Broadcasters clashed with Microsoft, MVPDs and unlicensed spectrum advocates responding to an FCC Further NPRM on ATSC 3.0, in filings in docket 16-142 Wednesday. Broadcast entities such as NAB and One Media want transitioning broadcasters to have the option to use vacant channels, but Microsoft, the New America Foundation’s Open Technology Institute and Public Knowledge said that request is a spectrum grab. Such “a dramatic giveaway” to broadcasters is a legal violation “inconsistent” with the public interest and spectrum policy, and is “likely unnecessary to facilitate the voluntary ATSC 3.0 transition,” Microsoft said. The sides also disagree about the standards to be applied to broadcaster waivers of the 3.0 order’s simulcast requirement.

The preliminary estimated expense of the post-incentive auction repacking of $2.12 billion (see 1707140054), $365 million more than the $1.75 billion reimbursement fund intended to cover those costs, drew some concerns even as the shortfall was less than some feared. That Incentive Auction Task Force number could change as broadcaster requirements and standards for what's reimbursable become clearer and a few submissions that hadn't been included from a small number of broadcasters and MVPDs are totaled. Having a deficit to cite is expected to bolster broadcaster lobbying efforts to have Congress increase the reimbursement fund amount, said Pillsbury broadcast attorney Scott Flick. Such legislation may come soon.

The preliminary estimated expense of the post-incentive auction repacking of $2.12 billion (see 1707140054), $365 million more than the $1.75 billion reimbursement fund intended to cover those costs, drew some concerns even as the shortfall was less than some feared. That Incentive Auction Task Force number could change as broadcaster requirements and standards for what's reimbursable become clearer and a few submissions that hadn't been included from a small number of broadcasters and MVPDs are totaled. Having a deficit to cite is expected to bolster broadcaster lobbying efforts to have Congress increase the reimbursement fund amount, said Pillsbury broadcast attorney Scott Flick. Such legislation may come soon.

The FCC ATSC 3.0 rulemaking saw more replies underscoring the sometimes contentious nature of what broadcasters hope is a switch to the next-generation standard. Earlier replies in docket 16-142 (see 1706080067) and initial comments (see 1705100072) also showed some differences among broadcasters, MVPDs and consumer electronics interests. Whether to mandate 3.0 tuners is one such issue, with CTA replying to stress the importance of not imposing tuner mandates. It was the first time in the 14-month-long proceeding that CTA commented on its own rather than jointly with NAB and the other groups that petitioned to authorize 3.0 as a voluntary, market-driven service (see 1604130065).

The FCC’s ATSC 3.0 rulemaking gives the commission “an important opportunity to unleash innovation, not by requiring a particular type of equipment, but by facilitating voluntary industry adoption of a new technology in response to consumer demand,” CTA said Thursday in reply comments in docket 16-142. It was the first time in the 14-month-long proceeding that CTA filed comments on its own rather than jointly with NAB and the other groups that petitioned the FCC last April to authorize ATSC 3.0 as a voluntary, market-driven service (see 1604130065). CTA said it did so to independently stress to the commission the importance of not imposing tuner mandates.

TV broadcasters want the FCC to handle ATSC 3.0 with a “light regulatory touch.” MVPDs, wireless entities, consumer groups and NPR urged the agency to protect retransmission negotiations, unlicensed spectrum, radio and the post-incentive auction repacking from the transition to the new television standard, in comments filed Tuesday in docket 16-142 (see 1705090053). The FCC should “expeditiously adopt only those minimal regulations necessary to permit broadcasters to voluntarily implement ATSC 3.0 transmissions,” said Nexstar. The transition to the new standard “threatens to compound disruption in the industry and to the public,” said NCTA.

TV broadcasters want the FCC to handle ATSC 3.0 with a “light regulatory touch.” MVPDs, wireless entities, consumer groups and NPR urged the agency to protect retransmission negotiations, unlicensed spectrum, radio and the post-incentive auction repacking from the transition to the new television standard, in comments filed Tuesday in docket 16-142 (see 1705090053). The FCC should “expeditiously adopt only those minimal regulations necessary to permit broadcasters to voluntarily implement ATSC 3.0 transmissions,” said Nexstar. The transition to the new standard “threatens to compound disruption in the industry and to the public,” said NCTA.

The Advanced TV Broadcasting Alliance wants the FCC to require ATSC 3.0 reception in large-screen TVs within a year after authorizing the first next-gen broadcasts, said the group Tuesday in comments in the commission’s rulemaking (see 1702240069) on the ATSC 3.0 standard (docket 16-142). The FCC also should impose a tuner requirement on smartphones and other devices when ATSC 3.0 broadcasts become available to at least 25 percent of the U.S. population, said the alliance. Its arguments sharply differ from CTA, NAB and other companies and groups that are lobbying the FCC against tuner mandates on grounds that the ATSC 3.0 transition should be market-driven (see 1705090056).

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai's pilot project to make draft agenda items public three weeks before commissioner meetings drew applause from key policymakers, industry parties, former commissioners and others who said it should improve agency transparency. Some cautioned the move could add to pressure on the FCC as stakeholders flood the commission with last-minute concerns and proposals. Pai and fellow Republican Commissioner Mike O'Rielly said they believed the process will sharpen public feedback and improve agency decision-making.

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai's pilot project to make draft agenda items public three weeks before commissioner meetings drew applause from key policymakers, industry parties, former commissioners and others who said it should improve agency transparency. Some cautioned the move could add to pressure on the FCC as stakeholders flood the commission with last-minute concerns and proposals. Pai and fellow Republican Commissioner Mike O'Rielly said they believed the process will sharpen public feedback and improve agency decision-making.