FCC Gets $65 Million From NTIA

It's finally official: The FCC said late Tuesday it had received $65.7 million from the National Telecommunications & Information Administration for DTV education and support.

That came in an announcement on the FCC's Web site, where it provides weekly updates on major DTV actions

NTIA got $90 million for that purpose in the economic stimulus package and had the discretion of giving the FCC some of it if it chose. The FCC asked for the money.

Among other things, the commission will use that money to put boots on the ground and voices on the phone before and after the June 12 DTV transition hard date, when the majority of TV stations are pulling the plug on analog.

John Eggerton

Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.