DTV Converter Box Coupons Expired; Latest Updates for November 2008
Early Transition Wake Up Call to Those Unprepared for the Digital Switch February 2009
In Minneapolis, the local NBC affiliate, KARE-TV, will lower their signal to "half power" in two weeks on December 3, 2008. Consumers thinking they had a couple of more months to get their equipment will be in for a surprise when stations start dropping off the air next month.
According to dtv2009.gov, Hawaii is going all-digital starting January 15, 2009, a month ahead of the planned transition.
Wilmington, NC, has already made the switch.
I had the government issued coupons, but they expired. The boxes simply are not available at Wal-Mart. I have checked at Wal-Mart and Best Buy more than a few times, and they never have them in stock. I could get them somewhere else, or search on-line, but the cost without the coupons is making me think twice. Maybe I should just get a digital ready TV and replace my older TVs. Maybe I should get one box and try it out. Procrastination will get you nowhere come December for some stations, and February for the rest.
DON'T THROW AWAY YOUR EXPIRED DTV CONVERTER BOX COUPONS
In my article about steps you can take if you have expired DTV coupons, I mentioned that lawmakers are currently discussing what might be done for the millions of people that are holding expired coupons.
PROPOSED BILL TO AMEND IRS CODE TO GIVE TAXPAYERS $80 CREDIT FOR EXPIRED DTV COUPONS
There has been a bill introduced by Rep. Thaddeus McCotter [R-MI]. It is called the DTV Coupon Assistance Act of 2008, which would amend the Internal Revenue Code to allow individual taxpayers a refundable tax credit for $40 for each of their expired digital-to-analog converter box coupons, up to a maximum of $80. This bill appears to be inactive but may have been incorporated into another bill.
More information: GovTrack.us. H.R. 7100--110th Congress (2008): DTV Coupon Assistance Act of 2008, GovTrack.us (database of federal legislation) (accessed Nov 21, 2008).
EMERGENCY EXTENSION PROPOSED TO EXTEND EXPIRATION DATES OF DTV COUPONS
According to a November 20th article at WIVB-TV New York, Senator Charles E. Schumer [D-NY] is asking the F.C.C. to extend the deadline for redemption of digital converter box coupons. He says that thousand of households in New York have not been able to get the required converter boxes and will be left in the dark when the transition to digital takes place. Schumer pushed the FCC to ease the application process for first time applicants and also allow those with expired coupons to remain eligible to redeem them.
He also suggested an idea in his letter to get around the printing costs associated with printing additional coupons: let consumers download and print a unique coded coupon that could be presented to retailers to get the $40 discount on a digital converter box.
SENATORS QUESTIONING NTIA ABOUT EXPIRATION DATES
In June 2008, U.S. Senator Tom Harkin [D-IA] sent a letter to the National Telecommunications Information Administration (NTIA) requesting that they reissue expired coupons. He says there "shouldn't be needless restrictions" on redeeming the coupons and that the expiration date places undue hardship if the boxes cannot be found or if the person has been in the hospital.
Harkin was joined by Senators Norm Coleman [R-MN], Kit Bond [R-MO], Elizabeth Dole [R-NC], Kent Conrad [D-ND Byron Dorgan [D-ND], Diane Feinstein [D-CA], Herb Kohl [D-WI], Russ Feingold [D-WI], Carl Levin [D-MI], Blanche Lincoln [D-AK], Robert Menendez [D-NJ], Patty Murray [D- WA], E. Benjamin Nelson [D-NE], Jack Reed [D- RI], Jim Webb [D-VA], Sheldon Whitehouse [D-RI], and Ron Wyden [D-OR] in sending this letter.
EXPIRED COUPON FUNDS BEING FUNNELED TO MAIL MORE DTV COUPONS TO NEW REQUESTERS
According to Reuters, funds for the expired, unredeemed coupons are being returned to the program and will be available so more coupons can be mailed.
13 MILLION HOUSEHOLDS ARE NOT READY FOR THE DIGITAL TRANSITION
According to Nielsen Media Research, there are still 13 million households that rely on TV sets that receive free broadcasts. New York is the most prepared market in the US, with only 3 percent using antennas for their signals. Cities with high antenna-only viewers are Portland, Los Angeles, St. Louis, Milwaukee, Albuquerque, Houston, Salt Lake City, and Minneapolis/St. Paul.
CURRENT DTV PROGRAM STATISTICS
Nov. 19, 2008 Program Statistics provided by dtv2009.gov
Coupons Requested: 35,950,018
Coupons Mailed: 33,643,056
Coupons Expired: 11,178,157
Coupons Redeemed: 14,566,290
Published by Tracy McCoy
Tracy McCoy is a freelance writer and SEO web content producer living in Minnesota. View profile
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- DTV Converter Box Coupon Expired: Steps You Can Take
- A Converter for Analog to Digital TV
- How to Fix Your Reception After Switching from Analog to Digital TV
- Everything You Need To Know About The Coming Digital TV Switchover
- What Should I Do to Get Ready for the Digital TV Transition?
- Digital TV Switch Delay
- Consumers Can Apply for Coupon to Offset Cost of Buying Digital TV Converter
- 13 million households are unprepared for the switch to digital TV
- Many stations going to half strength on existing free over-the-air analog signals
- 20% of households in Minneapolis St. Paul are currently watching free over-the-air TV
5 Comments
Post a CommentREF NUM 36262926 MY COUPON IS EXPIRED SEENS 11/27/2008 THE NUMBER IS 58 9732013 755 5782 AND 58 9732013 755 5774. ANY QUESTON PLS WRITE TO 659 N.W. 31 TERR MIAMI FLORIDA 33127 TEL 305 635 5833.
I'm just another very disappointed consumer who tried to do the right thing. I too, am starring at 2 expired coupons and 3 TVs that will go down tonight. Who thought up the process to track by address? How is this affecting the consumers who have moved and the former resident already claimed the coupons. I know 1 person who could not request coupons for their address. This is really affecting the people who can not afford cable/satelite tv. What about those of us who are concerned about our environment? My TVs are really old (15 and 20 yrs) and still give me a great picture. I, like over a million others, are being penalized by not being able to get 2 good coupons.
Dear Representative Peter Defasio, I'm writing you today to express outrage at the horrendous way the DTV coupon program is being run. Like hundreds of thousands of others, I have fallen thru the cracks of this program and I'm now considered ineligible by those brilliant folks who conceived and manage this program. THEY SHOULD BE FIRED! My only offense was being a responsible citizen and participating very early in the program as they requested. My coupons expired BEFORE any decent converter boxes were available for sale in my area. A recent appeal based on this fact to the programs appeal process was just denied. In June, an MSNBC article (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25083123/) reported that over 840,000 coupons had expired before being used.With the economy as it is, this situation should be rectified as quickly as possible.Everyone else is getting bailed out, why shouldn't we the people get help in this very frustrating situation. Thank you for hearing our voices and just hope it do
Dear Representative XXXX, I'm writing you today to express outrage at the horrendous way the DTV coupon program is being run. Like hundreds of thousands of others, I have fallen thru the cracks of this program and I'm now considered ineligible by those brilliant folks who conceived and manage this program. THEY SHOULD BE FIRED! My only offense was being a responsible citizen and participating very early in the program as they requested. My coupons expired BEFORE any decent converter boxes were available for sale in my area. A recent appeal based on this fact to the programs appeal process was just denied. In June, an MSNBC article (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25083123/) reported that over 840,000 coupons had expired before being used.With the economy
as it is, this situation should be rectified as quickly as possible.Everyone else is getting bailed out, why shouldn't we the people get help in this very frustrating situation. Thank you for hearing our voices and just hope it doesn't ju
I just received my coupons for the digital convertor box through the mail on December 1, 2008. According to the coupons they were already expired in July 2008. I double checked the dates and tried to call the number on the letter. They do not take calls on the phone number given. You get a recorded message that says they are busy and they hang up. I went on the web site and whenever I try to get help all I can get is a pop up that says, "under no circumstances will new coupons be issued."
Is this another example of the efficient operation of another branch of government? It seems to me this is an example of planned obsolescence.