Survey: More Than 40 Percent Unprepared for Upcoming Analog-to-Digital Transition

VERO BEACH, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--With the FCC-mandated analog-to-digital transition set for February 17, 2009, an estimated 65 million Americans will experience some sort of impact to their existing television service next winter. However, according to a recent online survey from Bridgevine.com — the trusted source for consumers to learn about, compare and shop for the services that shape their lives — a significant number of consumers are unprepared for the transition.

“With a customer base that is generally quite savvy about digital services and related issues, we were surprised by the number of those people who are not prepared for the transition”

In the recent survey of more than 1000 Bridgevine customers, 36 percent said they were not prepared for the digital transition and another 6 percent were completely unaware of the conversion.

“With a customer base that is generally quite savvy about digital services and related issues, we were surprised by the number of those people who are not prepared for the transition,” said Vinny Olmstead, CEO of Bridgevine. “The survey results clearly indicate a lapse in consumer education and strongly suggest that additional awareness initiatives around the switch to digital are needed for consumers nationwide.”

Also called the “DTV” transition or conversion, the move to all-digital broadcasts is expected to impact 65 million or more Americans according to National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) and Government Accountability Office (GAO) estimates. While many are touting the benefits of all-digital programming, this transition is not good news for the consumers it will impact, many of whom are not tech-savvy or are simply unaware if, or how, they will be affected. To prepare, consumers will need to navigate a number of key issues:

Determining if a television is digital-ready
Submitting for government-issued converter box coupons
Choosing and connecting the right converter box
Evaluating existing television service/ selecting new services

Bridgevine CEO Vinny Olmstead is available to provide commentary on the above issues to help consumers make sense of the DTV transition.

About Bridgevine

Founded in 2003, Bridgevine, Inc. is headquartered in Vero Beach, FL with an office in Atlanta, GA. The company’s consumer-facing website, Bridgevine.com, is a trusted source for consumers to learn about, compare and shop for the services that shape their lives. From communications to entertainment to security, Bridgevine.com lets consumers choose individual services that are best for them or create personalized bundles from trusted providers resulting in saved time and money. Unlike other “comparison” shopping websites, Bridgevine’s powerful technology offers a unified shopping cart, real-time pricing, order status and scheduling to deliver the best customer experience in the industry. Bridgevine’s deep integration with leading service providers from across the country — including Comcast, AT&T, D-Link, Time Warner, Verizon, DIRECTV, RealNetworks, Panasonic, GameFly and more — enables Bridgevine to deliver the most accurate information on services, pricing and special promotions, adding even more value to the bundled services shopping experience. The company’s proprietary ecommerce platform is licensed by leading retailers, websites and Fortune 500 companies, making it possible for them to monetize online, call center and in-store traffic. Bridgevine was ranked 57 on the prestigious 2007 Inc. 500 list of fastest growing private companies. For more information, please visit www.bridgevine.com.