Digital TV transition expected run much more smoothly

Federal officials have touted the benefits of the delay, namely that more than half of those unprepared viewers who depend on over-the-air TV are now ready for the switch. Some of the nation's TV stations were allowed to turn off their analog programming early -- about 42% of them have done so since February. The remainder will do so today. Viewers with cable, satellite or phone company TV service are unaffected.

But about 2.8 million people nationwide, including more than 250,000 in the Los Angeles region, are likely to experience firsthand how different this transition might be from Y2K. When they turn on their TVs on Saturday morning, they probably will see a temporary analog message saying they need to upgrade their equipment -- or simply a blank screen.

"Had we gone ahead in February, we would have had a consumer backlash of considerable magnitude," said acting FCC Chairman Michael J. Copps, who has been focused on the transition ever since Obama elevated him to the position in January. "Now there will still be some level of disruption, there's no question about that, but it's a lot better than it would have been."

Local TV station executives in Los Angeles say they are particularly worried about elderly viewers, the poor and those who primarily speak Spanish.

Spanish speakers who live in L.A. have more than six free over-the-air channels, including the top-rated Univision KMEX and Telemundo KVEA, to choose from and have little reason to subscribe to satellite or cable TV, which can cost $40 or more a month.

"We have been gearing up for this for the last 18 months," said Maelia Macin, general manager of KMEX. "We know that we serve as a lifeline for many of our viewers, and the primary focus of our station is to educate our community."

A study this week by Nielsen Co. found that Los Angeles and other cities in the Southwest, those with large Latino populations, are less prepared for the switch than other areas of the U.S. Federal officials say that is the region they are most concerned about and have been focusing their efforts.

The switch to all-digital broadcast TV has been in the works since 1987. The effort gained momentum after the 2001 terrorist attacks, as lawmakers pressed for an end to analog broadcasts so that some of those airwaves could be allocated to emergency agencies to develop new interoperable communications.