Public Broadcasters – Do You Hold an EBS License? It May Be Worth More Than You Think

Changes in FCC rules regarding the Educational Broadband Services (EBS) spectrum may affect the approximately 30 public broadcasters that own EBS licenses. If your station is one of these, learn how it may impact you and what you can do about it. EBS has its roots in the 1960s when FCC dedicated a portion of spectrum for educational purposes. Public TV stations and other...

Read More...

Know the Value of Your License

An FCC broadcast license is considered an indefinite-life intangible asset. We are noticing that more public broadcasting stations are leveraging the market value of their license(s) in financing projects or attracting philanthropic support. Whether the license was gifted decades ago or purchased recently, noncommercial educational radio and TV stations have a value. If you are interested in getting a fair market valuation of your...

Read More...

Spectrum Repack Passes Halfway Point

Phase 3 of the Spectrum repack ended on June 21, 2019, which means about 60% of stations have completed their repack. Now is a critical time to plan for any delays in getting FCC reimbursement funds, and to identify how to pay for upgrades that may not be covered by the FCC. Public Media Company secured $20 million to assist public television stations with...

Read More...

Navigating the Complexity of the FCC Auction of Broadcast Spectrum

2016 marked the beginning of the FCC Spectrum Auction, which was six years in planning and played out over a year, finishing up in early 2017. Public Media Company advised numerous public stations in advance of the auction and commissioned a national research analysis of possible auction results for public television stations. The analysis offered the only data that organizations could use to balance...

Read More...

In Aftermath of Spectrum Auction, Even Stations That Sat Out Could Benefit

By PMC CEO Marc Hand, writing in Current: Despite eye-popping windfalls for some stations, the FCC broadcast spectrum auction was a disappointment for public media. Here’s why: Prior to the start of the auction, the prevailing wisdom was that the forward auction would generate anywhere between $30 billion and $60 billion in gross proceeds. Some experts were even more bullish — predicting numbers of...

Read More...

FCC Spectrum Auction and Channel Sharing

As we transition from the FCC spectrum auction and the FCC auction quiet period, public television stations may face unique and interesting post-auction opportunities that could allow them to improve their service, generate additional revenue, or both. To take advantage of these opportunities, however, public television stations will need to move quickly: Broadcasters will have until sometime in mid-July to file their construction permit...

Read More...

TV Broadcasters Get Another Shot at Leveraging Channels Into Cash

“The FCC’s incentive auction may not have resulted in the jackpot payday that some television broadcasters hoped for, but public broadcasters could still benefit financially through channel-sharing deals. By working out agreements to share their channels with other noncommercial and commercial broadcasters that did succeed in selling their spectrum, public TV stations have a post-auction opportunity to earn money. The nonprofit consulting firm Public...

Read More...

TV Spectrum Auction Enters Next Stage With New Bidding, Lower Prices

The first stage of the FCC reverse auction of television spectrum concluded as many analysts had predicted: Sellers’ opening bid prices were more than $60 billion higher than what the forward auction buyers were willing to pay. We believe it’s unlikely that the second stage of the auction will succeed at matching sellers’ prices to buyers’ offers. The reverse auction, which adjusts to lower...

Read More...

Public television spectrum valued at up to $6.8 billion in FCC auction

A recently completed computer simulation commissioned by Public Media Company from CRA International Inc. predicts that television spectrum held by public TV stations could be valued at as much as $6.8 billion in the FCC auction taking place this year. Actual outcomes of the auction will vary based upon which stations participate, as well as the amount of broadcast spectrum the FCC decides to...

Read More...