Senate passes bill to delay digital TV switch

The new transition date has been moved from February 17 to June 12 in order to give consumers more time to prepare. The Senate felt that consumers are not technically ready for the congressionally-mandated transition. There are 20 million people, mainly poor or elderly, that lawmakers believe are not yet ready for the switch. The extra time also gives people who have expired coupons to get new ones. There are 2.5 million people waiting for the new coupons since the government has run out of them this month.