shield added.
Most Madison residents have made the switch to digital, but as of Jan. 16, an estimated 4,000 households were still relying on analog transmission, according to Lueth.
He said many households have bought the digital converters but have yet to set them up, adding about 4,000 converters were sold in the Madison area just last week.
According to Lueth, Madison residents who have digital television will benefit from better television quality and will have more channels.
“Digital television conversion is beneficial because it provides a much clearer picture and high quality sound,” Lueth said.
Analog television viewers will still be able to get weather and local news updates, Lueth said, adding the FCC has a protocol that must be followed in markets where almost all the major television stations utilize the Delay TV Act.
One station in the market must be a “nightlight station” for the market, airing weather, local news and an informational video on the conversion for 60 days after the conversion, Lueth said.
According to Goessling, WISC is the designated “nightlight” station for the Madison area. Residents who still have analog television can receive coupons for a $40 discount on digital converter boxes from the government, according to Lueth. Converter boxes run from $50 to $70 and are available at local electronic stores.
