Pay-TV technology supplier Motive Television developed what it’s calling the world’s first ATSC-format DVR for mobile devices. The new mobile DVR provides the ability to time-shift over-the-air programs on tablets and mobile devices, it said in a Thursday announcement. It works with the existing TabletTV app and TPod antenna that Motive developed jointly with Granite Broadcasting, it said. The DVR “uses an intuitive functionality and interface, similar to the functions consumers have used in the home for the past 20+ years,” it said. Users can schedule the DVR to record programs up to seven days in advance and then watch them for their personal use later, it said. TabletTV previously had a one-touch recording feature that permits pausing, playing and recording a current program, but the new DVR will extend that capability to recording future programs for later viewing, it said. Motive plans this month to introduce the DVR in a beta version to existing TabletTV users and will distribute the DVR to the larger “general market” in September, it said. Motive also later plans to license the DVR software to CE makers and app developers, it said.

Grupo Televisa and Univision signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen their strategic partnership, they said in a news release Thursday. The MOU extends the terms of Univision's exclusive U.S. broadcast and digital rights to Televisa’s programming from 2025 to “at least 2030,” they said. It changes the royalty agreements between the companies, raising the rate and making additional revenue subject to the royalty, said the media companies. The agreement converts $1.125 billion of Univision debentures into warrants that are exercisable for new classes of Univision’s common stock, decreasing Univision's annual interest payment. “By taking these steps and our pursuit of other related initiatives, Univision is in a stronger competitive position going forward," said Univision CEO Randy Falco, calling Televisa "the best Spanish-language content producer in the world.”

The FCC proposed $325,000 indecency forfeiture against Schurz Communications' WDBJ, Roanoke, Virginia, is based on “mistaken assumptions” and “misapplied standards,” the station said in a news release Wednesday. WDBJ filed an opposition to the notice of apparent liability (see 1503240038) Tuesday. In proposing the fine, the commission ignored court decisions that raise doubts about the constitutionality of the commission's indecency policies, WDBJ said. “Even if some penalty could properly be imposed, there was no justification for the FCC to impose a fine 46 times greater than its rules establish,” said the TV station. “We believe that the First Amendment does not allow the FCC to ‘throw the book’ at a station for unintentionally including a fleeting inappropriate image in a newscast about a legitimate story,” said President-General Manager Jeffrey Marks. The station said it has taken steps to prevent the incident from happening again, and asked the commission to withdraw the proposed forfeiture.

Virgin America flights will offer digital music curated by iHeartRadio, parent company iHeartMedia said in a news release Tuesday. The partnership will integrate iHeartRadio-branded stations into Virgin America's seatback in-flight entertainment, and will also allow iHeartRadio-using travelers to continue listening after landing using their own computer or mobile devices, the release said. The service will start with six stations in different genres, the release said. Virgin America and iHeartRadio will announce several promotions in 2015 to introduce the iHeartRadio branded stations to passengers, the release said.

The FCC’s new rules for the Emergency Alert System were published in the Federal Register Tuesday. The rules take effect July 30 and include a national location code for EAS alerts issued by the president, amend FCC rules for nationwide EAS tests, and set accessibility standards for EAS alerts (see 1506040056).

The FCC Office of Engineering and Technology released the final version of the TVStudy software that will be used in the incentive auction and subsequent repacking, OET said in a public notice Tuesday. The FCC had directed OET to release the final version of the software before the procedures PN, which is set for the agency’s July 16 open meeting. The final version, designated Version 1.3.2, “includes certain changes that OET has made to update and improve the TVStudy software,” the PN said. Alongside the software, OET released a list of the coverage area and population served to be protected in the repacking process of all auction-eligible full-power and Class A television stations, the PN said. The list isn't the final list of stations eligible for repacking protection, since that information will be updated based on station submissions of pre-auction technical certifications, the PN said. “OET will release the final baseline data to be used for purposes of the incentive auction and the repacking process well in advance of the auction,” the PN said. The released data includes “the noise-limited, terrain-limited and interference-free coverage area and population served” of the stations, the PN said. The noise-limited data “reflects the coverage area within the station’s contour that will be replicated” and the interference-free population data “reflects the population served by the station that will be protected from interference,” the PN said. “We invite comment on the detailed summary of the baseline coverage area and population served data attached to this Public Notice.”

Sinclair and Tornante Co., founded by Michael Eisner, are forming a joint venture to create and distribute first-run syndicated TV programs, they said in a news release Monday. Tornante-Sinclair LLC will be owned 50 percent by Tornante and 50 percent by Sinclair Television Group, a wholly owned subsidiary of Sinclair Broadcast, they said. The joint venture is to develop projects for the 2016 broadcast season and will be based in Los Angeles, said Sinclair and Tornante.

Gannett completed its spinoff, separating its broadcasting and publishing arms into two new companies, it said in a news release Monday. The broadcasting company is called Tegna (see 1504210034). The publishing company retains the Gannett name, the release said. The “new Gannett” is “the largest and most diversified publishing company with a portfolio of 92 domestic media markets, Newsquest, a leading UK regional news publisher,” and USA Today, the release said. “The new Gannett will be virtually debt-free with a highly focused operational strategy and significant flexibility to make strategic acquisitions.”

The FCC should lower the amount by which prices in the reverse auction decline between rounds, the Expanding Opportunities for Broadcasters Coalition said in an informal comment filed in docket 12-268 Monday. The FCC proposed dropping the prices for broadcasters as much as 5 percent in each subsequent round, and making that “decrement” subject to change based on bidding activity. Instead, the FCC should fix the reverse auction bidding decrement at 1 percent of a station’s opening price, in each round of the reverse auction, EOBC said. “A 5 percent reduction in the initial rounds of the auction is far too large,” EOBC said. “Changing the decrements during the auction adds an unnecessary level of complexity.” At that rate, stations could see price drops of close to $45 million in a single round, and all prices “will fall by more than 30 percent in just the first eight rounds of bidding,” EOBC said. “This rapid decline will not provide any opportunity for broadcasters to make critical decisions about how to participate in the auction.” A fixed decrement would allow broadcasters to “easily determine the exact dollar amount by which their bids will fall each round,” coalition Executive Director Preston Padden said.

A variable band plan is “poor long-term spectrum policy,” said NAB at a June 22 meeting with FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler and commission staff, according to an ex parte filing. “The negative effects of variability will not be felt in the near term, but only down the line when a future Commission is required to manage the challenges posed by broadcasters and wireless operators attempting to serve consumers on the same frequencies in the 600 MHz band.” The interference challenges are similar to the problems with the 700 MHz A block due to its proximity to TV Channel 51, NAB said. Relocating TV stations in the duplex gap in certain markets “will wipe out licensed wireless microphone use for breaking news purposes in those areas,” NAB said. The proposal is “the result of a singular focus on auction design and not on the resulting landscape after the auction,” NAB said in the filing posted Thursday to docket 14-252. “Broadcasters that were already struggling to figure out how to cover breaking news and emergencies on just 4 MHz of spectrum will be further hampered.”