satellite tv jobs
satellite tv jobs
Will Comcast subscriber with analog tv require converter box after 2/18/09?
From CNN today:
“The great majority of consumers — anyone whose television is hooked up to a cable or satellite service or owns a digital set — will not be affected.”
Is this correct? We are “digital cable” subscribers, but most of our tv’s are analog. Right now, they are connected directly to the coax cable with no box. Will this continue to be the case after 2/18/09? Calls to Comcast customer service have not been conclusive with an answer.
Related question: One of our tv’s is HDTV, but made in 2001 so I don’t think it’s digital. It’s connected through Comcast’s HDTV box. Will this same box do the same job after 2/18/09 or will a different HDTV box be required if the HDTV is an analog TV?
Cable customers are not directly affected by the coming DTV changeover.
The cable companies have agreed to continue to provide analog versions of the local over the air digital TV until 2012, or to provide converter boxes.
So, your analog TVs will continue to receive at least the standard over the air channels. What the cable providers do with the remainder of their analog channels, is up to them. It would not be surprising if they changed many of them to digital. They certainly will put pressure on their customers to upgrade to digital service. This is probably why you aren’t getting a straight answer from them. How much they will be able to change in your area will depend on whether there is effective competition in your area, and how many customers voluntarily switch over to digital or HD service.
If you have an HDTV, then it has to have a digital capability. That does not mean it can receive digital cable TV without a digital box. It just means that, as a minimum, it has to have digital processing capability.
The 2/18/09 date is only a deadline for over the air broadcasts. Cable providers are not directly affected. If your TV is connected via Comcast’s HD box, then nothing changes, except you should expect Comcast to be increasing their selection of digital and HDTV over time.
See the links below for some more detail on the changeover.
http://www.dtv.gov/
http://dtvfacts.com/
http://www.dtvanswers.com/
TELUS AGM 2009 – Darren Entwistle – TELUS Satellite TV