Wilmington, N.C. First To Make Digital TV Switch

The Federal Communications Commission chose Wilmington to test the transition because all the commercial stations in the market have already completed construction of their DTV channels and are reporting they are operating at full post-transition power. The Wilmington PBS station, WUNJ, will continue broadcasting in both analog and digital.

DTV technology will allow broadcasters to offer television with movie-quality picture and CD-quality sound, and other enhancements. DTV technology can also be used to transmit large amounts of other data into the home, which may be accessible by using a computer or television set.

The early digital switch in Wilmington will help assist the FCC and the nation to identify any issues that may need to be addressed prior the nationwide digital television transition on Feb. 17, 2009. At this point, the city has not reported any problems with the day-old digital system.

Communities in the five affected counties discarded "rabbit ears" and outside antennae and either hooked up to cable or satellite providers, or bought converter boxes to receive reception. To offset costs, the government is offering $40 coupons — two per household. The typical cost for the equipment is between $40 and $80.

"Through Sept. 7, over 69,000 coupons requested from 37500 households in the Wilmington area," Meredith Atwell Baker, NTIA Acting Administrator said at a town hall session in Wilmington on Monday.

"About 47 percent of those requests cam from those who rely on over-the-air broadcasts. Of that, 28,000 coupons have been redeemed."

Local firefighters and community groups have helped to install boxes for those needing assistance; converter box vendors have donated products to nursing homes.

At Monday's meeting, Hank Price, president, North Carolina Association of Broadcasters, noted that cooperation among competitors was critical to the project's success, and explained the significance of the change.

"The NTSE standard was set during WWII. Today If the NTSE analog standard were a person, it would be eligible for both social sec and Medicare. It has served us well and proudly," he said. "But the new world represents an opportunity for us to go into something undreamed of. We wont even know all ramifications of that until they roll out in coming years. [That] represents an unprecedented partnership between public and private enterprise. If in the future someone asks, 'Can private and public industries work together, have them look no farther than Wilmington, Sept. 8, 2008. "