Are you ready for switch to digital?

As of today the long-awaited, much-misunderstood digital television conversion is exactly a year away.

On Feb. 17, 2009, we’ll say good-bye to analog TV broadcasting as we have known it since the first public demonstration of the medium in 1925.

Will it be the end for Katie Couric? Only if she gets canceled in the meantime.

Broadcast television will very much go on, but it will be completely converted -- like much in life that’s electronic -- to digital.

Will it affect you?

Maybe.

Digital signals do great with digital TVs, including the increasingly popular high-definition models.

But they can’t be processed by most picture-tube TVs, of which there are still millions in use.

Thus, the federal government has created a program to subsidize the purchase of converter boxes that transform the digital signals to analog.

That doesn’t mean you need to buy one. Millions of households served by cable or satellite providers already have converters, even if their occupants don’t realize it.

The subsidized boxes are mainly for viewers who get their programming the old-fashioned way: over the air via an antenna on the roof or tucked away somewhere inside.

Statistics vary widely on the number of households that still get their TV over the air, running from 12% to 20% depending on who’s doing the figuring.

Southern California is a particularly good place to be an over-the-air watcher because there are so many broadcast stations in the area. You just have to forget about cable-only shows such as “Make Me a Supermodel.”

Here’s a guide, based on the kind of TV set you watch and how your programming is delivered.

TV: Digital Delivery: Any

No worries. You don’t need a converter box.

But how can you be sure your TV is digital?

If it’s a flat-panel LCD or plasma model, it’s digital. If it’s a rear-projection set that uses DLP or LCD technologies, ditto.

Most picture-tube televisions are analog, but not all. Some recent sets can handle digital too, among them the Samsung SlimFit models and several of the current tube TVs put out by Toshiba.

But that will be less of a concern as time goes on. Many industry prognosticators say that picture-tube TVs will disappear from the market in this country within the next few years.

TV: Analog Delivery: Cable

You don’t need a converter box. Yet.

That’s because your cable operator does the conversion for you, delivering both a digital and analog signal to your home.

The Federal Communications Commission has ruled that cable companies must keep delivering both for at least three years after the national digital TV transition.

So, if the transition happens as scheduled (it has already been delayed a couple of times) and the rules don’t change, you have no worries until February 2012.

At that point, you may have to get a cable box that can convert digital to analog. You won’t get it from outsiders, however; it will come from your cable company.

In many cases, that switch has already been made. Numerous cable operators now offer digital boxes, capable of converting to analog, exclusively.

So if you are a new customer, or if you replaced your analog box recently, you probably got a digital model.

The downside of this is that many cable operators charge a higher monthly fee for digital boxes.

If your cable line plugs directly into your TV, that means you have an analog connection. So, if you’re still using that set in 2012, you might have to get a digital box.

TV: Analog Delivery: Satellite

You do not need a converter box.

Satellite providers already are all-digital. Their set-top boxes and DVRs convert the signal to analog for your set.

TV: Analog Delivery: Over-the-air

You need a converter box.

The devices sell for about $50 or more. So, using the government’s $40 coupon, a consumer could get a box for as little as $10.

You’ll still have the satisfaction of knowing that’s far less than your neighbor’s cable or satellite bill.

And those supermodels will have to muddle through without you.

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david.colker@latimes.com

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Getting Converted

If you have an analog TV and get your programming over the air, it’s time to apply for a government-issued $40 coupon that will slash your cost for a converter box. You won’t need the converter until after Feb. 17, 2009, but the maximum number of coupons being sent out nationwide is 33.5 million. Get yours before they’re gone.

To get a coupon, apply online at www.dtv2009.gov or by calling (888) 388-2009. Coupons are not available at retailers.

The first coupons are being sent out in late February or early March.

Coupons expire 90 days after being mailed.

A maximum of two coupons per household will be issued. Only one coupon can be used per box.

Coupons are not transferable to other households.

Selling coupons is illegal.

Approximately 15,000 retail stores will carry the boxes. To find one near you, go to www.dtv2009.gov/VendorSearch.aspx.

Retail prices for boxes will be about $50 to $70, before coupon discount.

Coupons can be ordered until March 31, 2009, or until the supply runs out.