Though the reporting did not include potential complaints from Wednesday evening viewers, the number of calls for most of the day was lower than in previous days, a good sign for the four stations that made the switch. The local reports jibe with an early survey by the National Association of Broadcasters that found call volume was relatively low in the first 12 hours after the switchover.

Some community groups helping with the transition, however, cautioned that there are still pitfalls ahead as viewers make the change. The audience of the early switching broadcasters, which were mostly smaller stations, represents only about 10 percent of the U.S. population.

Locally, KOFY (Channel 20), KICU (Channel 36), KCNS (Channel 38) and KFTY (Channel 50) received approval from the government to move ahead with the long-awaited transition despite recent legislation that allows them to wait until June 12.

One-third make switch

More than 400 stations, about a third of the nation’s broadcasters, turned to digital overnight. The changeover forces viewers who still use TVs with antennas to buy a digital converter box, switch to a TV with a digital tuner or move to a pay TV service.

KOFY averaged about 10 calls an hour, half the number of calls it was receiving in the week leading up to the transition, the station said. KICU reported about 20 calls by mid-afternoon after fielding 120 inquiries on Tuesday. KCNS had only a handful of calls while KFTY reported average call volumes.

“I think it’s gone smoother than expected,” said Craig Coane, general manager of KOFY. “We thought the phone would literally be ringing off the hook, but there were fewer calls than that.”

By and large, the callers were aware of the transition, thanks in large part to numerous public service announcements and recent onscreen messages about the change. Viewer questions tended to be mostly technical in nature, said Jim Haman, director of broadcast operations for KTVU Channel 2, who also oversees engineering for KICU.

“The majority of calls (to KICU) have been questions about the converter box and how to adjust the antenna,” Haman said. “We haven’t had people calling about KICU shutting down analog.”

Tracy Rosenberg, managing director of Media Alliance in Oakland, which provides free help to residents who need to make the upgrade, said the alliance was on pace to get about 200 calls Wednesday, down from the 300 calls on Tuesday. While early signs were hopeful, she said it is too early to suggest that the entire transition will go off without a hitch.

Coupon waiting list

There are still 3.9 million converter box coupon requests on a federal waiting list and the money to fund the coupons was freed up Tuesday with the signing of President Obama’s stimulus package. It will still take four to six weeks before the government will work through the backlog of requests for the $40 coupons, Rosenberg said.

“We are not out of the woods of having a smooth transition,” she said. “When the big networks change over, that will be much more high-profile time.”

Anni Chung, president and CEO of San Francisco’s Self Help for the Elderly, which is also assisting with the DTV transition, said the staggered start of the DTV transition may prove helpful in stirring people to action before the extended deadline in June.

“It might be a good thing for people because they can get some channels but not all, so it forces people to get help,” Chung said.