Fact Sheet

Date:

Auction 81 began on 9/14/2005 and closed on 9/26/2005.

Round 43. (See PN DA 05-2543)
Licenses:

113 construction permits for LPTV, television translator and Class A television broadcast stations.

Spectrum

Specified frequencies from 54 MHz to 806 MHz (television channels 2-69)

Bandwidth:

6 MHz per license

Winning Bidders:
39 Bidders won 90 Permits
Rounds:
43
Qualified Bidders
44
Licenses Won:
90
Licenses Held by FCC:
23
Total Licenses:
113
Net Bids
$834,600
Gross Bids:
$997,100

 
 
 
General information and associated licensing parameters are provided below. Public Notices provide specific information regarding this auction. This fact sheet includes:

Key Dates

 

Event Date
Pre-Auction Seminar
6/24/2005
FCC Form 175 Remedial Filing Window Opens
6/24/2005; 12:00 noon ET
FCC Form 175 Remedial Filing Window Deadline
7/8/2005; 6:00 pm ET
Upfront Payments Deadline
8/12/2005; 6:00 pm ET
Mock Auction
9/12/2005
Auction Start
9/14/2005
Auction Closed
9/26/2005

Construction Permits Offered

Auction No. 81 offered 113 construction permits for specified low power television (LPTV), television translator and Class A television broadcast stations. These construction permits were the subject of pending mutually-exclusive (MX) short-form applications (FCC Forms 175) filed on or before August 4, 2000. Participation in this auction was limited to those applicants and engineering proposals identified in Attachment A in Public Notice DA 05-1337. Qualifying applicants were eligible to bid only on those construction permits for which the applicant's engineering proposal is specified in the particular mutually exclusive group (“MX group”) as set forth in Attachment A of Public Notice DA 05-1337. All engineering proposals within an MX group were directly mutually exclusive with one another, and therefore a single construction permit was auctioned for each MX group identified in Attachment A. In no instance was more than a single construction permit awarded to the winning bidder for a particular MX group, even if that bidder had submitted more than one engineering proposal that is included in that MX group.

Permissible Operations

LPTV (Secondary Service Television (SST)) - A station that may retransmit the programs and signals of a TV broadcast station and that may originate programming in any amount greater than 30 seconds per hour and/or operates a subscription service. Particular LPTV stations which meet specified criteria are accorded primary status as Class A television broadcast stations.
Television Translator (SST) – A station operated for the purpose of retransmitting the programs and signals of a television broadcast station, without significantly altering any characteristic of the original signal other than its frequency and amplitude, for the purpose of providing television reception to the general public.

License Period

A winning bidder, if its long-form application is granted, is awarded a construction permit, rather than a "license." A winning bidder is required, within a specified time period, to construct its facility and file an application for a "license to cover construction permits" to obtain a license for the constructed facility. (See 47 C.F.R. § 73.3598.) Licenses are issued for an eight-year term.

New Entrant Bidding Credit

A New Entrant Bidding Credit was available for this auction. Eligibility and application requirements for New Entrant Bidding Credit are specified in Public Notice DA 05-1337. Applicants that qualify for the New Entrant Bidding Credit are eligible for a bidding credit that represents the amount by which a bidder's winning bid is discounted. The size of a New Entrant Bidding Credit depends on the number of ownership interests in other "media of mass communications" that are attributable to the bidder-entity and its attributable interest-holders:
Attributable interests held by a winning bidder in existing low power television, television translator or FM translator facilities will not be counted among the winning bidder's "other mass media interests" in determining eligibility for a bidding credit. Bidders intending to divest a media interest or make any other ownership changes, such as resignation of positional interests, in order to avoid attribution for purposes of qualifying for the New Entrant Bidding Credit must have consummated such divestment transactions or have completed such ownership changes by no later than the short-form application filing deadline, August 4, 2000.

Incumbents

Upon submission of its long-form application (FCC Form 301-CA or FCC Form 346, as appropriate), a winning bidder for the Auction No. 81 construction permits will have to provide interference protection to qualified Class A television stations. With secondary frequency use status, LPTV and television translator stations may not cause interference to, and must accept interference from, full service television stations, certain land mobile radio operations, and other primary services. See, e.g., 47 C.F.R. §§ 74.703, 74.709 and 90.303.
Potential bidders for Auction No. 81 construction permits are also reminded that full service television stations are in the process of converting from analog to digital operation and that such stations may have pending applications to construct and operate digital television facilities, construction permits and/or licenses for such digital facilities. Bidders should investigate the impact such applications, permits and licenses may have on their ability to operate the facilities proposed in this auction.
For more information, refer to Due Diligence in the Auction No. 81 Procedures Public Notice, DA 05-1337, released May 20, 2005.
 

Licensing Rules

47 C.F.R. Parts 73 and 74.