Obama Yet To Sign DTV Date Move Bill

As of mid -afternoon, President Barack Obama had yet to sign the DTV date-move bill, according to a White House spokesperson.

Even so, broadcasters are required to let the FCC know by midnight tonight whether they are going to switch off their analog signal on Feb. 17 -- as the government had told them to do over the last several years.

After the Senate had already approved it, the House of Representatives passed a bill last Feb. 4 to move the date to June 12. Per his promise on most bills, though, Obama posted the bill on the White House Web site and gave the public five days to weigh in on it.

The FCC couldn't wait around for the signing ceremony, however (the president has pledged to sign it), releasing its rules of the road for implementation last week, which included informing the commission by today of plans to go Feb. 17.

Some stations have said that becuase of advance plans that can't be remade or the economics of continuing to deliver two signals, they will adhere to the old deadline and pull the plug Feb. 17. The FCC and some members of Congress have encouraged broadcasters who can stay on to do so.

The money to help distribute millions of currently undistributed DTV-to-analog converter box subsidy coupons is in the economic stimulus package, which may not pass for several weeks.