Report: Digital TV Converters May Be Faulty
Tuner company Microtune challenges performance of some boxes now on sale.
By Swanni
That's according to an article by Broadcasting & Cable Magazine.
The converter box, which enables analog TVs to display digital signals, is crucial to the success of next year's scheduled transition to Digital TV.
Full-power local stations must begin broadcasting in digital on February 17, 2009 and an estimated 15-20 million people will likely need the converters to continue watching television at that time.
But Microtune says it tested 14 Digital TV converters now available at retail and found that five failed to receive the signals of some local digital channels.
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration, which is overseeing the transition, says it will review Microtune's findings.
The agency, part of the U.S. Commerce Department, says it tested the converters, but acknowledged that boxes on store shelves may not be up to par.
Microtune told B&C that it's possible that converter companies are selling boxes at retail that are different from those originally tested by the NTIA.
The names of the converters in question were not made public.
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