Preston Padden, formerly executive director of the Expanding Opportunities for Broadcasters Coalition, blogged Tuesday (Dec. 1) about a new broadcast incentive auction simulation from auction expert Peter Cramton that finds only 1-3 stations would be repacked in the duplex gap at a 114 MHz national spectrum clearing target.
He said that should help comfort broadcasters concerned about being relocated into the gap after the auction.
He said the simulation, which was run for one of the former members of the coalition--who are interested in putting spectrum into the auction at the right price--also found that there would be limited impairment--interference--mostly concentrated at the Mexican border.
Padden said the analysis was based on "conservative" estimates of broadcaster particiption, which meant that Cramton asumed that the top five commercial networks and a PBS station in the top 50 markets, where theFCC most needs spectrum, would not be participating.
Placing stations in the duplex gap (the gap between wireless uplink and downlink spectrum, has been a sticking point for broadcasters and wireless companies due to potential interference issues. (http://www.multichannel.com/news/fcc/nab-challenges-fcc-auction-public-n...).
The National Association of Broadcasters, which asked the FCC to reconsider the duplex gap decision, had no comment on the blog post or the simulation.
