The Expanding Opportunities for Broadcasters Coalition Says Its Auction Formula Tops FCC's

Source: 
Coverage Type: 

If broadcasters want to get more for their spectrum in the Federal Communications Commission's reverse auction in 2016, the Expanding Opportunities for Broadcasters Coalition says they need to back the EOBC formula for calculating the opening bids. With the EOBC formula, the group says, the value of TV spectrum in the opening round of bidding would increase by 73 percent. And the higher the opening bid, the EOBC says, the higher the final bid will likely be.

Since prices only go down in a reverse auction, "it's better to go down from a higher price than from a lower price," said EOBC Executive Director Preston Padden. The FCC currently bases its opening bids on the protected contours of the selling station. "Our reweighting of the FCC formula gives broadcasters the credit they deserve for the spectrum they occupy beyond their own service area -- spectrum that the FCC wants to buy at a discount," the EOBC says.


The Expanding Opportunities for Broadcasters Coalition Says Its Auction Formula Tops FCC's EOBC Formula Would Boost FCC Opening Bids By Billions (Broadcasting and Cable)