Broadcast Interests Push for Longer C-Band Earth Station Registration Window
The fee associated with filing multiple C-band receive-only earth station registrations is deterring some operators from registering, Society of Broadcast Engineers and LinkUp Communications representatives told FCC staffers, according to a docket 17-183 posting Thursday. For larger operators with many…
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antennas, those fees could end up in the tens of thousands of dollars, and for small operators even filing fees of hundreds of dollars can be a financial strain, the broadcast interests said. They also said the need to file individual Form 312s for each site is a deterrent since many operators are unfamiliar with the form or don't have the technical staff to do multiple applications in a timely manner. They said a 90-day window is too short and asked it be extended. In a separate ex parte posting Thursday in the docket, Intelsat and SES recapped a meeting with an aide to Chairman Ajit Pai at which the companies separately discussed the tools and methods they would use for clearing part of the C-band. The companies also said they again said 100 MHz of C-band could "reasonably" be cleared in 18 to 36 months of an FCC order, but more spectrum "would be substantially more expensive and time consuming." The companies made a similar presentation to Commissioner Mike O'Rielly's office (see 1805100028)