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LPTV INDUSTRY NEWS - THU. - JULY 2, 2015
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MELLOW RANT
As the 4th of July weekend is here, this will be the last issue until next week. A lot is on the agenda for July related to Class-A's, LPTV, and TV translators. There are so many FCC rule making items related to the Incentive Auction, that you need a calendar for it alone. July will also be a time of waiting until we see what the 3rd LPTV NPRM Report & Order says. From the prevention of "double-builds", the channel 6 audio service, the rules of the repacking MX process, to the newly proposed and opposed vacant last channel for unlicensed and mic's. There is a lot to consider, and reconsider.
We have complained directly to the FCC Chairman and senior Incentive Auction Task Force staff, that submitting the initial comments of the vacant channel change NPRM needs to be done AFTER the 3rd LPTV NPRM Report & Order has come out, and not before. We trust these overlapping timelines can be worked out. No point in adding to the pattern of regulatory abuse in the APA case under consideration.
The vacant channel order is an interesting one, and we think it can be either a negative or positive tool for the FCC to use. We are planning on helping them make it a positive force for LPTV, and not one to wipe us out, anywhere, in any city of license. Prioritization of the public interest is what this is all about. This new NPRM has just been published in the Federal Register so the clock is ticking by the end of July to get comments in.
Licensees, networks, and investors - we need your help in July and August in reaching out to your members of Congress to lay out the current and potential impacts to your broadcasting business as a result of the Incentive Auction, and channel repacking.
Have a fun and safe 4th - and next week, let's all get back to work, or heck, take another week off.
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ATBA BOARD CHAIR ATTACKS THE LOGIC OF THE VACANT CHANNEL PROPOSED RULE MAKING
Gary Cocola, of
Cocola Broadcasting fame, and now the Chairman of the Advanced Television Broadcasters Association (
ATBA), fires the first of what will be many rebuttals to the FCC proposed rule making for a set-aside yet another channel for unlicensed use. ATBA, which now has major LPTV spectrum holders on its' Board, is not happy. They had over 20 items which were denied in the Incentive Auction Report and Order, and their Petitions for Reconsideration. So we expect ATBA and their legal team to be real busy this summer.
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"The Office of Engineering and Technology (OET) released the final version of the TVStudy software (Version 1.3.2) to be used in the incentive auction. When it adopted TVStudy for use in the incentive auction, the Commission delegated authority to OET to continue to make improvements and other changes as necessary and appropriate, but directed OET to finalize TVStudy for the auction "no later than the release of the Procedures PN."
This public notice carries out the Commission's direction. Consistent with the Commission's delegation of authority, the finalized version of the TVStudy software to be used in the auction-TVStudy version 1.3.2- includes certain changes that OET has made to update and improve the TVStudy software. The attached change log shows the changes from the previous version of TVStudy. This version of the TVStudy software is also compatible with the updated structure of the Consolidated Database System (CDBS), which was implemented on December 1, 2014.
In in the Incentive Auction R&O, the Commission also directed OET to "release a detailed summary of baseline coverage area and population served by each television station to be protected in the repacking process" and to provide an opportunity for additional public input. Accordingly, OET is releasing a set of baseline data of the coverage area and population served to be protected in the repacking process of all full power and Class A television stations eligible for protection in the repacking process and participation in the incentive auction.7 The baseline data released includes the noise-limited, terrain-limited and interference-free coverage area and population served of these stations."
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EOBC PROMOTES ITS 1% "DECREMENTS" PLAN
Preston Padden and his crack team of researchers and communications attorney's are now pushing a "decrements" plan, instead of the FCC's "increments" plan. So what does this all mean? Simply, they want the FCC to conduct the rounds of the auction in 1% vs 3% phases. They argue that this is all about "price discovery" in each round, and that is would be better for the FCC and the broadcasters to use this method. For our Class-A members this could mean the difference between a winning or losing.
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Communications Law Attorneys representing clients before the FCC, the federal courts, and other regulatory, and governmental agencies on communications matters.
Chip Grange & Wray Fitch
(703) 873-7349 - www.gg-law.com |
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CTIA WANTS FCC TO ADHERE TO THE AUCTION ACT
CTIA, the Wireless Association, filed an ex parte notice of meetings it had with FCC staff about its' position on a variety of issues. Here is a quote from it:
"CTIA has consistently supported rules that both maximize repurposing spectrum for licensed exclusive use in the 600 MHz band and provide for non-interfering unlicensed operations, CTIA stressed the importance that certainty has for potential bidders in the forward auction and reiterated that the current proposals concerning interference protections for licensed 600 MHz operations threaten to undermine the success of the incentive auction."
We also want to remind you all to read this CTIA sponsored research by the Brattle Group about the need for more spectrum beyond the Incentive Auction. Find you need a good read over the weekend, here it is:
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THE APTS & PBS ANALOG LOGIC...
AT LEAST 39 MONTHS
The PBS Network, and their station advocacy group, APTS, remind the FCC that they are responsible for an orderly transition for analog translators, as many viewers will still be dependent on them. Here is some of what they said:
"Stations at this point need to wait until after the incentive auction to evaluate where in the television band to locate their translators in order to avoid having to "double build" digital facilities. "
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A VIDEO FROM THE GIVE-AWAY LAST DECEMBER HERE IN DC
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ADVOCACY GROUPS ASK THE CHAIRMAN FOR "MORE, PLEASE"
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If you would like to be part of our collective effort to make sure LPTV and TV translators are treated fairly in the Incentive Auction and channel repacking JOIN US today!
Mike Gravino
Director
LPTV Spectrum Rights Coalition
(202) 604-0747
http://www.lptvcoalition.com
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