FCC Suspends September 1, 2015 Deadline for LPTV and Translator Stations to Shift from Analog to Digital

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[Commentary] The Federal Communications Commission’s Media Bureau suspended the September 1, 2015 digital transition date for low power TV (LPTV) and TV translator stations. The FCC’s Second Report and Order had established the September 1 deadline for LPTV, TV translator, and Class A TV stations to terminate analog operations and transition to digital. However, in its Third Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the FCC recognized that the upcoming spectrum auction and repacking process would likely displace a substantial number of LPTV and TV translator stations, and that 795 LPTV and 779 TV translator stations had not yet completed their digital conversion.

Seeking to avoid requiring those stations to incur the costs of the digital transition prior to completion of the auction and repacking, the FCC proposed suspending the transition deadline. In a new Public Notice, the FCC concluded that suspending the digital transition deadline would be appropriate to permit analog LPTV and TV translators to postpone construction of digital facilities that could be impacted by the spectrum auction and repacking. The FCC’s decision, however, does not affect Class A TV stations, which are still required to complete the digital transition by the September 1 deadline.


FCC Suspends September 1, 2015 Deadline for LPTV and Translator Stations to Shift from Analog to Digital FCC (see the Public Notice)