Graham Brock, Inc.
Broadcast Technical Consultants
Vol. X, No. 7
July 2003
Last month we reported the changes in the Commission’s multiple ownership rules for radio and television stations, as well as cross ownership issues. The full text of the FCC rules, a 200 plus page document, including discussion on the various comments, was released July 2, 2003, a month after adoption by the Commission. The rules for radio ownership vary based on a “to be acquired” station’s location within or outside of an Arbitron market. The total number of stations that can be controlled by an entity has not changed, just the manner in which the stations in the markets are counted. For stations in Arbitron metro markets, all stations licensed to communities within the metro counties are counted, including non-commercial stations. Additional stations that have elected that market as their “home” are also to be considered. Stations in communities outside an Arbitron market will use a modified contour overlap method. The modification requires eliminating stations from the market count that have transmitter sites more than 92.0 kilometers from the common area of overlap of the relevant subject stations. It also removes stations from the count that are otherwise controlled by the acquiring entity. One point missing from the non-Arbitron markets is whether or not to count non-commercial stations.
The Report and Order is also a Notice of Proposed Rule Making. The Notice, which begins on page 252 of the document, seeks comments on how non-Arbitron markets will be reviewed in the future. The modified contour overlap rules are only a stop gap method. The Notice seeks comments on how to define non Arbitron markets; i.e., counties, using Census Metropolitan areas, Cellular Market areas or other alternatives. The FCC is attempting to generate a map or lists on markets to apply to the ownership rules. Comments on this proposal will be due 30 days after publication of the Order/Notice in the Federal Register, with reply comments due 45 days following that date. This is the same date Petitions for Reconsideration of the overall ownership rules are due. It looks like the Commission will be very busy in August.
Until new forms are prepared (FCC Form 314 and 315), there is a freeze on the submission of applications for station transfers and those pending will not be processed by the staff. In addition, applications for minor changes of stations that potentially impact ownership rules will also not be processed, and may require the submission of a ownership study before further processing is considered.
The dog days of summer have arrived – is your transmitter building cooled? In many areas of the country, an air conditioning system is standard equipment to keep transmitters and associated equipment clean and cooled. Buildings that use filtered air with no moisture or de-humidifying equipment may find their transmitters sweating. While filtered system eliminates some dirt and bugs, they cannot remove the moisture. As moisture builds, so too does the potential for arcing in transmitters, which will cause down time...as if severe thunderstorms are not enough to keep engineers hopping this time of year. Is your site up to the task?
A station in South Carolina was recently fined for a failure to have an operating EAS system when inspected by the Commission. The AM station had been co-owned with a FM station and shared the FM station’s EAS equipment. The station was sold to another entity, but remained co-located for a time. When the FM station relocated to a new studio, the AM purchased, but had not installed, its own EAS equipment. The FCC fined the station for failing to have its own equipment operational. It also noted that the rules state that stations that are co-owned and co-located may share an EAS encoder. However, once the stations are no longer co-owned, each must have its own EAS unit.