FAQ: The FCC’s upcoming broadcast-TV spectrum auction
The Federal Communications Commission on Friday took another step toward its unprecedented auction of broadcast TV spectrum, expected to kick off on March 29, 2016.
A major goal of the auction is to make more wireless broadband spectrum available for an explosion of 4G and, soon, 5G demands, as users stream video and other data to smartphones, tablets and other devices.
What's the latest?
The FCC on Friday gave hundreds of TV stations throughout the nation maximum opening competitive bidding prices for selling their 600-MHz spectrum rights to go off-air, or for swapping from VHF to UHF, or vice versa.
The maximum nationwide opening bidding price was set at $900 million for WCBS-TV in New York, the nation's biggest TV market, to move off-air. Of course, stations don't have to participate and many are expected to stay in operation. Many others in rural markets may take the money and go off-air.
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