Senate Approves Delay for Switch to Digital TV

People who have not gotten their TV sets ready for the changeover to digital signals could earn a 4-month reprieve under a bill making its way through Congress, the AP reports. The Senate voted today to delay until June 12 the deadline for the changeover from analog to digital television broadcasting. People still getting their pictures through old-fashioned antennas otherwise face a Feb. 17 cutoff.

Comparable legislation is being readied in the House, and the Obama administration has called for a delay amid mounting concerns that too many Americans who rely on over-the-air broadcast signals won't be ready. It's estimated that more than 6.5 million U.S. households are still not prepared for the upcoming transition. (More digital television stories.)