Second Update: At 4: 03 p.m., the FCC announced it had deleted the item on Class A television from its Oct. 15 meeting.
The FCC had scheduled a vote tomorrow (Oct. 15) in Nashville, Tenn., on launching a proposal that would give Class A stations a path to full-power status.
Republican Commissioner Robert McDowell said Tuesday it’s not a done deal. And wouldn’t reveal how he plans to vote on the issue.
“I think it’s still fluid, as is the meeting tomorrow in general,” he told reporters.
That plan, praised by Low-Power and Class A broadcasters, could affect hundreds of Class A stations’ fates by giving them carriage rights on local cable systems. Now, very few Class A stations qualify for must-carry status.
Pressed, McDowell didn’t reveal how he planned to vote Wednesday.
Earlier this month, Comcast Corp. pitched its opposition to the plan in meetings with Democratic Commissioners Jonathan Adelstein and Michael Copps. The cable giant said that the proposed rules would take up bandwidth better used for HDTV and other advanced services.
