Graham Brock, Inc.
Broadcast Technical Consultants
10 Sylvan Drive, Suite 26 • P.O. Box 24466 • St. Simons Island, GA 31522-7466
912-638-8028 • 202-393-5133 • Fax 912-638-7722
www.grahambrock.com
June Newsletter
Vol. IX, No. 6
June 2002
DTV Extension Letters And Other Matters
The Commission has sent out letters to numerous permittees of DTV facilities asking them to submit additional data to support their respective requests for an extension of the time allowed to construct their DTV facilities. Commercial TV stations were required to construct the paired DTV channels by May of this year, whereas non-commercial stations have until May 2003. In many cases, the FCC requested detailed financial records to substantiate their claims of financial hardship. On June 4th, the Commission denied the requested extensions of 14 stations and required them to submit reports within 30 days of their progress toward DTV operation. While these stations were given until December of this year to come into compliance, they are subject to continued reporting requirements and were admonished for failure to meet the deadline. Late last month, the Commission granted five extension requests due to circumstances beyond their control, such as tower site disputes and interference to cable TV service.
In addition, the Commission has issued a Notice of Proposed Rule Making seeking comments on the steps it should take against stations that fail to comply with the DTV construction deadline. The FCC is considering admonishing stations who fail to meet the deadlines and will allow no more than six months for compliance with digital operation. If the station fails to comply within that time period, a second step would be taken. This step, including sanctions against the licensee/permittee, with additional reporting requirements, will allow an additional six months for the licensee to complete the facility. Should the station fail to comply, the third step would include the expiration of the permit and the rescission of the station’s DTV authorization. Comments on this proposal must be submitted to the Commission by July 8, 2002.
Auctions Delayed For TV Channels 60-69
The Commission has attempted to begin spectrum auctions for the recovered TV Channels 60-69 for some time, but they have again delayed the process due to pressure from Congress. Issues involve up-front payments for the spectrum and the time frame for the return or sharing of the spectrum with the operational TV stations still using these frequencies. The auction for TV Channels 52-59 is still scheduled to go forward in June. Last minute delays are possible in the second auction.
Is Your STL or RPU Associated With The Right Station?
In an ongoing effort to clean up the auxiliary services databases, the FCC is requiring that all presently authorized auxiliary stations (studio transmitter links, intercity relays, remote pick-up stations, etc.) have an associated parent call sign and/or a FCC Facility ID number. The Commission reports that there are presently more than 9,000 auxiliary licenses that do not have a valid associated station. They have not allowed these licenses to expire. However, if any of these stations continue to have no associated parent station, they will be allowed to expire, based on the date of the license. The Public Notice outlines how to check and see if your auxiliary stations’ call signs are properly linked to a parent station and, if not, what must be done. Details on this procedure are available on our website, or can be obtained by contacting the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau.
I Can Hear A Station From 100 Miles Away, But......
You’re only 20 miles from your tower and you’re hearing rap, but you have an oldies station. What’s going on? For those stations located in coastal environments, we are now in the temperature inversion season. You are actually hearing another station on the same frequency from more than 100 miles away. Twice a year, in the spring and again in the fall, the heating and cooling of the atmosphere causes a stratification or duct to be formed at various levels. This can simply deflect your signal out of your market, while allowing another station in. This phenomenon is usually worse in the early morning hours and can take its toll on listeners and staff. This situation does not necessarily mean your transmitter is malfunctioning or the station you’re hearing has suddenly increased power from 100 to 500 kilowatts or more. For more information about how inversions can affect signals, go to our website, under the “News” category, to read a BBC paper on ducting.
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