Drew Clark writing in today's National Journal notes that:

"In spite of an FCC order that digital tuners be included in all large television sets and half of all mid-sized sets by July 1, the majority of such sets offered by retailers still do not include them.

Of the sets for sale on the Web site of the electronics retailer Best Buy Tuesday, 33 percent included tuners capable of receiving digital broadcasts. Circuit City's online percentage of digital sets was 44 percent, according to a survey of the two leading electronics retailers conducted by National Journal's Technology Daily.

The FCC has mandated that electronics companies build digital tuners into progressively smaller sets. On July 1, 2004, 50 percent of all sets 36 inches and higher needed tuners. As of this past July 1, 100 percent of those sets and 50 percent of sets 25 inches to 35 inches were to have such tuners."

Clark continues:

"Besides the requirement from the FCC, the number of television sets with digital tuners bears directly on the current debate in Congress over whether, when and how to order broadcasters to stop sending analog signals and begin sending only digital streams."

The devil is always in the details. Who knows how set percentages will impact the current dtv transition bill now before Congress? Let's hope no one uses the unexpected slow pace to push back spectrum availability.

What I do know is that I conducted a random test of twenty casual shoppers in the electronics area of a noted store at a nearby mall and only one customer knew what the heck I ws refering to the dtv transition.

I asked also asked them how fast emergency vehicles should respond in a genuine emergency. All said "immediately" or "as soon as possible." Interesting.