WASHINGTON—The Federal Communications Commission's Media Bureau has announced that the agency is initiating a phased process to lift the current freeze on major changes for Class A television, low power television (LPTV), and television (TV) translator stations, in its entirety, and as part of the same process permit the filing of applications for new LPTV and TV translator stations.

Applications for new LPTV stations have been frozen since 2010. The new Public Notice starts a process that will lift the freeze on LPTV applications, "opening the door for stations to file for new displacement relief and technical changes", according to the Advanced Television Broadcast Alliance, which represents LPTV stations.

As part of the process for opening up those applications, the FCC will initially freeze certain applications. The FCC said that these freezes are necessary in order to provide a stable database for stations to prepare for the filing of major modification applications.

In a Public Notice, the FCC highlighted the following dates for the phased process and the procedures that applicants must follow when filing during these opportunities:

• September 3, 2025. Temporary application filing freeze for all major change 11:59 p.m. ETapplications for Class A, LPTV, and TV Translator stations.
• October 15, 2025. Temporary application filing freeze for all minor change 6:00 p.m. ETapplications (including displacement applications) for Class A, LPTV, and TV translator stations.
• October 22, 2025. Expanded opportunity for Class A, LPTV, and TV 12:01 a.m. ETtranslator stations to file major change applications, with relocations limited to no more than 121.0 kilometers (km). Freeze on all minor change applications (including displacement applications) for Class A, LPTV, and TV translator stations is also lifted.
• December 3, 2025. Temporary application filing freeze for all major change 6:00 p.m. ETapplications for Class A, LPTV, and TV translator stations.
• January 14, 2026. Temporary application filing freeze for all minor change 6:00 p.m. ETapplications (including displacement applications) for Class A, LPTV, and TV translator stations.
• January 21, 2026. Resumption, without limit or restriction, of filing of 12:01 a.m. ETClass A, LPTV and TV translator major change applications and acceptance of applications for new LPTV and TV translators stations. Freeze on minor change applications (including displacement applications) for Class A, LPTV, and TV translator stations is also lifted.

The FCC also described four phases of the process.

Phase 1: Temporary Major and Minor Modification Filing Freezes

While most major modifications are currently frozen, in August 2024 the Bureau lifted its freeze on major modifications, with certain restrictions, in order to permit Class A, LPTV, and TV translator stations to file for channel changes. Effective at 11:59 p.m. ET, on September 3, 2025, the Bureau reinstituted a freeze on all applications for major changes for Class A, LPTV, and TV translator stations. In addition, at 6:00 p.m. ET, October 15, 2025, the Bureau will institute a freeze on all minor change applications for Class A, LPTV, and TV translator stations and displacement applications for LPTV and TV translator stations.

The FCC said that these freezes are necessary in order to provide a stable database for stations to prepare for the filing of major modification applications.

Phase 2: Expanded Major Modification Filing Opportunity

The FCC said that In order to allow existing Class A, LPTV, and TV translator stations to modify their facilities to better serve their viewers and adapt to market changes since application freezes were implemented on such changes, the agency will provide existing stations an opportunity to file major modification applications prior to new station applications.

Beginning at 12:01 a.m. ET, October 22, 2025, the the FCC said it will lift the major modification application filing freeze and accept, on a first-come, first-served basis, applications for all major changes to Class A, LPTV, and TV translator stations including those that propose relocations of no more than 121.0 km from the station’s antenna reference coordinates. At 12:01 a.m. ET, October 22, 2025, the Bureau will also lift the temporary freeze on all minor modification and displacement applications.

The FCC said it was imposing a distance limit on major changes in order to ensure that existing stations are able to implement facility modifications that maximize service to their existing viewers and markets before its permits new station applications or moves by existing stations that practically amount to a new station.

Phase 3: Temporary Reinstitution of Major and Minor Application Filing Freezes

The FCC said that at 6:00 p.m. ET, December 3, 2025, all applications for major changes for Class A, LPTV, and TV translator stations will once again be frozen. At 6:00 p.m. ET, January 14, 2026, the Bureau will also institute a temporary freeze on all minor change applications for Class A, LPTV, and TV translator stations and displacement applications for LPTV and TV translator stations.

The FCC said these freezes are being reinstituted in order to provide a stable database for stations to prepare for the complete lifting of the freeze on major modification applications and for applicants to prepare for the opportunity to seek new stations.

Phase 4: Resumption of Minor and Major Modification Filings and Commencement of Filing For New LPTV and TV Translator Stations

Beginning at 12:01 a.m. ET, January 21, 2026, the FCC reported that it will lift the freezes and begin accepting, on a first-come, first-served basis, all major change and minor change applications (including displacement applications). At the same time, the agency will lift the freeze and begin accepting, on a first-come, first-served basis, applications for new LPTV and TV translator stations. The acceptance of applications for new Class A stations is limited by statute and therefore applications for new Class A stations will not be accepted during this filing opportunity, the agency explained.

The FCC said that these filings opportunities will remain available indefinitely unless the Commission determines that a new freeze is warranted. Applications filed during this opportunity may not propose facilities that would cause impermissible interference to other authorized full power, Class A, and LPTV/translator stations, including valid construction permits for same, and any earlier-filed application for new or modify facility including earlier-filed applications for minor change, the FCC stressed.

The FCC noted that the nationwide window for new LPTV and TV translator stations was initially set for January 25, 2010, but later postponed to July 26, 2010, and then postponed indefinitely. Because of this, the agency said that it believed it is appropriate to permit both unrestricted major modification applications and new station applications at the same time, just as would have been allowed should the new station opportunity have proceeded in 2010.

Details on the filing and processing procedures are available in the full Public Notice here.

WASHINGTON—The Federal Communications Commission today accepted 106 applications for 600 MHz licenses purchased in the TV spectrum incentive auction by 15 wireless providers.

“There are no petitions to deny or other requests pending that would prevent grant of these licenses,” the commission said in a Public Notice released today.

Today’s tranche was comprised of smaller bidders in markets ranging from partial economic area No. 54, in Buffalo, N.Y., to Valentine, Neb., No. 410 and the U.S. Virgin Islands, No. 414. (Partial economic areas, or PEAs, represent the geographic division of wireless licensing versus the 210 designated market areas used for broadcast licensing.)

All but about five of the 106 applications accepted today involved bidding credits for rural providers. A bidder who qualified for the rural service credit received a 15 percent discount on “a winning bidder’s bid.” Bidders who qualified for the small business discount received either a 15 or a 25 percent discount off the price at which they won the license.

The 15 providers, along with their winning bids, according to the April 6,2017 Forward Auction Bidder Summary:
· Carolina West Wireless, with 14 license applications accepted across nine North Carolina markets. (Carolina West Wireless is part and parcel of the CWW Consortium of rural bidders, but these 14 licenses comprise all those won by the consortium.) Gross payment on the 14 was $13.4 billion adjusted to $11.4 billion on the 15 percent rural bidding credit.

· Cellular South Licenses, LLC was granted all of its 11 license applications across six Mississippi PEAs for $19.5 million and no discount.

· Chariton Valley Telephone Co. was granted three applications in three Missouri PEAs for $4.7 million before and $4 million after the 15 percent discount.

· CT Cube L.P.was granted 12 applications in six Texas PEAS for $2.7 million before and $2.3 million after discount.

· East Kentucky Network, LLC was granted three applications for the Bluefield, W.V. PEA for $11.2 million before and $9.5 million after discount.

· Inland Cellular LLC was granted two applications in Lewiston, Idaho, for $730,000 before and $620,500 after discount.

· LICT Wireless Broadband Co. LLC was granted two licenses in Traverse City and Alpena, Mich., for $686,000, no discount.

· NE Colorado Cellular, Inc was granted 15 licenses across seven Colorado, Kansas and Nebraska PEAs for $11.9 million before and $10.2 million after discount.

· Northeast Nebraska Telephone Co. was granted its single application for one license in South Sioux City, Neb., for $733,000 before and $623,050 after discount.

· Northern Valley Communications, LLC was granted its single application for Aberdeen, S.D., for $123,000 before and $92,250 after a 25 percent small entity discount.

· Nsight Spectrum LLC was granted seven applications across five Wisconsin and Michigan PEAs for $3.9 million, no discount.

· SAL Spectrum, LLC was granted 18 applications across 14 PEAs across the contiguous states and the U.S. Virgin Islands. SAL won a total of 32 licenses across 23 PEAs for $47.7 million, no discount.

· Spotlight Media Corp. was granted eight applications across eight disparate PEAs for $5.6 million before and $4.2 million after the 25 percent small entity discount.

· The AlaskaWireless Network, LLC was granted six applications across four Alaska PEAS for $1.4 million, no discount.

· Triangle Communication System,Inc. was granted two applications in Great Falls, Mont., for $392,000 before and $333,200 after discount.

This makes the second tranche of 600 MHz applications the commission had accepted. It approved 2,319 applications on May 18, most of which represented the heavy hitters on the bidding side—AT&T, Dish, T-Mobile, Comcast, etc. The two tranches represent 87 percent of the 2,776 licenses won in the incentive auction by 50 of the 62 qualified bidders.