Industry, Consumer Groups to Speak at DTV Education Workshop

The FCC has named panelists and set the agenda for its DTV Consumer Education Workshop, set for Weds., Sept. 26 from 8 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. in the Commission Meeting Room at the FCC headquarters in Washington.

The purpose of the event is to give all interested parties a chance to discuss challenges and coordinated education activities related to the DTV transition.

After a period of pre-program demonstrations, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin will speak. At 9:30 a.m., a government and industry panel will include Cathey Seidel, chief of the FCC Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau; Tony Wilhem, director of Consumer Education program for the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), which is in charge (along with main contractor IBM) of getting nearly $1.5 billion worth of $40 coupons for DTV tuners into the public’s hands; and reps from the Consumer Electronic Retailers Coalition, CEA, the National Cable and Telecommunications Administration, and NAB.

The second panel, at 10:30 a.m., features consumer advocacy groups and will include John Lawton, president and CEO of the Association for Public Television Stations (APTS).

At 1 p.m., more consumer group will join a roundtable. Reps from the American Association of Disabilities, AARP, NAACP, the National Puerto Rican Coalition, the U.S. Administration on Aging, the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the Southeast Asia Resource Action Center, and Native Public Media have been invited.

Technical demos will remain open until 3:45 p.m.

During the workshop, the public may e-mail questions to the panelists at dtvworkshop@fcc.gov

A live audiocast of the event will be available on the FCC’s Web site on a first-come, first-served basis at www.fcc.gov/realaudio/#sep26.