The FCC has voted on a Report and Order (a final action) to further advance the ATSC 3.0 broadcast transmission standard that broadcasters have branded NextGen TV and which they said they need to be competitive in the new media marketplace.

The vote was unanimous, though with concurrences by the Democratic commissioners, which is short of an enthusiastic "yes."

The FCC's Media Bureau, which presented the item, said it would help provide regulatory certainty for broadcasters.

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The vote at the FCC's Dec. 10 public meeting was unanimous and followed last June's vote to encourage the provision of what the FCC is calling broadcast internet services. That "encouragement" included making it clear that legacy broadcast TV attribution and ownership regulations do not apply to broadcast-delivered internet services like over-the-top video and data.

Thursday's vote was another victory for broadcasters because it does not mandate an "HD before ancillary" regime or raise the fees on those ancillary broadcast services, at least for now--the FCC made clear it would reconsider that down the line.

The FCC is statutorily required to collect fees for ancillary and supplementary services generating revenue from other than primary channels.

MVPDs had called on the FCC to mandate that broadcasters deliver a high definition version of their primary channel before using spectrum for those ancillary services and wanted the FCC to boost the fees broadcasters already pay for using extra digital spectrum for other services.

Many cable and satellite operators had wanted the FCC to include in the ancillary fee calculation "the value of the spectrum, the amount the spectrum would have generated via an auction, and the need to avoid unjust enrichment."

Also Read: NAB Tells FCC to Reject Broadcast Internet Regulations

The FCC voted to:

• Calculate ancillary and supplementary service fees based on the gross revenue received by the broadcaster rather than revenue received by a spectrum lessee, except to the extent the broadcaster has a stake in the lessee itself;
• Exclude from gross revenue the value of “in-kind” facility improvements made or financed by third parties in order to transition a station to, or help a station fully utilize the benefits of, ATSC 3.0; and
• Retain the existing standard for derogation of broadcast service [broadcasters must still provide its primary service] but amend the rule to eliminate an outdated reference to analog television.
• Decline to adjust the 5% ancillary and supplementary service fee for commercial stations at this time.
• Recognize the unique public service mission of noncommercial educational (NCE) television stations by adopting a number of additional proposals designed to preserve and expand this essential mission through the provision of Broadcast Internet services:
• Permit an NCE to use its spectrum primarily not only for free, over-the-air nonprofit, noncommercial, educational, television broadcasting, but also for nonprofit, noncommercial, educational (“primary”) ancillary and supplementary services; and
• Adopt a reduced fee of 2.5% for NCEs on gross revenue generated by such “primary” ancillary and supplementary services.

Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel chose to concur rather than provide her full-throated 'yes." She supports the new tech, but is concerned about getting it to over-the-air viewers who will have to get new technology to receive it since the standard is not backward compatible and viewers will need either new sets or adaptors.

"[A] new broadcast standard is coming to enhance our viewing. ATSC 3.0 promises to deliver Ultra High Definition picture quality and immersive audio, along with advanced emergency alerts and new interactive services," she said. "This is good stuff. It could mean real innovation in broadcasting—on par with new services that have emerged on so many of the other screens around us."

"But as we usher in this new standard for television, we need to keep consumers front of mind," she said. "That means in addition to updating our rules for broadcasters adopting this technology, we consider how everyone who watches will navigate this transition. After all, ATSC 3.0 is not compatible with current television devices. That means each of us will need to buy new television sets or new equipment. And just saddling consumers with this expense doesn’t add up.

That is in contrast to the DTV transition, which required new TV's or adaptors, the latter which the government allocated money to pay for.

"There comes a point—and I think we’re getting there fast—where we can no longer afford to ignore this issue," she said. "We need to do more to figure out how we can help viewers reach this next generation of television technology."

FCC chairman Ajit Pai pointed to the acceleration of the ATSC 3.0 rollout. He signaled he thought the future for that technology was bright and that he was particularly enthusiastic about noncommercial stations' use of the technology for educational broadcasts and remote learning. He thanked noncoms for their strong support for the item, and for commissioner Brendan Carr for his work on the item. 

"NAB appreciates the Commission's attention to the development of ATSC 3.0 and all of the consumer benefits that will follow," said NAB SVP Ann Marie Cumming. "In particular, NAB thanks all of the Commissioners for working collaboratively with stakeholders to yield a positive item for the future of ATSC 3.0."

“We are extraordinarily grateful to Chairman Pai for championing Broadcast Internet, and for his recognition of public television datacasting as a versatile solution to remote learning, public safety communications, telehealth, and other essential services that America’s public television stations are prepared to provide," said America's Public Television Stations in a statement. "[T]he unanimous support of other Commission members bodes well for a consistent policy of encouragement for this technology in the critical months and years just ahead.”

Cable operators are telling the FCC that retrans regulations should apply to carriage negotiations that include ancillary "broadcast internet" services. 

Related: ATVA Says FCC Should Mandate HD Before Allowing Broadcast Internet

That came in comments by NCTA-The Internet & Television Association on the FCC's inquiry into what, if any, rules need to be changed to accommodate broadcaster's potential new multichannel services using the ATSC 3.0 transmission standard. 

The FCC voted unanimously in June to help promote broadcasting as a new ancillary/competitive broadband service by making it clear that legacy broadcast TV attribution and ownership regulations do not apply to broadcast-delivered internet services like over-the-top video and data made possible by the ATSC 3.0 broadcast transmission standard. 

TV stations can enter into lease agreements with any other station, or stations, in a single market to offer internet services without triggering the FCC's broadcast ownership and attribution rules, the FCC said. 

But NCTA said stations that do team up to provide those services should trigger restrictions on joint retrans negotiations by noncommonly owned stations. 

Related: Tech Groups Say TV Signal Spill-Over Should Be Deemed 'Unlicensed' 

Two TV stations are prohibited from negotiating jointly for MVPD carriage unless they are commonly owned, NCTA points out, per a congressional mandate and FCC rules.  

"Under these controlling principles," NCTA told the commission, "a broadcaster’s demand that a cable operator provide capacity on its system for a Broadcast Internet service that the broadcaster provides jointly with other non-commonly owned stations in the same market is joint or coordinated retransmission consent negotiations by these stations." 

It wants the FCC to "clarify" that that is indeed the case. "A broadcaster’s use of retransmission consent to acquire capacity on a cable system for a Broadcast Internet service provided by a consortium of non-commonly owned broadcasters implicates the same anti-competitive concerns as joint retransmission consent negotiations, and should similarly be prohibited," NCTA said.  

It also wants the FCC to adjust TV stations' regulatory fee so that it is not a broadcast subsidy, and to prevent broadcasters from degrading their primary channel in the process of rolling out a broadcast internet service. "The Commission asks 'whether a broadcaster’s replacement of an HD offering with an SD offering in order to deploy ancillary and supplementary services should be deemed a derogation of advanced television services under [its] rules," NCTA pointed out, adding: "The answer is yes."  

The American Television Alliance (ATVA) wants the FCC to require broadcasters using the new ATSC 3.0 broadcast transmission standard to deliver an HD version of their primary broadcast signal before using any of its spectrum for ancillary or supplementary services.

That came in comments to the FCC as it decides on the framework for "Promoting Broadcast Internet Innovation Through ATSC 3.0."

Related: APTS Urges FCC to Approve Broadcast Internet Item

ATVA, whose members include cable and satellite operators, also say the FCC should update, by which it means increase, the fees it charges for those ancillary broadband services, including by factoring "the value of the spectrum, the amount the spectrum would have generated via an auction, and the need to avoid unjust enrichment."

The FCC back in June voted unanimously to help promote broadcasting as a new ancillary/competitive broadband service by making it clear that legacy broadcast TV attribution and ownership regulations do not apply to broadcast-delivered internet services like over-the-top video and data made possible by the ATSC 3.0 broadcast transmission standard.

Related: FCC Says TV Stations Can Team Up for Broadcast Internet

That came in a unanimous vote via teleconference at the FCC's June 9 public meeting. The item includes a declaratory ruling on broadcast internet and a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking teeing up some questions.

Per the declaratory ruling, TV stations can enter into lease agreements with any other station, or stations, in a single market to offer internet services without triggering the FCC's broadcast ownership and attribution rules. It does not eliminate the requirement that broadcasters have to deliver a TV signal on their primary channels.

Related: APTS Strongly Urges FCC to Approve Broadcast Internet Item

The NPRM seeks comment on whether other rules need to be changed or modified to deploy broadcast internet services, including asking "whether changes to our licensing structure would provide even better certainty of investment in Broadcast Internet offerings." It also asks for input on new technologies that can use the ancillary services.

Noncommercial TV stations are all in for the FCC's proposal to boost broadband internet and the "critically important" conversion to ATSC 3.0. 

The FCC is proposing to help promote broadcasting as a new competitive broadband pipe by making it clear that legacy broadcast TV ownership regulations do not apply to broadcast-delivered internet services like over-the-top video and data made possible by the ATSC 3.0 broadcast transmission standard. 

The commission is scheduled to vote on the item at its June 9 public meeting. 

America's Public Television Stations said in a letter to the FCC that it "strongly urges the Commission to adopt the DR (declaratory ruling) and NPRM (Notice of Proposed Rulemaking) and move forward expeditiously in paving the way for the public to receive the important benefits of Broadcast Internet services." 

APTS praised the DR as establishing "the importance and legality of Broadcast Internet," and the NPRM for recognizing "the need to update the rules governing 'ancillary and supplementary services' to enable broadcasters to take advantage of the many non-broadcasting capabilities inherent in ATSC 3.0 in order to better serve their communities." 

ATSC said it would be weighing in further on potential uses for the new ATSC 3.0-enabled tech and issues like ancillary and supplementary service fee rules--broadcasters are allowed to charge for services provided on their multicast channels so long as they offer a free signal on their primary spectrum.  

The FCC is proposing to help promote broadcasting as a new competitive broadband pipe by making it clear that legacy broadcast TV ownership regulations do not apply to broadcast-delivered internet services like over-the-top video and data.

That is according to FCC commissioner Brendan Carr, who has been working on a draft declaratory ruling and notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) he says the FCC plans to vote on at its June public meeting. Carr was a logical choice to spearhead the item. At a 2019 NAB Show speech, he suggested that the ultra HD and interactivity of ATSC 3.0 (Nextgen TV) for broadcast services was only part of the story because the same ATSC 3.0 technology can deliver a 25 Mbps data stream.

Related: NAB Show: FCC‘s Carr Hails ’One-to-Many’ Broadband Pipe

Carr let that cat, more like a lion, out of the bag in remarks in advance of a National Association of Broadcasters/Consumer Technology Association online event on the ATSC 3.0 advanced TV transmission standard Monday (May 18).

According to those remarks, he pointed to the strengths of broadcasters' low-band spectrum, wide-area coverage and the one-to-many architecture that broadcasters have long touted as a big value added.

Carr painted a big vision of "broadcast internet" for IoT, telemedicine--a big deal in a COVID-19 world--and smart agriculture--with that one-to-many architecture reaching devices over wide areas efficiently. Then there is the offloading of 5G data off cellular networks, and a competitive option for movies and apps.

"And given that a Broadcast Internet signal can offer high-speed downloads, consumers could see reduced costs for Internet services, and its propagation characteristics make it well suited for underserved rural communities," he told his CTA/NAB audience.

While he said many are already exploring broadcast internet, the FCC could do more to help, which is where the June item comes in.

The declaratory ruling would say that any TV station could enter into lease agreements with any any other station, or stations, in a single market to offer internet services without triggering the FCC's attribution rules. According to people familiar with the item, it does not eliminate or propose to eliminate the requirement that broadcasters have to deliver a TV signal on their primary channel.

"This decision would help ensure that broadcasters and other innovators have the flexibility to generate the scale and geographic footprint—both locally and nationally—that may be necessary to support certain Broadcast Internet services without being subject to regulations unrelated to the provision of such services," Carr said. "It is critical that we provide certainty to broadcasters, investors, tech companies, and innovators that these agreements will not be subject to dated rules designed to regulate television stations—not autonomous vehicles or telemedicine applications."

Carr said he expects that the clarification will boost investment in broadcasting, investment that will help them invest in local news and public service, plus help them get a bigger piece of the ad pie being gobbled up by the internet.

In addition to the declaratory ruling, the item includes the NPRM seeking comment on whether other rules need to be changed or modified to deploy broadcast internet services, including asking "whether changes to our licensing structure would provide even better certainty of investment in Broadcast Internet offerings."