Broadcaster Support Improves for Incentive Auction

Yesterday, Inside Towers reported that President and CEO of PCIA, Jonathan Adelstein, said broadcaster support for the 2016 incentive auction had begun to improve. “Broadcasters are looking more favorably on the incentive auction after seeing prices in the AWS-3 auction,” Adelstein commented. Jonathan Chaplin at New Street Research affirmed this by reporting that four large broadcasters have expressed support for the incentive auction: Fox, Ion, Tribune, and Univision. “Their participation would significantly increase the odds of the auction succeeding. In addition, it would increase the likelihood of the auction happening in early 2016,” Chaplin wrote. “Fox, Ion, Tribune and Univision expressed support for the auction in meetings with the FCC and in an ex-parte filed yesterday. The group controls 178 licenses in 129 markets (over 5BN MHz-POPs). Their participation, along with smaller groups that have already expressed support, significantly improves the odds of a successful auction. The four broadcasters are pushing for an auction of up to126MHz ‘as quickly as possible’.”