Watch a little TV with us. How angry would you be if your picture looked like Catherine Nelson's?
Look–we're rolling tape on an actual broadcast. Suddenly the screen flashes no signal, then the picture freezes for 4 seconds, it starts, then it freezes again…
Catherine Nelson, viewer"It's just is not working at all."
Welcome to Catherine's world. It happens on station after station–and this is AFTER she hooked up her rabbit ear TV to her digital converter box.
Catherine Nelson, viewer "It's terrible!"
And our investigation finds there's a glitch in the digital switch! The result: your TV reception could look like this too!
Joel Kelsey, Consumers Union"The federal government should be interested in it, they should be looking at it and they should not be ignoring it, which is what they're doing right now.
You know what's supposed to happen: by February 17th 2009, people whose TVs rely on rooftop antennas or rabbit ears should have hooked up special converter boxes, so their sets can receive a digital signal. Digital-ready TVs are supposed to be all set.
But we found in some places, those TVs still won't work properly.
Stuart Lipoff, Centris Study Co-author"They're going to have to get cable, or buy an outdoor antenna."
Hank Philippi Ryan"Do they know that?"
Stuart Lipoff, Centris Study Co-author "I don't think so."
Lipoff co-authored a national study of future digital TV reception. And Boston's entire viewing area, including Eastern Mass and part of New Hampshire, is second worst! The study says almost 300,000 households here, even those with converter boxes, could get pictures like this or no signal at all!
Hank Philippi Ryan "What could get in the way of reception?"
Stuart Lipoff, Centris Study Co-author"Trees, tall buildings, hills."
More specifics of the study are proprietary, but we have learned Dover is also on the list of problem spots. So are Lincoln, Georgetown, the entire Cape, and parts of Middlesex and Essex counties
The reception deception isn't news to the feds. We found in the small print of the FCC's documentation the government's inside info:
It says, "TV reception can be affected by factors such as terrain, trees, buildings, the weather …"
It says, "simple indoor antennas, such as rabbit ears, provide minimal performance …"
Chairman Kevin Martin, Federal Communications Commission"We can't guarantee that everyone will end being okay, no. That's one of the challenges involved in the transition."
Consumers Union' has tested converter boxes–and says some one viewers are discovering –are seeing digital reality.
Joel Kelsey, Consumers Union "We're hearing from a lot of consumers that are hooking up their boxes that they're not getting as many channels as they used to."
So Catherine? She's panicked. She can't afford a rooftop antenna. And she wonders–is this as good as its going to get?
Catherine Nelson, viewer"I fear that I'm not going to be able to watch TV and enjoy it because the signal is going to be interrupted all the time."
If you need a converter box, even the FCC suggests: get it now, hook it up, and check your reception. That's the only way you'll know what's going to happen with your TV.
For more information:
http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/dtvantennas.html
http://www.antennaweb.org/aw/welcome.aspx(Copyright (c) 2008 Sunbeam Television Corp. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)