Opposition has arisen to the FCC giving temporary waivers of the ...

and prudent date” to require that all TV receivers have ATSC tuners, engineer Norman Coltri of Medford, N.J., told the Commission. “The underlying purpose of the rule would be frustrated” if the mirror-makers got waivers, Coltri said. Kohler, a Wis.-based maker of bathroom and kitchen appliances, wants to have until Jan. 1, 2008, to build DTV tuners into bathroom mirrors with optional integrated TV receivers. Electric Mirror of Edmonds, Wash., makes mirrors with built-in TVs for hotels with closed-circuit video systems; it wants a 6-month waiver. Electric Mirror justifies its request on grounds that a waiver would ease its niche product’s DTV transition. Kohler says granting it a waiver wouldn’t thwart the FCC effort to ensure consumers can view over-the-air DTV after the Feb. 17, 2009, cutoff. Filing in the FCC docket for Kohler’s waiver request, Coltri asked the FCC to deny all such petitions. “The petitioner did not show any unique circumstances that would apply to their waiver, other than the desire to market a device prior to that device being capable of compliance with the rules that apply to all other manufacturers and importers,” he said. If the FCC gives the waiver “in total or in part,” it should impose conditions, including that the product’s display carry “secure stickers” warning that it won’t work properly after Feb. 2009, he said. If a device is sold through installers, Coltri said, only the “final consumer” should have the right to remove the notice and 30 days to “object to the condition” and receive a full refund.