Georgians urged to get TV converter boxes before February switch

Consumers who need to get a special converter box so their analog television will continue to work next year can call Circuit City and order one over the phone, a company official said Wednesday.

“We believe this is a valuable service for people who are not able to come into our stores,” said Tom Miller, a regional vice president.

Miller joined Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue and U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez at an Atlanta Circuit City store to urge consumers with analog TVs to buy a converter box before Feb. 17, 2009 — the date over-the-air TV stations switch to digital broadcasting.

Consumers with an analog TV can apply for a $40 coupon from the federal government to receive a discount on a converter box, which costs between $45 and $70. Consumers who do not want to buy a converter box have two other choices: subscribe to a cable or satellite TV service or buy a digital TV.

In Georgia, about 300,000 homes will be affected by the analog-to-digital TV conversion, Perdue said. About 133,000 households in the state, including 82,000 in metro Atlanta, have redeemed the federal coupons, he said.

Perdue urged consumers to act quickly and apply for a coupon, which expires after 90 days, and buy a converter box.

“We don’t want people to wake up on Feb. 18 and their television doesn’t work,” he said.

Some over-the-air TV stations are already broadcasting in digital. Switching entirely to digital will free up the broadcast spectrum for emergency service agencies to use it.

Gutierrez said it also would make room for new technologies.

“This will free up the spectrums for a lot of new wireless devices that will put us ahead of the rest of the world,” he said.

The Commerce Department is working with organizations such as the AARP to play up the importance of getting a converter box and applying for a coupon, Gutierrez said.

Along with Circuit City, the federal government is partnering with Best Buy and Radio Shack as well as a number of electronic manufacturers and broadcast, cable and satellite TV networks.