Local Organizations Made the DTV Transition a Success

June 19, 2009 - Posted by The Leadership Conference

Two men in front of a television, with a converter box and an antenna, with one man gesturing at the wires used to hook up the converter box.

A volunteer at a Portland, Ore., DTV assistance center shows a community member how to connect his converter box.

The Digital Television Transition, which took place on June 12, was largely a success. A public education program that started more than a year before the transition was far-reaching and effective, as government agencies and LCCREF worked in harmony with local community organizations around the country.

Along with our partner organizations, we were able to directly help thousands of people before and during the transition. Often, the already-existing relationships between local organizations and the people in their communities were the key to success in finding and helping those most in need.

The majority of problems that people had on the day of the transition were due to problems with the installation of DTV converter boxes. Some who had a converter box and antenna were not able to connect them to their TV. Our assistance centers were able to help with troubleshooting, and were also able to help people apply for coupons if they still needed a converter box.

Our work does not stop here; we are still running a national coupon exchange program and offering support to those who are now without access to television. Troubleshooting over the next few weeks will be vital in ensuring everyone has made the switch to digital television.