Sure, we all still have a ways to go before the Incentive Auction wraps, but it’s not too early to start thinking about relocation reimbursements. As we all know, TV stations re-assigned to new channels as a result of the auction (and the consequent spectrum repack) will be entitled to reimbursement from the Feds. Ditto … Continue Reading
D.C. Circuit tosses LPTV challenge to auction/repack process, but $65 billion differential between forward and reverse auction bids forces second bid round with lower clearing target. On the Spectrum Auction front, August, 2016 ended in Dickensian style for the FCC: it was the best of times, it was the worst of times. A victory at … Continue Reading
A couple of weeks ago we reported on the FCC’s announcement of the final steps in the run-up to the start of bidding in the clock phase of the reverse auction portion of the long-awaited, much-anticipated Broadcast Incentive Auction. One of those steps: an FCC-conducted workshop on the online bidding system that participants will have … Continue Reading
It’s crunch time – so everybody looking to participate in the Incentive Auction should pay close attention. At long last, the Commission has announced the Initial Clearing Target that it plans to shoot for in the Incentive Auction, and it has set the dates for the commencement of the reverse auction. These are developments of … Continue Reading
Announcement clears up uncertainty, ideally encourages preparations that might move repack along faster. If you’re a broadcaster thinking about getting a head start on the incentive auction’s relocation process, you may be in luck. The FCC has announced that some repack-related expenses will be eligible for reimbursement even if they are incurred before the auction … Continue Reading
Second Confidential Status Letters are on the way! If you’re a TV licensee who submitted a “complete” application to participate in the upcoming reverse auction component of the Incentive Auction, be on the lookout for a package coming to you from the FCC. It’s your Second Confidential Status Letter (SCSL) – a/k/a your Golden Ticket … Continue Reading
First Confidential Status Letters advising of potentially fatal incompleteness flaws have been sent to would-be reverse auction applicants; Deadline for corrections: February 26, 2016 at 6:00 p.m. (ET) If you’re a TV licensee who submitted an application to participate in the upcoming reverse auction component of the Incentive Auction, you should be checking your mail … Continue Reading
Making things official, the FCC has announced that the Office of Management and Budget formally approved FCC Form 177 on November 19. And with the publication of that announcement in the Federal Register, the form is now “effective”. Form 177, of course, is the form that TV owners planning on participating in the reverse auction … Continue Reading
Federal Register publication starts clock on petitions for reconsideration, applications for review; Final version of form, listing of dollar values still in the works Last week we reported on the release of the FCC’s “final” version of Form 2100, Schedule 399, which is the form that will be used by repacked TV licensees to seek … Continue Reading
The Broadcast Incentive Auction reimbursement process begins to take shape. We have reported on the FCC’s efforts to alert all would-be reverse auction participants to the ins and outs of Form 177. A less immediate, but no less important, learning opportunity involves the relocation reimbursement process. Since that won’t kick in until the auction is … Continue Reading
The FCC is trying to make good on its promise to let auction participants know what’s in store for them on the auction application front (and the reimbursement front, too – but that’s for a later post). Now it’s up to broadcasters to take advantage of what the FCC has given them. As the Broadcast … Continue Reading
If you have any thoughts about participating in the reverse auction, check this out: the Commission has announced that its on-line tutorial on the pre-auction process will be up and running on November 20, 2015. It’ll cover pre-auction procedures, auction conduct and the bidding system, and will provide guidance on how to complete reverse auction … Continue Reading
Changes in baseline coverage data for several stations leads to scheduling changes for all. If you’re a TV licensee planning to participate in the upcoming reverse auction component of the Broadcast Incentive Auction, it’s time to get your calendar out … again. The FCC has announced changes to the all-important deadline for filing your Form … Continue Reading
As we reported yesterday, the Commission’s late-October “Second Order on Reconsideration” with respect to its channel sharing rules was published in the Federal Register on November 2, even though its predecessor, last June’s “First Order on Reconsideration” in the same matter, still hadn’t graced the Register’s pages. Whether that occurred by oversight or design, that … Continue Reading
As we reported last Friday (i.e., October 30), the FCC has asked the Office of Management and Budget to approve new Form 177, the form that broadcasters intending to participate in the reverse auction will have to file no later than 6:00 p.m. (ET) on December 18, 2015. Also as we indicated there, the FCC … Continue Reading
But what happened to the First Order on Recon? its break-neck pace with respect to all things Broadcast Incentive Auction, the Commission has published its most recent order on channel sharing in the Federal Register. (We reported on that order when it was first released by the FCC just last week.). As a result of … Continue Reading
Just two weeks after its release by the Commission, the sprawling Public Notice setting out the details of how the Broadcast Incentive Auction is to be conducted has been published in the Federal Register. (We provided an overview of the notice here.) This triggers the 30-day period during which affected parties can seek reconsideration (by … Continue Reading
Further evidence that the Broadcasting Incentive Auction is ramping up, and fast: the Commission has announced that it will be conducting a three-hour workshop devoted to the reverse auction process on November 17, 2015 from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Representatives of the Incentive Auction Task Force, the Wireless Bureau and the Media Bureau will … Continue Reading
Deadlines, opening bids, other procedures are now set. The FCC’s preparations for the long-in-the-works Broadcast Incentive Auction have taken the final turn and are now barreling down the stretch. With a 300+ page Public Notice (including two appendices and an attachment) setting out the auction procedures and other important details, the Commission has filled in … Continue Reading
Commission accepts back-up CSAs – with some caveats – and extends time to complete transition to shared facilities. In a further effort to encourage broadcaster participation in the reverse portion of the Broadcast Incentive Auction, the FCC has both (a) clarified its policies toward “back-up” channel sharing agreements (CSAs) and (b) increased the time available … Continue Reading
If you have planned your summer vacation plans around the FCC’s TV Channel Sharing Webinar that was originally scheduled for July 22, we hope you can get your deposit money back. But cheer up – now you’ve got the afternoon of July 22 free and clear! That’s because the Commission has announced that the webinar … Continue Reading
Last month we reported on the Commission’s efforts to fine-tune its rules relative to TV channel-sharing in advance of the fast-approaching spectrum auction. Those efforts included (in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) component of the item) a number of proposals as to which the FCC expressly sought comment. The NPRM has now been published … Continue Reading
On the agenda: Everything, um, A lot of things, er, Several things, Stuff you always wanted to know about channel sharing but were afraid to ask If your station happens to be on the FCC’s Eligibility List for the upcoming reverse spectrum auction, listen up. The Incentive Auction Task Force and the Media Bureau are … Continue Reading
