STATEMENT OF COMMISSIONER JONATHAN S. ADELSTEIN
ON THE DIGITAL TELEVISION TRANSITION
JUNE 13, 2009
 We are ushering in the end of analog broadcasting and the beginning of the digital age.  
Things went about as smoothly as we could have hoped.  It’s looking more like Y2K than the 
Bay of Pigs.  Certainly, if we had not delayed and prepared, it might have been a disaster.  But 
with the additional time, resources and actual planning, we put things in order just in time.
We cannot become complacent or rest on our laurels. Over the next few days, weeks and 
perhaps months, we need to keep our efforts in overdrive, continuing to conduct a national field, 
phone and Internet operation.  We need to “search and rescue” viewers who are still unprepared.  
And we need to remind viewers to rescan their TVs and boxes, and adjust their antennas.  
The Commission has truly conducted an unprecedented effort to prepare millions of 
viewers for the transition of 974 TV stations throughout the country. To be sure, some viewers 
are still unprepared, unaware, or – in some instances – frustrated.  But the Commission’s 
outreach effort has been vast, comprehensive and effective, reaching from every public housing 
unit in urban areas and to every farm in rural parts of America. We have also focused on the 
groups that are particularly affected by the transition.  As a result, we have cut the number of 
completely unprepared households in half since February 17th.
The Commission’s activities have included deploying legions of trained and 
dedicated FCC employees to nearly every television market in the country, operating hundreds 
community-based walk-in centers, responding – yesterday alone – to a record number of more 
than 300,000 consumer calls in a host of different languages, and installing thousands of 
converter boxes in unprepared homes.  Our website, www.dtv.gov, has also been very successful 
in providing consumers with the information they need to prepare for the transition, allowing 
them to apply for converter box coupons and getting antenna and reception information.  During 
the month of May, there were more than 2.5 million pages viewed on the website.  Yesterday, we 
exceeded that number, topping 3.1 million pages viewed.
 So with the continued hard work of FCC staff in the field and at the Commission, along 
with our governmental and private partners, especially broadcasters, cable and satellite television 
providers, consumer electronic retailers and all of our vendors and volunteers, we will continue 
to respond to every single concern that is brought our attention. We will also continue to reach 
out to those viewers who have not yet made the transition to digital television. 
Our work is far from done, but we are off to an impressive start.