DELAY IN FM AUCTIONS AIDS MINORITIES, UPSETS BROADCASTERS
Commercial broadcasters and their lawyers who sat through seminar last week at FCC on upcoming auctions of FM frequencies were said to be “outraged” when Commission announced auction’s postponement just few minutes before nearly 5-hour session ended (CD March 9 p8). About 50 minority potential bidders, on other hand, were “elated” by delay, according to spokesman-attorney David Honig. New date for auction is Dec. 5 (postponed from May 9), with first payments to participate now due Sept. 24.
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In announcing delay at meeting, only reason given by Louis Siglos, deputy chief-auctions of Wireless Bureau, was “administrative convenience” and he refused to answer questions, according to participant. Honig said postponement meant many more minorities were likely to participate in auctions for 351 FM frequencies. “It’s the best possible result,” he said. “There was a lot of stuff on the Bureau’s plate and they just weren’t prepared to do it [auction] right.”
Commercial broadcasters (at least one of whom traveled from as far away as Wyo. for session), and their lawyers were upset because postponement wasn’t announced until near end of meeting. “Lawyers had been sitting there for hours -- all nonbillable,” one told us. FCC staffers must have known at start of meeting that auction was going to be postponed “so why in the hell didn’t they tell anybody,” another lawyer asked. Postponement “was a huge disappointment for broadcasters who flew in from all over the country, as well as for the lawyers,” said attorney Barry Umansky.
Minority Media & Telecom Council planned workshop in Washington for potential minority bidders, and it was held Thurs. and Fri. as scheduled. Participants also had attended FCC seminar and many more minorities attended workshop because they were in town for Commission’s meeting, Honig said. Minority bidders would have been hard-pressed to prepare necessary technical work in time to participate under earlier deadline, he said: “We all came up with the same conclusion. It’s [delay] is the best possible result.”