Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission) staff has announced that the 600 MHz Incentive Auction, initially planned for mid-2015, will instead be held in early 2016. Gary Epstein, Chair of the FCC’s Incentive Auction Task Force, published an Incentive Auction Progress Report blog post late last week stating that the Task Force anticipates that auction applications will be accepted in the fall of 2015. The Incentive Auction was delayed due in part to a lawsuit filed by the National Association of Broadcasters and Sinclair Broadcast Group that is not expected to be resolved until the middle of next year. The Task Force anticipates that the Commission will vote on an Incentive Auction Comment Public Notice before the end of 2014. This Public Notice will propose detailed directions for how the auction will be conducted, and seek comment on the proposals.
