LPTV NEWS UPDATES
Tuesday - Jan. 27, 2015


We wanted to let you know about a very special event taking place in Washington, DC on Thursday February 5th.  It is the Spectrum 2025 Conference, and it is shaping up to be quite the gathering.

Spectrum 2025 is not designed as the last word in spectrum - it is designed to be the first word in 2015 about the shape of the industry, the implications of the AWS-3 auctions ($45 billion+), and spectrum sharing platforms will change the communications industry. The AWS-3 auction has led to a confusing and often contradictory picture of what the prospects are for the 600MHz 'Incentive Auction' scheduled for 2016. The evolving picture of the highly coveted sub-GHz spectrum grows with importance following the bids from the most recent auction, and affects wireless carriers, new entrants (Google, DISH, others), as well as the TV Broadcasters and LPTV operator themselves.

The Coalition is one of the partners of the event.  Coalition Director Mike Gravino, along with Greg Herman from Spectrum Evolution, will be giving 
a presentation just before lunch titled: 

"What Is The Future of the 60,000 MHz of Spectrum 
Used By LPTV and TV Translators?" 

This should be a wild ride as we take the audience through the realities of LPTV today, what we anticipate in the auction repack, and the potential it could have under various "technology neutral" future scenarios.

The Coalition has arranged for a special $200 off of the cost of the 
event to our members and readers of this newsletter.  
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CTIA ATTACKS LPTV YET AGAIN 
We must be doing something right for the huge CTIA - the Wireless Association, attacks LPTV yet again in the Incentive Auction proceedings. This time they are lying about our "secondary status", and are using the tired refrain that, "...[LPTV] are licensed on a secondary, non-interference basis, any interference to primary services (including 600 MHz mobile wireless operations) is prohibited under the Commission's rules."  They quote one of our regulations, 47 CFR 74.703 to back up their claim about "primary services.  However, when you read these regs, you can clearly see that they are wrong!  
At some point in the near future, after the LPTV NPRM and 
its 
Report & Order go through the process of reconsideration, the LPTV industry will need to go to the Courts to have them affirm, that indeed, we are only secondary to primary television services and designated land mobile radio services.  This is the biggest battle we have coming, and it will define what we can and can not do post-auction.  

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THE 21 WORDS WHICH WILL EITHER SAVE LPTV AND TV TRANSLATORS, OR DOOM THEIR FUTURE IN THE INCENTIVE AUCTION REPACKING PROCESS

page 72,   "LOW-POWER TELEVISION USAGE RIGHTS.- Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to alter the spectrum usage rights of low-power television stations."  

If you want to refer to the 2012 auction legislation here it is...THE ACT



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LPTV Displacement


Many of you have seen these diagrams before, but we want to make sure you understand the problems facing us in the Incentive Auction Repack.

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This is what we are fighting, the giving of a priority for unlicensed over LPTV

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This page was created in the summer of 2013, 
and we now know a lot more, or do we?
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This is the April 2013 diagram which started the discussion about the harmonizing of the LPTV and TV translator post auction displacement repacking and the analog to digital sunset dates.

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HELP THE COALITION 
WITH INDUSTRY RESEARCH 
In reviewing the submitted 500 pages of original Comments, the Coalition has identified a few key areas which need substantial LPTV licensee commentary.  In order to facilitate the industry in providing the FCC with the data it needs, we have crafted a brief survey we need LPTV licensees to take asap.  You can do this anonymously if you want.  But we need this data!  

We need data from already digitally built LD and TX:
>  Top 50 market stations
>  Markets 51-100 stations
>  Markets 101-210 stations
>  Station groups
>  Translator groups

 


Please click on the above survey link, it is essential we gather and publish this content into the LPTV NPRM Reply Comments next Monday!

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BOOK THAT NAB SHOW VEGAS TRIP!
Make sure you are in Vegas early Sunday to attend this important 
(and fun) rally for LPTV!

Email us to RSVP your spot at this exciting event, or to be a sponsor!

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WE GOT YOUR BACK LPTV!

Mike Gravino
Director
LPTV Spectrum Rights Coalition
(202) 604-0747
lptvcoalition@gmail.com