FCC's Adelstein Wants More DTV Testing [Broadband Reports]
FCC Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein has joined a growing chorus of policy makers calling for more DTV testing to iron out issues prior to the nationwide transition next February. While the FCC declared the Wilmington, NC test a success, several issues were revealed. Here's what Broadcasting and Cable said about Adelstein's announcement:
One reason why he [Adelstein] worries is that he feels that the soft test in Wilmington, N.C., Sept. 8 was misinterpreted as a success. He said projecting Wilmington’s 2,272 consumer calls seeking help in the first week to a national cutoff translates to 2.2 million such calls. “And that’s an optimistic scenario,” he added, because the Wilmington test had more manpower and in-market education than the national cutoff.
“While we can take small comfort in what went smoothly, we should fear what didn’t,” he said. “There is no plan remotely comparable for that kind of outreach nationwide … I think the FCC is continuing to underestimate the task ahead.”
Wilmington's test took place under the most perfect set of circumstances, and it's results should cause policy makers to work harder to make the transition as smooth as possible. Over the years, I have learned that the easiest mistake to make in management is to focus solely on the silver lining and to ignore the cloud it surrounds. Kudos to Commissioner Adelstein for articulating his justifiable concern. No one wants millions American households' televisions going dark next February.
