Lack of Interest in Radio Auction Could Stem From Ownership Rules, Says Oxenford
A lack of interest in radio construction permits, especially for AM stations, could stem from the FCC’s local ownership rules, said Wilkinson Barker broadcast attorney David Oxenford in a blog post Friday (see 2108120037). A third of the permits in…
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Auction 109 didn’t sell, and no permits for AM stations did. “I have been told that parties would have been interested in bidding on channels that went unsold but, because of the FCC’s ownership limitations, they were precluded from owning those stations,” Oxenford said: “Instead of providing new service to the public, these channels will lie fallow, providing service to no one.” Forty-two channels went unsold, some having opening bids as low as $750, Oxenford said. This auction and the upcoming comments on the 2018 quadrennial ownership review (see 2107160039) could “inform the Commission on the realities of the current audio marketplace,” Oxenford said.