Updated FCC TV Engineering Database Available

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I've updated the FCC TV Engineering Database spreadsheet using data from FCC CDBS files dated Feb. 10, 2010. The spreadsheet is available at www.xmtr.com/fcc in zip file tvdb.zip.

It contains all active entries in the FCC's TV engineering database and provides information on location, antenna make and model (if directional), antenna heights and effective radiated power, among other things. Using the "Data Filter" function in a spreadsheet is an easy way to sort through the over 13,000 entries for U.S. stations. Border allocations, applications and licenses in Canada and Mexico are listed in separate tabs. Antenna information is not available for these entries.

In reviewing recent applications, I notice two more stations have filed to build distributed transmission systems (DTS) in Puerto Rico. WQTO in Ponce filed for a two-transmitter system on Channel 25 and WIPR in San Juan requested a three-transmitter system on Channel 43. Puerto Rico's terrain makes it ideal for DTS. Prior to last year's DTV transition WIPR in Ponce received a CP for a four-transmitter system on Channel 7 and completed construction in July.

The database shows 6 construction permits and 11 applications for DTS systems, not including stations operating under special temporary authority.

Doug Lung
Doug Lung
Contributor

Doug Lung is one of America's foremost authorities on broadcast RF technology. As vice president of Broadcast Technology for NBCUniversal Local, H. Douglas Lung leads NBC and Telemundo-owned stations’ RF and transmission affairs, including microwave, radars, satellite uplinks, and FCC technical filings. Beginning his career in 1976 at KSCI in Los Angeles, Lung has nearly 50 years of experience in broadcast television engineering. Beginning in 1985, he led the engineering department for what was to become the Telemundo network and station group, assisting in the design, construction and installation of the company’s broadcast and cable facilities. Other projects include work on the launch of Hawaii’s first UHF TV station, the rollout and testing of the ATSC mobile-handheld standard, and software development related to the incentive auction TV spectrum repack. A longtime columnist for TV Technology, Doug is also a regular contributor to IEEE Broadcast Technology. He is the recipient of the 2023 NAB Television Engineering Award. He also received a Tech Leadership Award from TV Tech publisher Future plc in 2021 and is a member of the IEEE Broadcast Technology Society and the Society of Broadcast Engineers.