# Presentation: 815087

## FCC Speaks 2002	The Path to Digital 			Broadband Migration

- February 20, 2002

**Digital Television  Transition**

- FCC Speaks 2002	The Path to Digital 			Broadband Migration

- FCC DTV Task Force

## 		Digital TV 				Transition

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- 11001001  10010011  11100110  11110100 10101100  10101011

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## DTV Task Force

- Structure
- Established October 2001
- Cross-bureau, cross-disciplinary team
- Functions
- Help coordinate and prioritize FCC proceedings
- Facilitate progress among parties on key issues
- Single point of contact

## Digital Television Service

-    **256 DTV Stations Now Operating**
-   DTV Now Available in Markets Including  76% of U.S. households

## Build-out Deadlines and Authorization of Service

- Affiliates of ABC, CBS, NBC and FOX
- May 1, 1999 for Markets 1-10
- 		38 of 40 stations now operating
- November 1, 1999 for Markets 11-30
- 		75 of 79 stations now operating
- All remaining commercial TV stations
**May 1, 2002**  92 stations now operating
- All noncommercial TV stations
- May 1, 2003     51 stations now operating

## 1462 TV Stations Granted an Initial DTV Authorization (87% of DTV Allotted Stations)  

- 1462 TV Stations Granted an Initial DTV Authorization (87% of DTV Allotted Stations)

## Remaining Initial DTV Applications

- Mutually exclusive “area expansion” facilities
- Coordination with Canada or Mexico
- Unresolved interference issues
- Related channel change proceedings

## Recent Policy Changes in Periodic Review Proceeding  

- Permitted graduated approach to DTV service with smaller less expensive stations and later service area expansion
- Deferred to next periodic review setting of new dates for post-transition channel election and elimination of protection for unserved portion of service area

## Recent Policy Changes in Periodic Review Proceeding  

- Stations may operate under STA smaller than allotted or authorized facilities
- Meets buildout requirement
- Automatically extends construction permit
- Now recognize _financial hardship_ as basis for extension of buildout requirements

## Decision Facing Stations With May 1, 2002 Buildout

- 1.	Build and operate station per 			construction permit                           _OR_
- 2.	File request for special temporary 		authority to operate station at variance 	from construction permit                   _OR_
- 3.	File FCC Form 337 requesting extension of buildout requirement - paper or electronic filing.  If paper, courtesy copy can be e-mailed to Video Services Division at _DTVEXT@FCC.GOV_

## DTV STA

- Request consists of letter and Form 301 Tech Box
- Letter authorization for a maximum 6 month period that can be extended
- Coverage area of STA facilities must be subsumed by that of construction permit or allotted facilities
- Service areas based on DTV Allotment Table _and_ construction permit continue to be protected during reduced facility operation

## Reasons for Extensions

- _Technical_, e.g. equipment delays, unavailability of work crews or tower safety issues
- _Legal_ - Delays in obtaining government clearance; e.g., zoning litigation, FAA, pending DTV applications or channel change rulemakings
- _Other_ - Floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes and other natural disasters
- _Financial_

## Finance Based Extensions

- Demonstrate that buildout of minimum DTV facility (STA option) is not feasible
- Provide detailed description of financial inability to timely construct:
- itemized estimates of costs of meeting minimum buildout requirements (service contour over community of license)
- detailed statement exploring why financial condition precludes such an expenditure

## Finance Based Extensions

- Showing reflecting the _particular station’s_ financial status over an economically significant period of time
- All efforts to meet the deadline, including good faith efforts to obtain the requisite financing, and an explanation why those efforts were unsuccessful

## Channel 52-69 Band Clearing

- Spectrum recovery - a goal of DTV proceeding
- Band clearing is _voluntary_
- Two-way and three-way agreements
- Differences in channel 59-69 and channel 52-58 band clearing policies

## Channel 59-69 Band Clearing

- Rebuttable public interest presumption-based on demonstration of
- certain public interest benefits; *e.g.*, provision of advanced wireless service _and_
- avoidance of loss of certain broadcast service; *e.g.*, that of four stations in market with largest audience share
- Extended DTV buildout for stations with single channel
- end of 2005 or beyond if less than 70% DTV penetration level

## Channel 52-58 Band Clearing

- Case-by-case public interest determination of band clearing agreements, including impact on DTV transition
- Agreements do not extend DTV buildout requirements
- Stations left with a single channel must build DTV

## Interference Protection

- Existing interference standards apply to facilities modifications related to band clearing
- NTSC-to-NTSC: minimum distance separations
- NTSC-to-DTV:   0.5% population reduction
- DTV-to-NTSC:   2%/10% population reduction
- DTV-to-DTV:     2%/10% population reduction

## Need Rules for Digital Low Power Operations

- TV Translators

- TV Boosters

- LPTV Stations

## Translators & Booster Service

- NTSC Grade B Contour

## Slide 21

## Key Regulatory Issues for Digital Low Power Rule Making

- Interference Protection Standards
- Permissible Operations
- Transmission Standards
- Application Filing Procedures

## Facilitate Industry Cooperation

- Hoedowns
- Copy Protection
- Cable Compatibility

## Carriage of Broadcast Programming Over Cable Systems

- Petitions for Reconsideration
- Issues from the Further Notice

## 		Digital TV 				Transition

- 11001001  10010011  11100110  11110100 10101100  10101011

- 11001001  10010011  11100110  11110100 10101100  10101011

- 11110100 10101100  10101011 1110

- 11110100 10101100  10101011 1110