Mississippi Public Broadcasting - Digital Television

Analog TV

Digital TV

Analog TV - Aspect Ratio

Digital TV - Aspect Ratio

TV is becoming DTV.

Are Your TVs Ready?

There is a new way to deliver TV signals called digital TV or DTV. Digital television is the most significant advancement in broadcast technology since TV went color. DTV is already here, but at midnight on February 17, it will be the only way to watch TV.

The change from traditional broadcasting (analog) to DTV will affect how the public watches TV. Viewers subscribing to cable or satellite won’t see many changes. Those who watch TV using an antenna (over-the-air TV) or “rabbit ears,” will need to take some steps to insure their current TV still works. For more information on the DTV transition visit www.dtv.gov or call 1-888-225-5322.

Over-the-air TV viewers need to look at each analog TV in their home that is not connected to cable, satellite or other pay television service and make a timely decision. They can connect their TV to cable, satellite or pay television service; they can replace it with a digital TV; or they may keep it working with a TV converter box.

For consumers choosing the converter box option, the TV Converter Box Coupon Program permits all households to request one or two coupons - each worth $40 - toward the purchase of certified converter boxes. Consumers can purchase a converter box at participating local, phone or online retailers. Converter boxes generally cost $45 to $80.

To order coupons go to www.DTV2009.gov or call 1-888-388-2009. Coupons expire 90 days after they are mailed, and only one coupon can be used to purchase each coupon-eligible converter box.

Due to a shortfall in the funds for the coupon program, the federal government is placing coupon applicants on a waiting list. Coupons will be mailed on a first-come-first-served basis, as funds from expired coupons become available. Applicants will receive a reference number to check the status of their order at the coupon program’s web site, www.DTV2009.gov.

DTV offers consumers a clearer picture, more programming choices and will free up the airwaves for better communications among emergency first responders and new telecommunications services.

American television is now undergoing the biggest changes in its history that will have a dramatic effect on viewer program choices -- and the way we experience television.

In the past, TV was broadcast in an analog format. This has been the traditional way in which TV has been viewed until recently. Analog TV is the format most familiar to tv viewers.

Recently, TV is available in a newer format called digital tv. Digital TV is a revolutionary technology very different from the analog system of television that the world has used for many decades. Essentially Digital TV provides a larger, clearer image with a better picture and sound.