The Digital Television Transition Coalition (DTTC) announced their dedication on Wednesday to ensuring that all television viewers will still be able to rot their brains when the U.S. goes to all digital broadcasts in February 2009. The group promised to use public service announcements and community-based campaigns to educate the public on the switch from analog to digital. Hopefully they will not consult Best Buy employees to explain the difference. Analog signals will no longer be broadcast over the air after Feb. 17, 2009, and over 90 million boob tubes are currently incapable of receiving digital signals. Who wants to buy a new tv?

Thankfully, those unable to purchase a new television or pony up the cash for cable or satellite will not be left in the dark. No baby boom in 2010 after all. Federal vouchers totaling $1.5 billion will help the poor and elderly make the transition by providing them with the dough to purchase digital-to-analog converter boxes. It’s probably no coincidence that a portion of the Coalition is made up of consumer electronics vendors, as those digital-to-analog converters will conveniently be available at your friendly neighborhood electronic store. ″.

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