As the February 17 deadline approached, the uncertainty about the digital TV switch continued. However, on Wednesday, the House of Representatives has finally made a decision on whether the switch should be postponed, and has established June 12 as deadline for the transition.

 

The House voted 264-158 for the delay, supporting a legislation also passed by the Senate last week, and likely to be signed by President Barack Obama.

 

FCC acting Chairman Michael Copps welcomed the delay in a statement yesterday. He also added that it has been long clear to him that a nationwide transition would catch the country off guard.

 

Furthermore, he said, the extra four months will give more time for a phased transition, which will include a consumer-friendly converter box coupon program, stepped up consumer outreach and support, but also dealing with coverage, antenna and reception issues, problems that he said have been too long unaddressed,

 

We’ve got a lot of work to do, but thanks to great leadership in the Senate and House of Representatives, we now have an opportunity to do it better, Copps added.

 

Reports prior to the vote have shown there were still millions of people unprepared for the digital transition, which was initially supposed to take place on February 17. The delay was also taken into consideration after reports that over 1 million people were still on the waiting list for converter coupons.

 

But the opinions are divided, and while some believe the delay would only cause even more confusion among consumers, others see the delay as the only viable method to avoid a massive disruption.