Another FM Freeze in Anticipation of FM Auction 70
The FCC has announced that there will be a freeze on the filing of all FM minor change applications during the filing window for the initial applications (on Form 175 ) for Auction 70. We gave more details on the upcoming auction in a posting last week. The filing window, for an auction of 121 new FM channels, will open on December 6, 2006 and close on December 19, 2006. In addition to the freeze on all FM minor change applications during the filing window, a freeze on any proposal to amend the FM Table of Allotments for any of the 121 channels goes into effect immediately, and will last through the Auction 70 filing window.
The freeze will allow Auction 70 applicants to select transmitter sites without fear of the allowable area for their transmitter site changing beneath them as they plan their filings. Auction applicants can, but don't need to, specify in their Form 175 applications a particular site that they will use if they are the successful bidder in the auction. This allows auction applicants to protect preferred sites as, following the close of the Form 175 application filing window, the Media Bureau will not accept any applications or counterproposals which do not fully protect preferred site coordinates specified in Auction No. 70 Form 175 applications.
A copy of the Commission's Public Notice on the freeze can be found here.
FCC Adopts Procedure For New FM Auction
On Friday, just as parties are getting ready to submit applications due this week for an FM auction for "leftover" channels, the FCC announced the dates and procedures for its next FM auction. The next auction will feature the 121 new FM channels listed in an appendix to the Public Notice. The Public Notice sets out the rules and procedures that will govern the auction. The auction itself will begin on March 7, 2007, with short-form applications (expressing an intent to bid on some or all of the channels) due between December 6 and December 19.
Other auction deadlines include the requirement for posting Upfront Payments necessary to compete in the auction on February 5, 2007. An Auction Seminar will be conducted on December 6 in Washington to go over all the auction processes and procedures, and a Mock Auction, to allow applicants to practice with the electronic bidding system, will be held on March 5.
So check the list to see if there might be a channel in which you might be interested.
Posted By David Oxenford In Broadcast Auctions , FM Radio | Permalink | 0 Comments | Email entry
Reminder - Freeze on FM Minor Mod Applications and Opening of FM Auction Window
Just a reminder that there will be a freeze on the filing of minor modifications for commercial and noncommercial FM radio stations from November 6 through November 13, 2006. This week-long filing freeze on minor mods corresponds to the opening of the filing window for the submission of FCC Form 175 short form applications for participation in FM Auction No. 68. As we reported earlier on this blog, Auction No. 68 will offer 9 construction permits that were previously unsold from earlier FCC FM auctions. The filing freeze will allow auction applicants to specify preferred site coordinates for these nine allotments as part of their short form applications. The filing window will officially open on noon ET Monday, November 6th and close at 6PM ET on Monday, November 13th, so plan your filings accordingly.
Further Notice on FM Auction No. 68 and A Filing Freeze on FM Mods From Nov. 6, 2006 through Nov. 13, 2006
The FCC has released its further Public Notice regarding FM Auction No. 68, which consists of nine construction permits left over from two previous auctions. The auction is set to commence on January 10, 2006, but more importantly, and likely of more interest to most readers, is the fact that in order to give potential auction applicants a chance to submit a short-form application to participate in the auction and to specify particular coordinates, there will be an across-the-board freeze on the filing of minor modifications for FM stations. Specifically, from November 6 through November 13 the FCC will not accept FM commercial and non-commercial minor change applications. In addition, the FCC has instituted a freeze, effective immediately, on the filing of counterproposals in proceedings to amend the FM Table of Allotments where such counter proposals would change the channel, class, or coordinates of any of the nine allotments on the block in Auction No. 68. So FM stations should plan accordingly, and submit their minor modifications prior to November 6th. A copy of the Public Notice accouncing the freeze is available here.
With regard to the auction itself, the window for submitting an FCC Form 175 short form application to participate in the bidding runs from noon EST on November 6th until 6:00 PM EST on November 13th. Upfront payments must be submitted by 6:00 PM ET on December 11th, and the FCC will hold a mock auction on January 8, 2007, to permit bidders to familiarize themselves with the bidding process.
The auction itself will kick off on January 10, 2007. A list of the nine construction permits and the opening bids are included as Attachment A to the FCC's Auction Public Notice.
New Radio Channels to Be Auctionned By FCC
On Friday, the FCC announced that it will auction 9 new FM channels on January 10. These are channels that went unpurchased in prior FM auctions - either because no one bid on the channels or because the winning bidder defaulted on its winning bid (presumably by not paying for the channel when the full payment was due).
The channels are for new stations at the following locations: Covelo and Tecopa, California; Cedar Key and Perry, Florida; Kihei, Hawaii; Outlook, Montana; Ocracoke, North Carolina; Meyersdale, Pennsylvania; and Parowan, Utah. The FCC proposed rules for the auction, here, and set out the amounts of minimum bids that it expects to collect for each of these channels, here. The exact date for the filing of the initial short form applications and the posting of the minimum bids will be announced after the final rules for the auction are adopted. Comments on the Proposed Rules and the minimum bids are due on September 6.
Perhaps most interesting is the fact that the FCC has chosen to open only this mini-window at this time. In each of the last two years, at about this time of year, the FCC has announced the opening of auction windows for large numbers of FM stations. Hundreds of stations have been auctioned in these last two years. The FCC has hundreds of FM allotments around the country that already been made but which have never been available for applications. These will be apparently be subject to auction at some later date.
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