The following is a message from the Federal Communications Bar Association (“FCBA”): It’s that time again – on Tuesday, November 10, 2020, the FCBA Young Lawyers Committee and the FCBA Foundation will hold their 31st Annual FCBA Charity Auction virtually this year. While the event is still free and open to the public, unlike prior years, this year you can attend from behind your computer screen. Below are a few quick Q&A’s to get you…

Capitol Hill On November 4, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell indicated he is willing to resume negotiations on COVID-19 relief legislation before the end of the year (he had previously indicated no legislation is possible before the end of the year). Whether this would be standalone legislation or part of a necessary government funding package (budgeted funding ends December 11) remains to be seen. It is possible such legislation could include funding for broadband-related programs,…

Back in August, we wrote about the Federal Communications Commission’s (“FCC”) decision to end the prohibition of commonly owned radio stations in the same service (AM or FM) that have 50% or more overlap of their primary service contours from duplicating more than 25% of their programming. Now that the decision is published in the Federal Register, it is effective immediately, and stations may duplicate programming as they see fit.…

On October 29, Fletcher Heald attorneys Frank Montero and Keenan Adamchak in cooperation with the National Federation of Community Broadcasters (“NFCB”) presented a webinar on the upcoming noncommercial educational (“NCE”) FM and lower power FM (“LPFM”) filing windows. In this webinar, they explored the NCE and LPFM application forms, processes, and FCC tie-breaking criteria, as well as pointing out some of the mistakes that can occur when applying for a frequency.  Being prepared will ensure a smooth process for applicants…

Taking the next step in its ongoing efforts to revitalize the AM broadcast service, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) has authorized AM radio stations to convert to all-digital broadcasting. Making such a switch is expected both to improve the quality of the signal received by listeners and to expand the area in which the audience can receive a listenable signal. Another advantage is that such broadcasts can include metadata, such as song and artist identification,…

The Federal Communications Commission’s (“FCC”) Media Bureau announced via Public Notice the end of a filing freeze on certain full power and Class A TV station modifications that lasted more than 16 years and the leadership of seven FCC chairpersons. The freeze was part of the FCC’s effort to keep a stable technical database first during the DTV transition, and then the incentive auction and associated repack; now that the transition is over and the…

The Federal Communications Commission’s (“FCC”) Local Public Notice Rule Changes have been published in the Federal Register and will go into effect tomorrow, October 30. These changes – which we detailed at length in a previous post – eliminate the obligation to publish a public notice of certain broadcast applications in newspapers, requiring instead that applicants publish these notices in the Online Public Inspection File (“OPIF”) or application databases. Among other changes, the new rules…