Society of Broadcast Engineers Objects to FCC Proposal on Wireless Mics

filing posted Tuesday in FCC docket 15-146. The proposal “signals the latest in a continuing, short-term series of unreasoned reversals and technically unsound retreats of the Commission with respect to reaccommodation of licensed, Part 74 [wireless mics] which were displaced from the 700 MHz band and those which now stand to be displaced from the 600 MHz band by the incentive auction,” SBE said. “Worse, this proceeding, sub silencio, abandons the Commission’s longstanding spectrum allocations policies relative to the priorities of unlicensed Part 15 devices versus licensed stations operating in allocated frequency bands.” Wireless mics “play an important role in enabling broadcasters and other video programming networks and entities to serve consumers, including delivery of breaking news, emergency information and broadcast live sports events,” SBE said. But in a series of orders modifying the UHF band plan, the FCC has “serially, in a very short period of time” reduced the amount of spectrum available for their use, the group said. The National Translator Association also objected. NTA said that those who rely on translator services to watch TV are “disproportionately lower income, elderly and frequently are minority individuals and families.” Translator TV service “has been available at low or no cost to these persons for a period approaching fifty years and, despite several previous takings of its channel space by the Federal Government, has largely survived to continue to provide service to its constituency,” NTA said. But the FCC’s proposal puts these services in jeopardy, the group said. “NTA opposes the FCC reservation of any TV channel for use by any unlicensed device which places priority of the unlicensed device's access to that channel over that of any existing licensee, including [low-power] LPTV and TV translator stations, to that channel.”