Repacking Problems Could ‘Sink’ Incentive Auction, Pai Warns
Gary Epstein, head of the FCC’s Incentive Auction Task Force, Friday laid out in more detail than before the commission’s next steps on an incentive auction of broadcast TV spectrum. Commissioner Ajit Pai warned that if the FCC doesn’t get repacking rules right, the auction could be a bust.
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Epstein said after the meeting that much of the work is highly complex. The FCC is slated to hold a webinar Aug. 22 on station repacking software (CD Aug 9 p8), followed by a workshop in September on broadcaster reimbursement and transition issues, he said. The FCC still hopes to hold the auction in 2014, he said.
"I'm pleased that we have made progress on the repacking front,” Pai said. “All of us have a lot of work ahead of us. This is a critical issue, repacking. If we don’t get it right, it could sink the entire auction. So it’s imperative that we engage with all stakeholders and be as transparent as possible. We need to get potential problems out in the open as soon as possible and fix them before the auction."
"What’s important to note here is this is more than a policy proceeding that we're going through,” Epstein said. “We actually have to run an auction at the end.” Epstein was asked by a reporter about industry complaints of confusion over repacking software, as discussed in a July 22 FCC public notice. “I don’t hear confusion,” he said. “I hear complexity and it is complex.” The task force will release additional information on repacking in the fall and is currently developing and testing repacking software, he said.
Reaching international agreements won’t be easy, Epstein conceded. “It is something we're very concerned about, something which historically has taken a long time,” he said. “You don’t have to get to a treaty. You can get to an MOU [memorandum of understanding].” Talks are already under way with Canada and Mexico, he said. “There’s been a working group going on for months led by the International Bureau and the State Department,” he said.
Pai said he hoped the FCC is still on track to hold an auction in 2014. He asked Epstein to provide more details beyond his presentation (http://bit.ly/15knn68). Acting Chairwoman Mignon Clyburn has directed the auction task force to provide the commission with recommendations so commissioners can approve auction rules this year, Epstein said. “We're doing everything in our power to achieve that goal,” he said. “But in order to do so, we have to finalize initial recommendations for the commission’s review and decision on the 600 MHz band plan, on repacking process, on broadcaster participation and auction design, on international issues and ... broadcaster reimbursement and transition."
Decisions on the band plan are closely tied to other policy calls on the auction, Epstein said. Market variation and co-channel interference are the “leading items” to be decided on the 600 MHz bandplan, he said. Matthew Hussey, former Senate staffer and now associate chief of the Office of Engineering and Technology, will head a team to look at issues related to co-channel interference, Epstein said.
"Openness matters,” said Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel. “The virtuous efforts of our incentive auction experts will yield no confidence if their work is held in obscurity. So that is why the recent release of repacking data is so terrific -- and so important. It is the foundation for the development of repacking software and other key decisions. So I hope all stakeholders will scour what we have shared for accuracy and help us ensure that it is a solid base from which we can build."