Abstract

Although digital terrestrial television has undergone significant development over the last two decades, no single protocol for transition has been poised to break out as bona fide replacement for terrestrial TV programs for those elderly in the rural area in Taiwan. This paper discusses the process of digital switchover and assesses the effect and implementation of a grassroots campaign. The first part examines the advantages and drawbacks of digital switchover, and identifies a number of challenges about the delivery method of the messages matters. When the project of terrestrial television digital switchover began in the 2009, many people from civil servants, policymakers and academics warned that it might be ‘premature,’ and claimed that Taiwan were not ready for ready for this transformation. Part two presents an overview of two pilot field experiments to show that personally delivered campaign messages can influence people’s perceptions and attitudes toward issues for encouraging digital takeup. The third and final part deals with the collaboration among different parties especially focusing on the cooperation between the central government, the TTV/CATV broadcasters, the local government officials, community leaders, and the citizens/viewers. The paper proposes recommendations for how to encourage cable services providers and public’s interest in DTV transition in the future.