Dolby CEO Kevin Yeaman said the company is in a “good position” with ATSC 3.0 and Digital Video Broadcasting specifications, on the company's AC-4 compression. He sees AC-4 being “broadly adopted” across a broad range of devices, with a "gradual rollout." AC-4 won’t be a “major factor in the foreseeable future,” Yeaman said, but he noted early adoption among TV makers and broadcast trials. Ultimately, the industry will migrate to AC-4 from AC-3 because of “higher efficiency” and other value propositions, he said. Meantime, Dolby Vision Blu-ray titles from Lionsgate, Universal and Sony have begun shipping, and Disney made its first Vision-Atmos title Guardians of the Galaxy 2 available for streaming, the CEO said on a fiscal Q3 webcast after regular U.S. markets closed Tuesday.

The FCC should approve Sinclair's purchase of Tribune, a banker said. Harold Doley wrote Media Bureau Chief Michelle Carey, posted in docket 17-179 Tuesday, that the buyer has "a unique and accomplished record of working with and assisting minority and under-represented communities," citing Sinclair's relationship with broadcaster Armstrong Williams. Among those asking the FCC to make contracts and other documents available regarding the deal are Dish Network, Common Cause, Public Knowledge, the American Cable Association and NTCA (1707250045). Doley founded what's called the oldest African-American owned U.S. investment bank.

The FCC Enforcement Bureau fined two pirate radio operators in Florida $15,000 each, forfeiture orders show. EB said Wilner Lindi and Vilnord Simon were caught operating their stations -- in Lake Worth and North Miami, respectively -- after receiving multiple warnings. “Commission action in this area is essential because unlicensed radio stations do not broadcast Emergency Alert Service (EAS) messages, and so create a public safety hazard for their listeners,” said both orders. The bureau also warned Kern Community Radio, licensee of KSVG Bakersfield, California. KSVG was operating from 28 miles from the one where it was licensed, and with power far below authorization, the notice of violation said. The station wasn't monitoring enough sources for EAS codes, the NOV said.

The FCC should use its existing law enforcement warning (LEW) event code for emergencies involving danger to law enforcement officials instead of creating a new BLU event code as proposed in an NPRM (see 1706190080), said emergency alert system equipment manufacturer Monroe Electronics in comments in docket 15-94. “The addition of a new EAS event code may involve various costs and operational considerations for EAS and public warning stakeholders which may not have been adequately factored in.” The two states that incorporated EAS into Blue Alert processes already use LEW, and the code could be redefined to only be used for the scenarios described in the NPRM, Monroe said. Because the LEW code is already present on all current EAS devices, new rules for blue alerts could take effect immediately, Monroe said. Creating a new event code would require “a substantially extended timeline for both EAS and WEA [wireless emergency alerts], additional costs to EAS Participants and manufacturers, and the need to revise some Blue Alert plans and all state EAS plans,” Monroe said. The Blue Alert system and the upcoming nationwide EAS test (see 1707240042) also would be better served by the FCC taking action on a Monroe proposal to transition the EAS system to “Triggered CAP [common alerting protocol] Polling” (see 1701090043), the company said: EAS equipment would poll the system to check if the more informative CAP alert was also available, and if so, run with that instead of the less useful old-style alert.

Entravision is “wasting no time identifying TV assets to purchase,” Macquarie Capital analyst Amy Yong emailed investors Monday evening. Assets from the incentive auction give the company flexibility, and Entravision is “bulking up “on TV stations, including buying two stations in Palm Springs, California, Yong wrote. The move is a “clear positive,” but may be tempered by “continued choppy ad trends and industry-wide softness,” Yong said.

U.S. District Court in Manhattan was right to dismiss target shooting equipment maker Tannerite Sports' defamation complaint against NBCUniversal News Group, said the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in an order (in Pacer) Tuesday. Judges Dennis Jacobs, Rosemary Pooler and Geoffrey Crawford, upholding the lower court's 2015 decision in favor of NBCU's motion to dismiss, said Tannerite must plead facts showing falsity in order to prevail on the motion to dismiss. Tannerite -- the maker of exploding shooting targets -- sued after a Today segment and accompanying online article described the products as bombs, but the appellate court said the targets' primary purpose is explosion, making that bomb description substantially true. It also said the lower court was right to deny a Tannerite motion to amend since that motion didn't identify particular facts that would be introduced in an amended complaint. Tannerite didn't comment.

Comments on NAB’s petition for rulemaking seeking changes to the process for handling interference between FM translators and full-power stations (see 1706010063) support FCC consideration of the issue, NAB officials said in a call with Media Bureau Audio Division Chief Peter Doyle Friday, recounted an ex parte filing in RM-11787. The association said it “reinforced the benefits” of an improved interference process for radio listeners, broadcasters and the FCC.

The combined Entercom/CBS Radio "will have the firepower and muscle to affect positive changes for the company and the industry," Noble Capital Markets analyst Michael Kupinski emailed investors Monday. But it will take time to address the "revenue slide" at CBS Radio, he said. "We estimate combined proforma revenues to decrease 0.9% in 2018 to $1.16 billion from proforma 2017 estimate of $1.17 billion." That "reflects the current lackluster radio advertising market," which will continue into 2018, Kupinski said.

An item on refunds of application fees in media services auctions was added to the FCC’s list of items on circulation Friday. The item involves requests for refunds of application fees previously paid in FM radio service auctions, an FCC official told us.

The FCC notified broadcasters of the upcoming nationwide emergency alert system test and opened the EAS test reporting system (ETRS) for 2017 filings, in a public notice in docket 15-94 Monday. In preparation for the Sept. 27 test, broadcasters should make sure their EAS systems are ready, including ensuring that the EAS handbook is available to operators, that their equipment is functional, and that software is up to date, the PN said. Broadcasters also should make sure their ETRS identifying information hasn’t changed, since Form 1 filings are due by Aug. 28, the PN said. Broadcasters will need to file info in ETRS by the day of the test, and file post-test information by Nov. 13, the PN said. Meanwhile, a recent proposal to slap an Alaska broadcaster with a $66,000 fine partly over failure to follow EAS rules (see 1707190040) should be a warning to broadcasters about the nationwide test (see 1707180042), Wilkinson Barker broadcast attorney David Oxenford blogged Monday. “This is a good time for stations to insure that they are monitoring the correct EAS sources as required by their state EAS plan, that they have their online EAS CAPS [common alerting protocols] alert systems functional, and that they are properly receiving, conducting and logging their weekly and monthly tests.” The FCC’s investigation into the Alaska matter seems to have been triggered by the station’s EAS problems, and the EAS aspects were highlighted in the news release on the notice of apparent liability, he said.