Incentive Auction Discussion

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My understanding is that the FCC has been tasked with fostering a more bandwidth-efficient alternative to DTV. I didn't say that it had to be ATSC 3.0 but it puts a face on what could be done at this point. It seems inevitable that they're going to have to do something going forward.

You're going to have to provide a source, because I'm not aware of any such tasking.

- Trip
 
Then the games begin about bit starving.
Those games began with channels that had five or more subchannels or multiple HD subchannels. I've got one channel (KPXG) that has seven streams and all of them are on a par with SLP VHS at best. As Trip pointed out, my PBS station just went to two HD feeds, one SD feed and three audio feeds with slide shows. They used to be HD feed, two SD feeds and a audio feed with slides in the early days of DTV. I'm pretty sure neither of them would be looking for someone to share a channel with.
 
I believe that ATSC allows for PSIP games such as 13.1 being on rf 30 and 13.2 being on rf 26.

I never saw a believable business case for this. Until now. Maybe when space gets tight, a richer station may pay another station to carry a sub channel. Then the games begin about bit starving.
KTTV-11 (Fox) in LA here once did that at one point to improve their signal coverage area by broadcasting from three different transmitters.

11-1 their main HD channel which came from RF ch. 11 (KTTV-11)

11-2 an SD simulcast which came from RF ch. 13 as a subchannel of KCOP-13 which Fox owns and is the MyTV outlet on the main 13-1 HD).

11-3 an SD simulcast which came from RF ch. 29 as a leased subchannel of KFTR-46 (Telefutura).

Now KTTV (Fox) only uses bandwidth from KCOP-13 (MyTV) for two subchannels. 11-2 an SD simulcast of 11-1 HD and 11-3 the new LIGHTv network.

Sent from my LGMS550 using Tapatalk
 
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Same thing in Philadelphia and South Jersey. NBC owns WCAU, channel 10 (RF 34) and WWSI, channel 62 (RF 49). WCAU broadcasts from Roxborough, north of Philadelphia, while WWSI broadcasts from Waterford Twns. NJ. NBC utilizes this aforementioned method to maximize coverage of the primaries. This allows south NJ residents to watch WCAU from WWSI's frequency and Pennsylvania viewers to watch WWSI from WCAU's frequency without having to receive the other station. Using unallocated virtual channels, it prevents duplication for those who receive both stations.

WCAU Philadelphia
10.1 WCAU HD, RF 34
10.2 COZI, RF 34
10.3 WCAU HD, RF 49

WWSI Atlantic City
62.1 WWSI HD, RF 49
62.2 TeleXitos, RF 49
62.3 WWSI HD, RF 34
 
Many Mexican TV stations were playing musical chairs with their channel numbering positions/affiliations recently, including the McAllen, TX/Reynosa, TA border blaster, XHRIO-TDT 2 (now channel 15), a former MundoMax affiliate (now The CW).
 
Many Mexican TV stations were playing musical chairs with their channel numbering positions/affiliations recently, including the McAllen, TX/Reynosa, TA border blaster, XHRIO-TDT 2 (now channel 15), a former MundoMax affiliate (now The CW).
I don't imagine it is going to be as much of a problem in most of Texas as it will be in SoCal. I would expect (perhaps wrongly), that the wireless demands in the border areas isn't all that great.
 
Gray to get $90.8M from Spectrum Auction

http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/101326/gray-to-get-908m-from-spectrum-auction

Gray Television said today that it anticipates receiving $90,824,000 in proceeds from the FCC’s recently completed reverse spectrum auction.


“The anticipated proceeds reflect the FCC’s acceptance of one or more bids placed by Gray during the auction to modify and/or surrender spectrum” used by some of its stations.



It continued: “Significantly, the actions necessary to receive the proceeds will not lead to job losses and otherwise are not expected to produce any material change in operations or results for Gray or for any individual market in which we operate.”
 
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Not only does ATSC allow 14.1 to be on one frequency and 14.2 to be on another, but here in Lubbock TX, we have 14.1 on several different frequencies and they all show up in the ATSC guide and are watchable.
 
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Stations Get Word on Post Auction Channels

http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/101428/stations-get-word-on-postauction-channels

The FCC has begun sending out the co-called "confidential letters" to TV broadcasters telling them whether they have to move to new channels in the post-auction repack on the TV band, and if so, which ones, according to broadcasters and their attorneys.


For the migrating stations, the letter stipulates when they have to move and the technical parameters of the new channels, including tower location, antenna height, type of antenna (directional or non-directional) and power.
 
For the migrating stations, the letter stipulates when they have to move and the technical parameters of the new channels, including tower location, antenna height, type of antenna (directional or non-directional) and power.
Sounds like one of the issues is going to be setting up leases for the new locations. So generous of them to give the stations one month's notice ahead of the "public" announcement.

In re-reading the repack narrative, I see that it indicates that there will be an effort to move stations off of channel 14 so for all who thought that there wasn't going to be any movement down lower, maybe not. Then again, I don't recall seeing a lot of RF14 stations.

If the plan moves apace, the first stations will be cutting over in mid 2018.

For those who are fatally attracted to their UHF-preferential antenna solutions, be on the lookout for the public announcement.
 
I'm hopeful that FOX will sell stations only within a duopoly, and maintain primary signal simulcasts for those stations sold.

Looks like Tribune's WNEP-TV (Scranton) was not sold. WVIA-TV was (for short of $26 Million) and NEPA's Educational Television Association is splitting the big bucks with WNEP to stay on the air. No word about PBS Kids or Create, but PBS will stay on the air in NEPA, as will ABC, Antenna TV, and The Justice Network. However, it can be assured that it will require a rescan. WNEP's on RF 50, so they will be moving. WVIA expects it to be all said and done in 2018.

http://www.wvia.org/about/presidents-message/
 
Elsewhere in Pennsylvania.

WITF (Harrisburg) has sold for $25 million, going into a channel sharing agreement as well, but has not announced their partner.
WQED (Pittsburg) took the Lo-VHF option and will enjoy $9.9 million with the pending move.

http://current.org/2017/02/spectrum-auction-nets-nearly-35m-for-two-pennsylvania-stations/

Finally, I'm not sure if it was shared here, but Sinclair's expected to bank $313 million, and like FOX and Tribune, and I think Gray, they too do not expect any "material changes" in their operations.
 
Sounds like one of the issues is going to be setting up leases for the new locations. So generous of them to give the stations one month's notice ahead of the "public" announcement.

No stations are being assigned new locations. The only thing that will be different for any station is its channel number and power level.

In re-reading the repack narrative, I see that it indicates that there will be an effort to move stations off of channel 14 so for all who thought that there wasn't going to be any movement down lower, maybe not. Then again, I don't recall seeing a lot of RF14 stations.

Stations that are repacked will avoid channel 14 if possible. If a station is already on 14 and does not otherwise need to be repacked, it will not be cleared from it. The goal will be to limit moving new stations there.

- Trip
 
FYI, for all here, I'm tracking public announcements of auction results here: https://www.rabbitears.info/blog/index.php?post/2017/02/09/What-We-Know-Incentive-Auction-Results

ScottLV, I hadn't seen that link from WVIA before, so I've added it to my page.

- Trip

Thank you for sorting all of the public releases. It'll be fun to see what stations are doing and how they are delivering the news.

Unfortunately, it seems we'll hear more from independent owners rather than large commercial groups, specifically public television stations which, I assume have jumped on the opportunity to at least move down the band a bit for some big bucks.
 
Forward Auction Finishes At $19.6 Billion

http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/101462/forward-auction-finishes-at-196-billion

The FCC said Friday afternoon that the forward auction has come to an end, with $19.6 billion raised, the second highest total proceeds of any commission spectrum license auction in its 20-plus year history, according to the FCC.


Of that total, broadcasters will receive about $10 billion, with $1.75 billion going to other broadcasters that incur costs in changing channels in the post-auction spectrum repack. More than $6 billion will go to the U.S. Treasury for deficit reduction.


The auction resulted in 84 megahertz of TV spectrum being repurposed for broadband use.
 
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