Madison Prepares for Digital Television Transition

Local Leaders to Educate Community at Five Branches of the Madison Public Library about Preparing for New Technology

The Madison community will hear from representatives of WMTV (NBC 15) and of WKOW TV (ABC 27) about the February 2009 digital television transition. Geoff Shields of WMTV and Al Zobel, Kevin Harlan and Steve Zimmerman of WKOW TV are all part of the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) Digital TV (DTV) Speakers Bureau, a nationwide public education campaign which aims to ensure that all television viewers will be prepared for the February 2009 transition. Over the next year and a half, the Speakers Bureau will reach about one million people directly at over 8,000 engagements across the country. As part of this consumer education initiative, the WMTV and WKOW TV representatives will present information about the DTV transition to the Madison community at different branches of the Madison Public Library and to other groups across Wisconsin. The DTV Transition programs are scheduled: Tuesday, January 15 at 7 p.m. - Pinney Branch, 204 Cottage Grove Road, 224-7100 Thursday, January 31, 7 p.m. - Sequoya Branch, 513 S. Midvale Blvd., 266-6385 Monday, February 4, 6:30 p.m. - Hawthorne Branch, 2707 E. Washington Ave., 246-4548 Tuesday, March 4, 7 p.m. - Central Library, 201 W. Mifflin St., 266-6300 Monday, March 10, 6:30 p.m. - South Madison Branch, 2222 S. Park St., 266-6395 An estimated 504,760 households in Wisconsin receive broadcasts through an analog signal and there are several steps viewers who receive free local broadcast signals may take in order to guarantee they are ready for the switch: purchase a converter box, purchase a TV with a digital tuner or subscribe to a paid service. Converter boxes, which allow an analog TV to accept a digital signal, will be available in 2008 and the government is providing a voucher program to offset the cost of these boxes. "It is important for our viewers to know what they can do to prepare for the digital transition," said Geoff Shields, Director of Operations of NBC 15. "I look forward to speaking to members of the Madison community at the Pinney and South Madison Branches of the Public Library and to other groups in Madison so that everyone is well-informed about the transition." WMTV and WKOW representatives will continue to help notify viewers of the upcoming digital transition and will be joined by broadcasters across the country. Visit www.DTVAnswers.com to learn what you can do to prepare for the DTV transition. For more information about the digital television transition, consumers are encouraged to visit, www.DTVAnswers.com, a website hosted by the NAB. Anyone interested in having a digital transition speaker address their organization may contact Kate Wade at (202) 232-6627 or kwade@crosbyvolmer.com. Madison-specific information on the transition, as well as consumer resources for those interested in purchasing new televisions, is available at http://www.madisonpubliclibrary.org/ref/dtv/ The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has partnered with Crosby-Volmer International Communications (CVIC) to coordinate the DTV Speakers Bureau initiative. CVIC is a Washington, DC-based public relations firm with additional offices located in Memphis, Oklahoma City and San Francisco. Established in 1997, Crosby-Volmer offers communications counsel to local, national and multi-national organizations & associations.

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