**DA 05-2979**

**November 17, 2005**

**TV Station Requests for Waiver of Digital Testing Pursuant**

**to the Satellite Home Viewer Extension and Reauthorization Act of
2004**

**to be Filed by November 30, 2005 or February 15, 2007**

The Satellite Home Viewer Extension and Reauthorization Act of 2004
("SHVERA") amended Section 339 of the Communications Act to provide for
stations to request a waiver that would prohibit satellite subscribers
from receiving or conducting a digital signal strength test.[^1] This
Public Notice sets forth the procedures for stations to request such a
waiver.

The SHVERA amended Section 339(a)(2)(D) of the Act to permit satellite
subscribers to qualify for satellite retransmission of distant digital
network signals under circumstances specified in the Act.[^2] Of
relevance here, a satellite subscriber whose household is predicted to
be served[^3] by the analog signal of a local network station and who is
seeking a distant digital signal of a station affiliated with the same
network as that local network station may attempt to demonstrate
eligibility for the distant digital signal based on a signal test to
determine if the over-the-air digital signal of a local network station
exceeds the digital signal intensity standard in Section 73.683(a) of
our rules.[^4] A subscriber may request such a test beginning April 30,
2006, if such local network station is within the top 100 television
markets and has received a tentative channel designation on its allotted
digital channel or has lost interference protection; or, beginning July
15, 2007 for any other full power local network station.[^5]

Local network stations may request that the Commission grant a waiver to
prohibit such testing if they meet the criteria set forth in Section
339(a)(2)(D)(viii) of the Act. The statute provides that such waiver
requests must be filed no later than November 30, 2005, for local
network stations subject to the April 30, 2006 testing implementation
date, or no later than February 15, 2007 for all other local network
stations.[^6]

Section 339(a)(2)(D)(viii) of the Act sets forth the criteria and the
standard for the Commission's review of station requests for waiver. To
be grantable, waiver requests must provide clear and convincing evidence
that the station\'s digital signal coverage is limited due to the
unremediable presence of one or more of the following:

\(I\) the need for international coordination or approvals;

\(II\) clear zoning or environmental legal impediments;

\(III\) force majeure;

\(IV\) the station experiences a substantial decrease in its digital
signal coverage area due to the necessity of using a side-mounted
antenna;

\(V\) substantial technical problems that result in a station
experiencing a substantial decrease in its coverage area solely due to
actions to avoid interference with emergency response providers; or

\(VI\) no satellite carrier is providing the retransmission of the
analog signals of local network stations under section 338 in the local
market.

The Act further provides that under no circumstances may such a waiver
be based upon financial exigency.

Station licensees and permittees that want to request a waiver of
satellite subscriber digital signal testing governed by the
implementation date of April 30, 2006 must file such requests with the
Commission no later than November 30, 2005.[^7] Requests should be made
in letter format and clearly labeled "[TELEVISION STATION SECTION
339(a)(2)(D)(vii) WAIVER REQUEST.\" ]{.underline} Requests must specify
which of the statutory criteria apply to the station and include
supporting evidence. Requests should reference MB Docket No. 05-317, and
be filed electronically using the Commission's Electronic Comment Filing
System ("ECFS"): <http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/ecfs/>. A copy of each waiver
request must also be delivered to Nazifa Sawez, Federal Communications
Commission, Room 2-A726, 445 12^th^ Street, S.W., Washington, D.C.
20554.

Waiver requests will be available for public review on the ECFS. A party
affected by a waiver request may file an Opposition by December 30,
2005. Stations requesting a waiver may file a Response to an Opposition
no later than January 16, 2006. Such Oppositions and Responses should be
filed electronically using the ECFS and reference MB Docket No. 05-317
and the call sign of the station requesting the waiver.

Waiver requests will be acted upon prior to April 30, 2006. Waivers will
have an initial term of six months and may be extended upon a proper
showing.

For additional information, contact Nazifa Sawez or Joyce Bernstein of
the Video Division, Media Bureau, at (202) 418-1600 or
<nazifa.sawez@fcc.gov> or <joyce.bernstein@fcc.gov>, or Eloise Gore of
the Policy Division, Media Bureau, at 202-418-7200 or
<eloise.gore@fcc.gov>. TTY: (202) 418-7172.

\--FCC\--

[^1]: *See* 47 U.S.C. § 339(a)(2)(D)(viii) *as amended by* Section 204
    of the SHVERA.

[^2]: *See* 47 U.S.C. § 339(a)(2)(D)(i)(III) *as amended by* Section 204
    of the SHVERA.

[^3]: *See* 47 U.S.C. § 339(c)(3) (mandating the Individual Location
    Longley-Rice (ILLR) model to predict the ability of individual
    locations to receive analog signals of Grade B intensity).

[^4]: *See* 47 U.S.C. § 339(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) *as amended by* Section 204
    of the SHVERA.

[^5]: *See* 47 U.S.C. § 339(a)(2)(D)(vii) *as amended by* Section 204 of
    the SHVERA.

[^6]: *See* 47 U.S.C. § 339(a)(2)(D)(viii), *as amended by* Section 204
    of the SHVERA (providing that waiver requests must be filed "not
    less than 5 months prior to the implementation deadline.").

[^7]: Station licensees and permittees that want to request such waiver
    in connection with the implementation date of July 15, 2007, must
    file waivers requests no later than February 15, 2007.