Conversion Confusion

To hear my mother-in-law tell it, there’s an awful lot of confusion over at the seniors' residence about the analog-to-digital TV conversion that’s under way now in the U.S. “You should write a column about that,” Marguerite instructed me, “because nobody here seems to understand what’s going on.”

So this one’s for the seniors, and for anybody else who’s confused about the issue. Because to be honest, it is pretty confusing.

The cause of all the confusion is the fact that Canadian and American broadcasters are working toward changing the nature of the TV signals they transmit – from analog to digital. The upshot of that is that some people – particularly those who don’t have cable or sattelite and who receive their TV channels via an antenna – eventually won’t be able to get the new signals unless they buy a digital converter box.

But the first thing you need to know is that we Canadians need not panic. The changeover has already begun in the USA and will be complete there by June 12th of this year. But unless you are receiving U.S. stations over an antenna (which is unlikely unless you live close to the U.S. border), you will not be affected by those changes. And if you have cable or a sattelite service, you should see no change, even when the transition in the U.S. is complete. So, Northwood residents and anyone else who’s concerned – no worries. You won’t notice any change in your American programming at all.

Canadian broadcasters have a completely separate deadline of August 31, 2011 to make the digital transition, and in this case, there’s a greater chance that it could affect you. Again, if you have cable or receive a sattelite service, you won’t be affected by any of these changes.

But if you don’t, you’ll need to figure out whether your TV set has an analog or a digital tuner. The tuner is essentially the part of your TV that receives the signals. Figuring this out could be a bit tricky, but you can begin by checking your owner’s manual. Better yet, go to a website called dtvtransition.org. That site (even though it’s American) has a really convenient list of most TV models that have digital tuners. If your TV set is a bit older, there’s a pretty good chance that it’s analog, and it won’t be on the list.

So here is the only scenario in which you might be affected by the transition: if you’ve determined that your TV set has an analog tuner, and you’re using an antenna to receive your TV channels, you will eventually have to buy a converter box when the Canadian deadline kicks in. That’s it. You won’t need a new TV, you’ll just attach this box to your set, and off you go. Already the local electronics stores are stocking them, and they run about $80.

And if it turns out that your set has a digital tuner, and you get your TV signals over an antenna, you will continue to receive the channels you’ve always received, even after the Canadian transition.

Clear as mud? Any confusion is completely understandable, whether you live in Northwood or Goodwood, Melville or Beechville. But hopefully this will help clear things up a bit, so we can all focus on the real issue: whether there’s actually anything worth watching on television in the first place.