NAB and representatives from the public broadcasting community cautioned the FCC against adopting the draft order on the spectrum incentive auction. If the draft order is adopted as circulated, the auction will force “many hundreds of broadcasters to move and result in many stations serving fewer viewers than they do today,” NAB said in an ex parte filing in docket 12-268 (http://bit.ly/1lJ8B7W). The broadcasters urged Chairman Tom Wheeler “to do no harm to broadcasters who remain and their viewers,” it said. The commercial and public broadcasters also addressed the importance of consumer education, treatment of low-power TV stations, challenges of the auction for public and commercial broadcasters and other issues, NAB said. Representatives from Disney, NAB, PBS and other media companies met with Wheeler, staff from his office, Media Bureau Chief Bill Lake and other FCC staff, it said.

Rdio, a music streaming service, is partnering with Shaw Communications for content and marketing promotions, said a joint release (http://on.wsj.com/1pu40YG) Thursday. The move is designed to grow Rdio’s subscription base in Canada, where Shaw is the leading network and content provider, it said. “As we have seen in the U.S., Australia, Brazil and Mexico, local partnerships offer unique opportunities for growth,” said Rdio CEO Anthony Bay in the release. Rdio recently entered a similar partnership with Brazilian media company Grupo Bandeirantes, it said. Rdio typically carries a $5-$10 monthly subscription price in its global markets (CD March 13 p21).

Correction: FCC members, not the Media Bureau, approved bureau actions to: deny Northeast Hartford Acorn’s petition against Legion of Christ College getting a noncommercial educational radio station (CD April 17 p14); deny Entravision’s request to dismiss Able Radio’s application for an FM construction permit (CD April 24 p12); deny Puerto Rico Public Broadcasting’s application for a Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, FM station (CD April 24 p12); and let WTKV(FM) Oswego, N.Y., change its community of license (CD April 22 p12).

The FCC Media Bureau denied an application for review of its denial of Entravision’s petition for reconsideration. The radio broadcaster had urged the FCC to dismiss Able Radio’s application for a new FM construction permit for a station in Aguila, Ariz., the bureau said in a memorandum opinion and order Wednesday (http://bit.ly/PuhKSy). Entravision said Able failed to obtain reasonable assurance of site availability and it didn’t prosecute the application, the bureau said. The bureau said Able adequately prosecuted the application and that the case doesn’t involve a dispute about the availability of the site identified in Able’s Form 301 when that form was filed.

The FCC Wireless and Media bureaus identified 17 qualified applicants to bid in the May 6 auction of 22 AM radio construction permits. Qualified bidders include Royce International Broadcasting, L. Topaz Enterprises and Genesis Communications, the bureaus said in a list of bidders (http://bit.ly/QFhTnh). The bureaus urged the bidders to review information provided in a previous public notice on auction rules and procedures, the bureaus said in a public notice (http://bit.ly/1hpr4hk). All applicants, including those deemed ineligible to bid, “remain subject to the commission’s rules prohibiting certain communications in connection with commission auctions,” the FCC said.

The FCC Media Bureau approved Hoak Media’s sale of four TV stations to Nexstar, said an order released Wednesday (http://bit.ly/1l2wJj9). The four stations are in Colorado KREG-TV Glenwood Springs, KREY-TV Montrose, KREX-TV Grand Junction, and WMBB Panama City, Fla. The deal is part of a larger $300 million transaction between Gray Television and Hoak (CD April 7 p15).

The FCC Media Bureau dismissed an application for review by Puerto Rico Public Broadcasting Corp. on a denial of an application to construct a new FM station at Mayaguez, P.R. The bureau had originally found the proposed station would violate commission rules by causing interference to an existing noncommercial educational station, the bureau said in a memorandum opinion and order Wednesday (http://bit.ly/PujaN1). It denied PRPBC’s waiver request. “With respect to PRPBC’s offering its mission and its relationship with the government as potential grounds for a waiver, PRPBC did not make this argument in its original waiver request,” the bureau said.

Howard Stirk Holdings (HSH) applied for the first waiver under new FCC attribution rules for joint sales agreements, in a request filed Wednesday (http://bit.ly/1tDIIYh). HSH wants the waiver to let it acquire WMMP Charleston, S.C., WABM(TV) Birmingham, Ala., and WLYH Lancaster, Pa., as part of Sinclair’s paying almost $1 billion to buy Allbritton Communications’ TV stations. Before the text of the new JSA rules was issued, HSH had asked the Media Bureau to confirm (CD April 17 p14) that it would receive such a waiver, but no decision had been issued. HSH had been set to acquire those stations before the bureau issued its new guidelines on deals involving JSAs. After the guidance that was seen as cracking down on JSAs in TV deals, Sinclair said it would restructure the Allbritton deal to sell the stations to a third party and avoid running afoul of new scrutiny on JSAs. If the commission waives the rules for HSH, Sinclair will consent to sell HSH the stations and enter into sharing arrangements, HSH said. “Armstrong Williams, through HSH, will control these Stations.” That control “will clearly serve the public interest,” said HSH. Those benefits include increased public affairs programming and an internship program “targeted at young minority students interested in the technical side of the television business.” Williams is one of the only African-American full-power TV station owners in the country, said HSH.

The FCC Media Bureau extended the comment deadline for the proceeding on whether to eliminate or modify broadcast network non-duplication and syndicated exclusivity rules. Comments are due June 26, replies July 24, the FCC said in a public notice (http://bit.ly/1txWgVj). The deadline originally was May 12 (CD April 11 p15). NAB requested an extension to do needed research and analysis (CD April 21 p17). The bureau believes granting NAB’s request “is necessary to facilitate the development of a full record,” it said.

Howard Stirk Holdings (HSH) continued to urge the FCC to grant it a waiver of joint shared agreement attribution rules, to acquire TV stations in connection with Sinclair’s acquisition of the Allbritton Television Group. HSH opposed a letter from Free Press that cautioned the FCC against responding to HSH’s request. Without a thorough review of HSH and Sinclair’s financial relationship, “it would be impossible for the bureau to respond to HSH’s request,” Free Press said in its letter (http://bit.ly/1qFcERw). No misdirection by Free Press will alter the fact that HSH and its owner, Armstrong Williams, have records of public service and program control at WMMB-TV Myrtle Beach, S.C., and WEYI-TV Flint, Mich., “that properly support a waiver in the public interest here,” HSH said in a filing in docket 13-203 (http://bit.ly/1flgo3E). HSH sought the waiver after Sinclair proposed to end a proposed deal to let HSH buy WMMP-TV Charleston, S.C., because of changing FCC interpretation of the appropriateness of stations sharing resources (CD April 20 p20).