Re-start of 100-Day DTV Countdown Clock Suspended
Perhaps not surprisingly, the FCC has suspended the re-start of the 100-day DTV Countdown Clock, which was to begin tomorrow. In the FCC's own words: "We find that it could be confusing for viewers to see a 100-day countdown beginning on March 4, only to see a different clock in the event that we revise the requirement soon thereafter. Therefore, we temporarily waive the Option Two requirement to air countdown information until the effective date of the relevant rule adopted in the pending rulemaking proceeding…" Accordingly, those stations following Option Two of the FCC's DTV consumer education rules should NOT re-start the 100-day countdown clock until further notice. A copy of the FCC's public notice can be found here. Option Two of the consumer education rules is the option that most stations have elected to follow, and includes, among other things, an average of 16 spots per week along with 16 crawls, tickers, snipes, etc. per week. All other consumer education requirements besides the 100-day countdown clock remain unchanged (at least for the moment).
