Fraudsters running scams ahead of digital TV switchover

“We mailed you three explanatory flyers about the new terrestrial digital broadcasting system. Did you receive them?” the man asked. “Unless you have the work done, your TV won’t work any more.”

It was the afternoon of Feb 8. The householder, a resident of Toyohashi City, Aichi Prefecture, in her 70s, admitted the man to her house, and he made a show of walking behind her TV and fiddling with the connections. Then came the invoice: 200,000 yen.

All the woman had on hand was 189,000. She handed it to him. “I’ll be back in 30 or 40 minutes with your receipt,” he told her cheerfully. And that was the last she saw of him. Naturally no real work was performed.

With the date set for the changeover from analog to digital TV (upon which analog broadcasting will cease) set for July 24, 2011—less than 1,200 days away—the Sankei Shimbun (March 26) reports that a new variety of fraud has been increasing, forcing the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications and other organizations to issue warnings to consumers.

The swindlers typically employ a convincing stream of technobabble to persuade their victims, mostly elderly people with only a tenuous grasp of electronics, to part with their money.
TV-related scams have assumed a variety of forms. Last year, the Chubu Electric Power utility reported five incidents of people being defrauded after they were talked into increasing their home’s power capacity. Others were persuaded to put down a deposit that would entitle them to “free telephone and TV service.”

In February, a woman telephoned the Kanto Bureau of Telecommunications to report that two men, claiming to be NHK employees, had called on her home and requested she pay 3,850 yen “to enable changeover to digital TV.” As they were not wearing ID tags, she became suspicious and refused.

The bureau staff informed her that “NHK and the utility companies do not call on homes to collect money related to digital television.”

According to the National Consumer Affairs Center of Japan, a majority of victims of these scams (55.6%, although the total number of cases was not given) were householders age 60 and above. While the fraudsters’ standard pitch is “everyone else is doing it,” some were said to have spent considerable time giving technical explanations of the reasons why the outlay is necessary.

Except for residents of communities on some outlying islands and remote rural parts of the country, where special booster equipment may be needed, the Sankei notes digital reception in most homes will require only a UHF antenna and digital-compatible TV (or converter for existing TV receivers).

At the end of 2007, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, concerned over aggressive sales, notified 370 members of the Japan Cable and Telecommunications Association of new guidelines for explaining the changeover in their advertising, including disclaimers aimed at consumer protection.
In addition, from April of this year, the commercial broadcast networks will commence a campaign to disseminate information on the new system.
While the reported cases of fraud are still relatively small—perhaps two dozen a year—as the date of the changeover approaches, these incidents are expected to increase.

“The measures to enable digital reception may vary somewhat according to such conditions as proximity of UHF stations, area of the country, whether the consumer subscribes to cable TV and so on,” a ministry spokesperson is quoted as saying. “Before going ahead with any purchases or installation, we are advising people to consult the Digital Transmission Broadcast Reception Consultation Center’s home page.”

The center’s English URL can be accessed at http://www.soumu.go.jp/joho_tsusin/whatsnew/digital-broad/index_en.html

5 Comments

Beelzebub at 01:47 PM JST - 1st April

I can't see paying out 100,000 yen for an new digital set to watch the moronic blather broadcast here. After July 2010 I'll just stop watching TV.
sukebeoyagi at 01:56 PM JST - 1st April

Agreed, worse TV in the world, I'm actually surprised they're not going from analogue to semaphore...
flammenwerfer at 02:05 PM JST - 1st April

its bad, but wouldnt go so far as the worst in the world, India for one is running for that title.
Zorro at 11:37 PM JST - 1st April

All the woman had on hand was 189,000. She handed it to him.

For that price, one would think the clever man could at least set the woman up with an over-priced digital tuner and at least stay on the right side of the law. Sometimes people are so clever they are stupid, not to mention selfish and evil.
Ultradude at 05:43 PM JST - 3rd April

Seems like the same people, doing the same stuff ad nauseum. "Oishii!" "Sugoi" Only watch local TV for weather and Karakuri TV. Been subscribing to Skyperfect for the past few years. For less than the cost of two movie tickets you gain access to a decent selection of overseas programming, so for viewing Fox, Discovery, NG, History, movies, etc (and occasional rented DVDs) my big Aquos is worth it.