The FCC should release information on how it...

The FCC should release information on how it will score participants in the spectrum incentive auction “early in the process” to “ensure transparency’ and “cultivate certainty,” said LIN media in an ex parte filing last week. A recent FCC release of information about the TVStudy software proposed for use in the repacking didn’t contain information about scoring, and that information is required for a “thorough analysis by affected industries.” To perform that sort of analysis, broadcasters need answers to pricing questions, information about the auction design and clarity on the timing of the ATSC standard, LIN said. The auction and repacking should take long-term costs like leases into account, LIN said, and “ownership relief” could be used as an incentive to promote channel sharing after the auction. In another ex parte filing, LIN weighed in on the commission’s media ownership proceeding. Sharing arrangements help struggling stations provide content to viewers and “take advantage of the 24-hour news cycle,” LIN said. The broadcaster contrasted its industry with cable and satellite, where FCC ownership regulations aren’t as restrictive. Multichannel video programming distributors “face less competition than broadcasters,” LIN said. Some MVPDs “use their size and competitive position” to raise retransmission consent issues “where no problem exists,” LIN said. “When politics becomes involved in the retransmission consent negotiations, it favors MVPDs with more resources and creates a diversion form negotiations,” LIN said.