Ignore Broadcaster Griping on Vacant Channel Proposal, Google, Microsoft Tell FCC

The FCC vacant channel proposal “will impose only a small burden on broadcast licensees, which is more than justified by the benefits it will create for millions of consumers and the U.S. economy,” Google said in reply comments in docket 12-268. Google said the FCC should ignore the complaints of broadcasters. “Actual analysis indicates that most LPTV [low-power] and translator stations serve communities with very low population density, where vacant television spectrum is likely to remain abundant after the auction,” the company said. “In these low-density areas, LPTV and translator stations will not be displaced or otherwise prevented from adopting changes to their stations as a result of the Commission’s proposals.” Broadcasters say the proposal “would result in substantial broadcaster displacement nationwide,” Google said. “They exaggerate.”

Carriers, equipment makers, software companies, public interest groups and Wi-Fi companies support the vacant channel proposal, Microsoft said: ”Although this group of commenters has disagreed in past proceedings about the precise rules for unlicensed operations … their consensus on the Commission’s vacant channel proposals serves as a valuable reminder of the fundamental importance of unlicensed spectrum to a diverse array of consumers and businesses.” It said broadcaster groups “fundamentally misunderstand the Commission’s rules, exaggerate the burdens of the Commission’s proposals on broadcasters, and turn a blind eye to the tremendous value of the unlicensed ecosystem.”

Wireless mic company Sennheiser said it's vitally important that the FCC’s rules allow their use in the vacant channels. “Barring wireless microphones from the preserved white space channel(s) would all but eliminate access to UHF spectrum for unlicensed users,” Sennheiser said. “There are many high-profile performing arts groups that do not qualify for Part 74 licensing, yet still require UHF spectrum. It would be unfair to take this away.” The FCC has already determined that wireless mics and white spaces devices should share vacant TV channels. “This proceeding is certainly not the time nor place to seek reconsideration of that decision,” Sennheiser said.

Broadcasters Disagree

Broadcasters universally opposed the proposals in the vacant channel NPRM, in their replies. Putting unlicensed uses over broadcasters violates the law, is outside FCC authority, will decrease the diversity of voices in the market place and destroy the effort to transition to ATSC 3.0, major networks, LPTV groups and NAB said in separately filed comments united in their opposition to the proposed rule change.

Though the FCC has in the past modified which services are prioritized on what frequencies, the proposals in the vacant channel NPRM are unprecedented, said a joint filing from CBS, Disney, 21st Century Fox, Univision and the big four network affiliate groups. “Even in making these adjustments, there has never been a question about whether licensees providing the service for which a band is allocated on a primary basis are entitled to priority status.” Several commenters described the FCC proposal as illegal, and used the sort of language commonly associated with lawsuits, describing the NPRM's proposals as “arbitrary and capricious.”

Adopting the rules suggested in the NPRM would contravene the Spectrum Act and the Communications Act, said LPTV investor Free Access & Broadcast Telemedia. The moment the FCC doesn't process a broadcast application because it would conflict with a future white space user, the commission will be violating the Communications Act, the Advanced Television Broadcasting Alliance (ATBA) said. “The FCC has authority to permit opportunistic, non-interfering unlicensed use of the broadcast white spaces. But it does not have authority to refuse to process broadcast applications simply because granting those applications would preclude potential future use of that spectrum by unlicensed stations.” The “piecemeal” authority the FCC cites to back up the proposals in the NPRM wouldn't “survive judicial review,” Media General said. “The Commission’s reversal of years of decisions regarding the priority of licensed over unlicensed services is not only legally questionable, it also represents picking winners and losers in the marketplace,” NAB said.

The vacant channel proposals could also have a negative effect on the incentive auction, NAB said. It is “baffling” that the FCC is “considering this spectrum handout to corporations that clearly can afford to participate in the auction in a meaningful way,” NAB said, referring to Google and Microsoft. “Why would they bid competitively for access to spectrum when they can get it for free from the Commission?” NAB said. “Subordinating any licensed user to a quasi-secondary status in its home band would send a chilling signal to all Commission licensees that their services could be undermined at any moment,” the joint filing from Disney, CBS and others said. “It would be an especially damaging signal for the Commission to send in an era where the agency expects existing users to be more open to sharing.”

Since preserving two vacant channels will lead to more LPTV stations being displaced, it will reduce the diversity of voices in the market, broadcasters said. The NPRM raises “serious questions” about FCC belief in “a multiplicity and diversity of voices,” ATBA said.

The vacant band proposals and the restrictions they would place on broadcasters are a serious threat to ATSC 3.0, numerous commenters said. The proposals will “preclude broadcasters from modifying or expanding coverage over time to adjust to shifting populations and deploy advanced technology,” ATBA said. Modifying station coverage areas will be hard enough after the repacking, “given the reduced amount of spectrum that will be available in the UHF band,” the joint commenters said. “Blocking full power stations from making modifications that are fully compatible with other licensed users’ facilities could effectively foreclose stations from making any future modifications that expand service to viewers.” The proposals in the NPRM would “hamper” broadcasters' ability to “pursue the promise of ATSC 3.0,” NAB said.