Broadcasters Depending on Interim Antennas to Make Repack Deadlines
TV stations that must change frequencies following the incentive auction continue (see 1908090050) to make their phase deadlines by shifting their signal to interim antennas that don’t reach all viewers, said broadcasters, FCC officials and antenna manufacturers in recent interviews. Phase seven -- out of 10 -- of the post-incentive auction repacking ends Jan. 17.
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Incentive Auction Task Force Chair Jean Kiddoo said the FCC anticipated reliance on interim antennas. It involves roughly 20 percent of repacked stations, she said this week. Many stations that go with interims don’t wait too long to get the permanent antenna installed, the official said. Interim antennas are a “tool in the toolbox,” Kiddoo said.
Dielectric sales executive Christine Zuba expects repacking work to continue long after the July end of phase 10. “The repack will go on for at least another year, rigging crews will have to go back” to install permanent antennas, Zuba said. “The FCC will be able to show that yes, everybody made their deadline, but there will still be work to do.”
“Just about all of our stations went with interims,” said Fred Engel, chief technology officer of noncommercial station UNC-TV, affiliated with the University of North Carolina. UNC-TV’s WUND-TV Edenton is in phase seven. Interims are quicker and easier for tower crews to set up, since they are often mounted two-thirds of the way up a tower rather than on top, as permanent antennas are. They let stations maintain operations while the switchover happens, Engel said. “But there is a penalty for that.” Since the antenna is lower, viewers on the edge of coverage can’t always get the interim signal. UNC-TV’s website lists eight of the broadcaster’s 12 stations as waiting for permanent antennas. All are scheduled to be installed this year.
New Hampshire Public TV CEO Peter Frid said NHPTV’s phase seven station WLED-TV Littleton is also making use of an interim. Going late in the repacking order was helpful to getting ready, he said. “I think it’s gone fairly well.” Frid and Engel are satisfied with the reimbursement process, which required a great deal of attention. “It takes a village to do reimbursement correctly,” Engel said.
Kiddoo said some outlets are shifting to channel sharing to meet deadlines, and the FCC is showing flexibility to help broadcasters make their deadlines. Zuba and an FCC official said an increasing number of broadcasters are opting for helicopter lifts to get antennas to the top of towers, to save time. When the incentive auction kicked off, many broadcasters expressed concern the tight repack timeline would lead to being forced off of their spectrum if they didn’t make deadlines. The use of interim antennas largely mitigated that, Zuba said.
Kiddoo said the agency is working hard for low-power TV stations to begin receiving repacking reimbursement. Since not all LPTVs will be eligible for the fund, determining which ones fit eligibility parameters adds a step to the process not present in the full-power reimbursement process, she said. LPTV Spectrum Rights Coalition Director Mike Gravino expects the funds in Q1 or Q2.
Zuba doesn’t expect a post-repack contraction for antenna manufacturers and tower crews: As the repacking winds down, broadcasters that weren’t repacked are expected to seek replacements for their older antennas. ATSC 3.0 may give stations that didn't move a reason to seek new antenna and transmission equipment, Zuba said.