I was reading the NYT this morning and i stumbled across a not-all-that-surprising piece of information: the digital transition might be a complete failure thanks to the utter incompetence of the general public. Kind of reminds me of all those people who can’t locate the United States on a map
According to surveys conducted by the Consumers Union,
a consumer advocacy group that also publishes Consumer Reports
magazine, while 90 percent of the nation is aware of the transition, 25
percent mistakenly believe that one must subscribe to cable or
satellite after February, and 41 percent think that every TV in a house
must have a new converter box, even those that are already connected to
cable or satellite.…
To help reduce the expense of acquiring the converter boxes, which
cost about $50 for basic models, consumers can get two government
rebate vouchers worth $40 a box. (Available at www.dtv2009.gov or 888-388-2009.)About 40 million coupons have been requested, but to date 16 million have
been redeemed, compared with an estimated 35 million televisions that
will lose a signal. Adding to the problem: people who obtained coupons
early this year, but never redeemed them, have discovered that they
expire after 90 days. They are not allowed to reapply for vouchers
(though they could use someone else’s coupon).
Girl Talk astounds with their latest album, "Animal Farm." What we have here is the future of pop music in america.
