• Broadcaster Magazine, Wednesday, July 25, 2007 10:16 AM

A study by the Association of Public Television Stations has found that older Americans are far more likely to rely on over-the-air TV signals, making them less prepared than most for the analog to digital-only transition coming in less than two years.

In the first quarter of 2007, the data shows that 24 percent of households with people 65 and older got their TV over-the-air, as compared to 19 percent of younger households. Of the oldsters who have only over-the-air, only 17 percent own a digital TV. Further, just 41 percent of people 65 and older have bought a new set in the last three years, suggesting they are less exposed to DTV transition messaging from electronics retailers and will need special focus in efforts to educate the public about the February 2009 finale of analog TV transmissions.

"The latest findings confirm what we have long suspected--that older Americans need to be specially addressed so they have the information they need about the digital transition," says APTS CEO John Lawson. "They need to know that digital over-the-air television will continue to be free, will offer them many more channels and will give them a better picture."

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