Dah...They are not free Dingell, you moron...
Posted on 02/28/2007 8:22:18 AM PST by AT7Saluki
Washington -- House Energy and Commerce Committee chairman John Dingell (D-Mich.) took shots at the Bush administration’s oversight of the digital-TV transition Tuesday, especially the converter-box program designed to keep old analog-TV sets running when only digital signals are available from local TV stations after early 2009.
...
Under the digital-TV-transition law enacted one year ago, each household may apply for two $40 government coupons to help defray the cost of digital-to-analog converter boxes. Although the NTIA has $1.5 billion to spend, the program would need nearly $3 billion to fund the 73 million analog TVs that currently rely exclusively on free over-the-air broadcasting. To the dismay of Dingell and other House Democrats, the NTIA proposed excluding cable- and satellite-TV homes from the program. It also indicated that it might support limiting coupon eligibility to low-income broadcast-only homes.
(Excerpt) Read more at multichannel.com ...
Let the advertisers pay for it.
Dingell of Dingell Norwood? Now where have I heard that combo before? Mmmmm, let me seeeee...oh yeah, I remember..it was at the debate that sealed the Presidency for George W. Bush...Heh,ha,hah,heh. Should be DINGBAT!!!!
Dah...They are not free Dingell, you moron...
So, does this mean that only city folks will be eligible. That is how I understand it.
Can I get me some government cheese with that?
They already have converter boxes or analog signal comes over the cable. If cable decides to switch to all digital they work incompatibility out with their customer.
That's not my reading of the proposal - rather, the rationale is that if you are a cable TV or satellite TV subscriber, you probably do not get your TV broadcasts "over the air", rather, you get your TV broadcasts, including local stations, over the cable or satellite link. So, therefore you would have no need to buy a converter box, and no need to get a government-issued coupon. The converter box would not be needed (and would not work with) the satellite or cable TV set-top box that you already have. Of course, there are significant numbers of satellite TV viewers that do get their local TV channels "over the air" and not through their satellite service. This should have nothing to do with whether the viewer lives in the city or in a rural area.
So that is the real reason for Dingell's disgruntlement - he thinks that there will be a Democrat or Communist (or both) in the White House in 2009, with a Demo/Commie controlled House and Senate, and he's afraid that angry mobs of Oprah fans who can no longer get their daily fix for free will take it out on the party in power...
It's for the children! Standard-def is bad for their eyes! No Hi-Def, no peace!
I have satellite which is input to my TV's S-video input. My TV still has a UHF/VHF tuner and an antenna input. If I "tune" to channel 4, I get a very snowy, jittery (sans antenna) version of the show I can get crystal clear on satellite.
Yes, you already have converter. No voucher for you.
I don't have a HD to NTSC converter, however.
This dumba$$ doesn't even understand the technology. The "converter boxes" aren't necessary for cable and satellite homes. Satellite works on a totally different set of frequencies than over-the-air signals you'll get with an antenna...the box ALREADY converts digital to analog. High def or not, the sat box already converts the satellite signal to a useable format. It's up to the satellite company to receive the new digital signals, convert them to their SATELLITE signal and send it to your box...so in other words, it's all in the satellite company's end to make the conversion and they will, because otherwise, they lose subscribers. Same thing with cable - if you have a cable box...that box ALREADY converts a signal. The only cable TV that MIGHT be affected is old fashioned analog that you plug right into the set. And even then, the cable company can choose to convert the digital signals to analog themselves before sending the signals down their cable lines.
Doesn't matter - the signal your satellite box receives won't change a bit - everything you get in your satellite box has already been converted one way or another by the satellite company. They'll continue to do so, it may be a different conversion, but by the time it gets to your house it will be the same signal as today - and if it's not they'll give you a new box for a minimal charge if any, since they want to keep your business.
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