Published: TV Technology magazine

Issue:  15 June 1998





Fast Track or Slow Road?

Broadcasters Find Application Process is Moving at Different Speeds



			

by Joe Fedele



WASHINGTON

  Stations like WESH-TV, who is waiting for its DTV application to be approved, may be one of the first to 

wonder if the FCC DTV application approval process is truly on the fast track - or if the trickle of approved 

construction permits is a sign of things to come.

  "We were told that our application is at the top of the pile and that we can expect it to be approved 

shortly," explained Richard Monn, chief engineer of the Daytona Beach, Fla., NBC station.  "But we're still 

waiting."

  Some of the stations filing DTV application, like WESH-TV, have found that the speedy approval period 

promised by the FCC is more like driving a Corvette in rush hour. And a few broadcasters who took the 

initiative to file early are disappointed with the commission's slow response to their applications.



OUT OF ITS HANDS

  John Morgan, assistant division chief for Video Services at the FCC's Mass Media Bureau, is quick to 

point out that the many hazards along the road to digital television that are beyond the control of the 

commission.

  Morgan said that "35 of the 77 DTV applications are on hold because of agreements with foreign 

governments." Those stations that are close to the Canadian and Mexican borders have been put on hold, 

but not by the FCC. 

  Morgan explained that many of these applications "require coordination with the governments of Canada if 

they are within 250 miles of the borders." UHF stations along the Mexican border have a 200 mile limit to 

contend with. 

  One industry consultant was astonished at how poorly the FCC has coordinated with both the Canadian or 

Mexican governments. "I was very surprised at the opposition by the Canadian and Mexican governments," 

said Gary Cavell, senior partner with the engineering and consulting firm Cavell, Mertz and Perryman. 

"When the FCC says 'here is your channel and here is your deadline,' you expect that these things would 

have been taken care off." 

  Holdups from foreign governments were not the only problem broadcasters faced.  Morgan also noted that, 

"some of these [applications] could involve complex interference studies and/or are proposing facilities 

outside the parameters of the DTV rules and policies."

  This was the case of WESH-TV, the NBC affiliate in Daytona Beach, Fla. WESH-TV was one of the first 

to apply for a DTV construction permit back in June of 1997. But the station's application included a 

change in transmitter location that exceeded the three mile leeway given to stations wanting to move their 

antennas to new sites.  

  Overall, however, Morgan said that the commission has acted in a speedy manner in approving DTV 

applications in "virtually all routine cases."  "I am the main contact point for all applications and can tell 

you that I have not had one phone call complaining that [a station's] application has not been acted on," he 

said.  "The perception does not match reality."

  Other problems Morgan has encountered include incomplete forms, requests for power levels beyond FCC 

limits and conflicts with local zoning ordinances, objections filed opposing certain applications.  

  In one instance, an AM radio station in Philadelphia has objected to several DTV applications due to 

tower concerns. That petition is holding up several TV applications. 

  Another slowdown in the approval process, which has been referred to some as "the WFAA-DT incident," 

has already been put to rest. As was reported in the April 6 issue of TV Technology, WFAA-DT, a Dallas 

television station, commenced its DTV operations on February 27th only to find that its transmissions 

interfered with biomedical devices at several local area health facilities in the station's coverage contour.  

  The incident culminated in a freeze on all DTV permits or applications for Special Temporary  Authority 

(STA) submitted to the commission. It was also the impetus for the FCC and the Food and Drug 

Administration (FDA) to release a joint statement warning of the potential hazard to patients using 

biomedical equipment, such as remote heart and blood monitors, because of RF interference caused by 

DTV transmissions to those devices operating on the same frequency as the new stations.

  The net result was that a "conditional statement" was to be attached to all applications, verifying that 

prospective licensees of DTV stations consulted with health care providers in their market to insure that a 

similar incident did not occur. 

  Morgan said that "a conditional statement was recently approved by the FCC to add to DTV construction 

permits." Since then all applications on hold for that reason have been approved. 

  But the question of perception vs. reality remains open. "Only time will tell where the truth lies," Cavell 

said.