NAB Challenges FCC on Incentive Auction

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It’s no secret that members of the broadcasting community are upset with the FCC rule regarding the broadcast spectrum incentive auction order that was published in May 2014. In a petition published on August 18th, the National Association of Broadcasters challenged the FCC decision to change the methodology used to predict local television coverage areas and population served, which could result in significant loss of viewership of broadcast TV stations after the FCC “repacks” TV stations into a shrunken TV band. “Under this new methodology, many broadcast licensees, including NAB’s members, will lose coverage area and population served during the auction’s repacking and reassignment process, or be forced to participate in the auction (and relinquish broadcast spectrum rights),” the NAB lawsuit stated. In April 2014, FCC Chairman Wheeler spoke at the NAB Conference in Las Vegas and confronted the idea that he and the government were working against broadcaster to give the mobile carriers preferential treatment when it comes to spectrum; the crowd wasn’t convinced. “Channel sharing will allow you to remain on the air, maintain must-carry status if you are a must-carry station, and have a new source of capital that doesn’t dilute your ownership,” Wheeler said at the conference, adding, “I caution, however, that the Incentive Auction opportunity is not likely to come again anytime soon. While legally we could hold another auction, realistically I’m not as sure.” The petition also states that the FCC failed to take steps to preserve licensees’ coverage areas in repacking, and that the FCC erred in failing to ensure proper protections for broadcast translators, which are transmitters that help boost the coverage of broadcast TV programming to more rural and remote viewers. To view the entire petition, please click here.

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