Applications for Translators Due July 26-Aug. 2
Applications for the upcoming FM translator window are complicated and could present challenges for broadcasters, said Wilkinson Barker broadcast attorney David Oxenford in a blog post Wednesday. The applications are due during a July 26-Aug. 2 filing window, and a…
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freeze on technical changes to existing translators will be in effect for July 19 to Aug. 2, said a Media Bureau public notice. The translator applications are “auction applications which require certain auction-related disclosures to be acceptable,” Oxenford said, saying the applications may require an FCC training session. “I expect that some small AM stations that may be interested in filing in this window will come away baffled by the auction instructions,” he said. Rules for the applications include prohibited communications “forbidding applicants with applications that are mutually exclusive from talking about auction strategy or tactics,” Oxenford said. “While you can consider engineering solutions to resolve conflicts with your engineer, don’t convey the potential solution to other applicants except when the FCC tells you that you can do so.” Resolving mutually exclusive applications from the window will be difficult, the lawyer said. “Applicants can resolve conflicts only by filing settlements or technical amendments that comply with the minor change rules.”