Falling Off The Digital Cliff

I've been experiencing for months that the transition to digital TV is going to be anything but smooth. Those viewers in fringe coverage areas will lose their antenna feeds as digital is either picture perfect or nada. And no digital converter box or coupon is going to get the signal back to those viewers that are too far from the TV transmitter.

While this is old news for readers of this site, today I spotted that this has a new term: the so called "digital cliff."

WECT-TV Wilmington, for example, got 232 calls from viewers in outlying areas who lost their TV signals. The FCC attributed that to the fact that its analog signal reached out-of-market viewers -- in Myrtle Beach, S.C., and Raleigh, N.C., for example -- who won't receive the Wilmington signal now that it is digital.

An FCC spokesman said Friday that the commission was currently evaluating the complaints that came in and the issues they called about.

She also pointed out in her letter Friday that those falling off the "digital cliff" may be people least able to afford that blow -- rural folks who are less able to afford an antenna upgrade or a cable subscription.

I tossed in the towel and signed up for cable. Thankfully as Fios sends me stuff weekly, cable gave me a decent deal, at least for now. However, for the folks in more rural areas, particularly in a down economy, I'm not sure they will be switching to satellite TV, which may be there only option out there if they are too far off the grid. As the transition is made to digital television, let's just be clear that there are going to be winners and losers, and despite the incessant commercials, digital isn't always better for everyone.

Jonas