Double bonus for Tom Wheeler's masters
More bandwidth for their mobile networks and shift more people onto cable TV.
The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is pitching broadcasters to join in on its upcoming wireless spectrum auction with the promise of huge payouts from mobile giants if the TV industry give portions of its broadcast space. In a presentation (PDF) to broadcasters, the FCC said that local TV stations will be able to …
Several years ago the four major networks (ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox) were on record saying that they preferred the cable channel route as they make more money than on the broadcast side. The cable TV channels get the money from the cable companies directly and the network also sells ads. With broadcast, you have a third-party that has some advertising spots and gets money from cable companies to carry the signal.
Going with the majority, get rid of broadcast TV in major markets as many won't even notice if it went away.
If you're in a major metropolitan area, it's already out of the reach of the poor. Too much steel and concrete between their antennas and the broadcast tower. That's while metropolitan areas adopted cable in the first place.
Besides which, if you're too poor for cable there's better access to the emergency broadcast system: it's called radio and they're cheaper than tvs.
In the USA, the most populous FIFTY cities account for less than 20% of the countries population. I would argue that the number of poor who can't get broadcast television because of major metropolitan construction issues is pretty limited. Also, try looking at midwestern states, where more than a third of the population does not even have access to cable television. Granted they do have access to satellite television, but there is still very limited internet connectivity.
They already have access to an emergency address system. The poor are entitled to a federal subsidized phone; which these days is a mobile phone. Mobile phone systems send emergency alerts out. So, the poor already have it being paid for by the taxpayer. See, let the mobile carriers use the spectrum and it helps the majority, even the poor.