Pioneer Wilmington, N.C., flips switch to all-digital TV

— -- So far, the picture is clear: Wilmington, N.C., on Monday became the USA's first all-digital TV market. Early next year, the rest of the country will follow.

The Federal Communications Commission, overseeing the nationwide conversion, says it will take a few days, at least, to gauge success. But early signs are good, says FCC Chairman Kevin Martin. "Technically, the conversion we did today occurred successfully," says Martin, who flipped a symbolic "switch" in Wilmington to mark the occasion.

You'll get no argument from Sabrina Vigliotti, one of 180,000 residents affected. She says she used to get about five channels on her 10-year-old TV, "and three of them were snowy." Now, "The picture is so much brighter, and there are so many more channels," about 10 in all. "I'm elated."

Digital TV, or DTV, is an advanced broadcast technology that offers consumers better picture and sound quality, as well as interactive and multicasting options.

The rest of the country will follow Wilmington at midnight on Feb. 17. Once the conversion is complete, TVs that use "rabbit ears" to receive over-the-air broadcasts won't work unless they're equipped with digital-to-analog converter boxes. Boxes cost $40 to $80, on average.

The government is offering $40 coupons — two per household — to offset costs. (For more information, go to www.dtv2009.gov.) Cable and satellite service won't be affected.

That's not to say that analog dies entirely. Several thousand "low-power" TV stations are exempt from the switch. Even so, some of those TV stations are voluntarily making the jump to digital, the FCC says.

Eager to learn from Wilmington, the FCC has set up a consumer hotline. It also is paying local fire departments $15 per converter box to help residents who have difficulty installing digital gear.

By late Monday, the hotline had received a few hundred calls. Problem areas included general TV setup — TVs must be on channel 3 or 4 to work, depending on the converter box. Antenna questions were common. With a few exceptions, all digital channels are UHF (ultra high frequency), not VHF (very high frequency), so if a consumer has an antenna that won't get UHF, that's a problem.