US DSO: households slow to take action
August 15, 2008
“Many consumers are unaware that there are immediate benefits to making the transition, such as enjoying the digital services Public Television stations are providing now,” said APTS Acting President and CEO Mark Erstling.
As of May 2008, 62 per cent of over-the-air households said they would opt to buy a converter box or digital television, compared to 28 per cent in November 2006. But the APTS study found that the majority of the 8.8 million over-the-air households who said they would buy a set-top converter box to continue to receive free over-the-air television have not done so.
Among all television households surveyed, only 9.2 per cent 10.3 million households – said they requested a coupon. Of those that have requested a coupon, 64.4 per cent said they received the coupon, and 54.2 per cent had redeemed the coupon. Roughly 38 per cent of those who redeemed the coupon reported installing the converter box. About 70 per cent of over-the-air households said they know what they need to do to continue to view television after the transition.
The APTS study also found that as the transition date nears, fewer over-the-air consumers said they would sign up for cable, satellite or telecommunications service to receive digital television, while more are inclined to buy a converter box or digital TV set. Those that said they would sign up for a paid service had dropped
Other posts by Nick Snow: