Japan lags on digital TV, study finds

Only 43.3% of homeowners use service

By MARK SCHILLING

TOKYO -- With three years until the analog signal is switched off, only 43.3% of TV households in Japan own TVs able to receive digital broadcasts, according to a report released by the National Assn. of Commercial Broadcasters in Japan (NAB).

However, only 34.8% of TV households are actually able to watch digital broadcasts, meaning that many with digital-ready sets cannot yet tune into digital broadcasts.

The figures come from a NAB survey of 18,000 TV households conducted in March, with an 80.2% response rate. The far north and south of the country have the lowest digital diffusion rates -- not surprising since both areas are among the most economically depressed.

According to the survey, 61% of households with annual incomes of 10 million yen ($93,210) had a digital TV, while only 24.2% of households with incomes of $18,550 or less had a digital TV.

Among those who have digital sets but cannot yet see digital broadcasts, more than half said they had not installed a proper antenna, while the rest said they either had "other reasons" (22%) or "did not know" why they couldn't tune in.

This indicates that NAB members and the Communications Ministry bureaucrats who set the July 2011 analog cut-off have a large educational task ahead of them.