We love getting email from readers and listeners, and by far the most common inquiry we receive is asking how one can get a radio station license. For the last four years or so we haven’t had a good answer, because there hasn’t been an FCC license auction or application window since July 2015.
Though most large market radio dials around the country are pretty full, there remain places where are there some spots in the commercial band. The Federal Communications Commission will be auctioning off 130 of them beginning April 28.
Before anyone gets too excited, it’s important to note two substantial caveats. First, very few of these licenses are in large or even medium-sized markets, and they’re only in 30 states. Folks looking to broadcast in Indiana, Delaware, Idaho, New Jersey or Pennsylvania, for instance, are out of luck.
The second caveat is mostly for those interested in pursuing community-style broadcasting – unlike the licensing windows for full-power non-commercial and LPFM stations, these will cost money. It’s a real auction, with the opening bids starting at $750 for signals in places like Yakutat, AK (pop. 662), Essex, CA (pop. 89) and Wamsutter, WY (pop. 451), all the way up to $100,000 for one license in Sacramento, CA (pop. 508,530), the biggest city and market on the list by far.
It must be stressed that these are opening bids. Depending on how many bidders there are, those prices could skyrocket.
Also note that that’s just the price for the license. An actual station – with studio, tower and transmitter – is not included.
That said, if you’ve ever dreamed of owning your own radio station, this is your next best opportunity. Moreover, entering this auction is likely – but not guaranteed to be – less expensive than trying to buy an existing license on the open market.
Those that are still not discouraged have a few steps to complete before the bidding begins on April 28. The Broadcast Law Blog has a rundown of the timeline, beginning with filing a short-form application to tell the Commission what channels you’re interested in between January 29 and February 11. Keep in mind that you’ll also need the cash in hand ahead of time; the FCC requires a minimum bid deposit be made by March 20.
A final caveat is that you need to be serious if you want to be successful. Should you win an auction, the Commission will require you to fill out a full application form that specifies all the technical details for where you will site your transmitter. It’s definitely not a lottery, or a make-it-up-as-you-go-along process.
Though I have no plans to cover this auction as closely as the LPFM licensing window from 2013, I’ll be curious to see who wins.
