Analog to DTV: Don't Be Left in the Dark

March 17, 2008 — -- On Feb. 17, 2009, television broadcasters will change how they send programming to your television. The switch from analog to digital means TVs that receive free over-the-air programming will need to be upgraded to digital.

Here's everything you need to know about the switchover and how to upgrade your television set.

Of the more than 107 million households that have television, about 13 million households (roughly 12 percent) still have analog-only reception; that's the free, old way of broadcasting. People with those older, analog TVs can do one of three things to make their TVs capable of receiving a digital signal:

A converter box is the easiest and the cheapest way, and there's a government-funded program to help subsidize the cost of the converters. The problem is that not enough people know about the switchover, much less the availability of converter boxes.

How Do I Know if I Need to Do Anything?

If you get your signal via cable or satellite, the change doesn't affect you. Only older, analog TVs that use "rabbit ear" antennas or roof-top antennas need to be converted by next February.

The DTV transition has nothing to do with cable, satellite or any other pay TV service. If your TV has a built-in digital tuner, you don't need to do anything.

How Can I Tell Whether My TV Has a Digital Tuner?

See if it has the letters DTV or ATSC (Advanced Television Systems Committee), which refers to the American digital TV standard. Check your owner's manual if you still have it or try to look up the model on the Internet.

All TVs sold in the United States since March 2007 are required to have an ATSC tuner. A TV designated "HD-ready" or "HDTV monitor" does not have a built-in ATSC tuner, which means you must supplement it with a converter box or subscribe to cable or satellite.

If I Don't Have Cable or Satellite, Do I Need to Subscribe? Or Do I Need to Buy a New Digital TV?

You don't need to buy a new TV, no matter what anyone tells you. All you need to continue watching free, over-the-air television on your current TV is a DTV converter box.

A Consumers Union project is one good place to start. It offers links, background, and a free Consumer Reports guide.

Source: National Association of Broadcasters (NAB)

Andrea Smith is a technology producer at ABCNews Radio.