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 NEWS  Federal  Communications  Commission  445  12  th  Street,  S.  W.  Washington,  D.  C.  20554  This  is  an  unofficial  announcement  of  Commission  action.  Release  of  the  full  text  of  a  Commission  order  constitutes  official  action.  See  MCI  v.  FCC.  515  F  2d  385  (D.  C.  Circ  1974).  News  Media  Information  202  /  418-  0500  Internet:  http://  www.  fcc.  gov  TTY:  1-  888-  835-  5322 
 FOR  IMMEDIATE  RELEASE  News  Media  Contact  November  24,  2004  Rebecca  Fisher  (202)  418-  2359 
 Lauren  Patrich  (202)  418-  7944 


 FCC  Announces  Close  to  Unprecedented  FM  Auction  -110  Bidders  Win  258  Construction  Permits  for  New  FM  Stations- 


 Washington,  DC  --  The  Federal  Communications  Commission  (FCC)  announces  the  close  of  Auction  No.  37,  in  which  110  bidders  won  258  FM  broadcast  construction  permits. 
 Many  of  the  winning  bidders  are  new  entrants  into  the  radio  broadcast  market.  The  auction  began  on  November  3,  2004,  and  closed  on  November  23,  2004,  after  62  rounds  of  bidding. 


 The  auction  was  the  first-  ever  open  auction  of  FM  broadcast  spectrum  held  by  the  FCC,  and  hundreds  participated  in  the  bidding  process.  The  FCC  plans  to  hold  annual  auctions  for 
 more  FM  construction  permits  over  the  next  several  years. 
 FCC  Chairman  Michael  Powell  said,  "We  are  in  new  territory  with  this  groundbreaking  auction,  introducing  new  owners  into  the  radio  market  and  bringing  increased  diversity  through 


 new  FM  radio  stations  to  cities  and  towns  that  have  not  had  their  own  local  stations.  By  placing  small  businesses  on  equal  footing  with  other  bidders  at  the  auction  stage,  our  policies  ensure  that 
 more  owners  have  the  opportunity  to  become  pioneers  in  the  dynamic  media  marketplace.  I  would  like  to  congratulate  both  the  Media  and  Wireless  Bureaus  for  their  hard  work  in  making 
 this  auction  a  success." 
 In  1997  Congress  mandated  the  use  of  competitive  bidding  procedures  for  commercial  broadcast  station  licensing.  The  auction  signifies  the  continuing  strong  demand  for  radio 


 broadcast  spectrum.  The  FM  allotments  are  for  cities  all  over  the  country  such  as  Hanapepe,  HI,  Carmel,  CA,  Augusta,  KS,  Lennox,  SD,  and  Nassawadox,  VA,  though  most  of  the  permits  will 
 be  issued  for  smaller  communities  in  the  West.  Signal  strength  of  the  stations  will  vary  from  3,000  watts  to  100,000  watts,  based  on  the  classification  of  the  license.  A  full  list  of  the  winning 
 bidders  and  markets  is  available  at  the  FCC  website:  http://  wireless.  fcc.  gov/  auctions. 
 After  final  payments  are  made  and  construction  permits  issued,  winning  bidders  will  be  given  three  years  to  complete  construction  of  the  new  stations  and  begin  providing  FM  service  to 


 their  communities.  The  110  winning  bidders  will  submit  payments  of  $147.4  million  dollars  during  the  next  several  months  for  the  258  construction  permits  that  were  won. 


 The  FCC  will  release  a  Public  Notice  detailing  the  next  steps  that  winning  bidders  must  take  to  complete  the  auction  process  and  receive  the  construction  permits. 
 -FCC- 
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