Incentive Auction Shouldn't Be Delayed, Padden Says After Pai Speech
The FCC shouldn't delay the incentive auction, former Expanding Opportunities for Broadcasters Coalition Executive Director Preston Padden said in a post on his blog Friday. “Hundreds of TV Stations owners are far down the road of preparing for the FCC’s…
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Incentive Auction.” The time to consider delay has passed, Padden said. Padden told us the blog post is a response to a speech by Commissioner Ajit Pai Thursday (see 1511050033) stating that the commission could delay the auction if it's necessary to ensure that the auction software is prepared. “March 29 wasn’t etched onto a tablet, Biblical or electronic,” Pai said. “If we are not 100% confident that the software will perform flawlessly as we make our way to the end of March, we must have the courage to postpone the auction rather than charging ahead and courting disaster.” The commission should “double-check and triple-check” the auction software, Pai said. “Chairman [Tom] Wheeler himself acknowledged in December 2013 that we want to avoid a software debacle of the kind the country witnessed during Obamacare’s rollout.” Pai also said the FCC should hold three mock auctions well before the incentive auction, as suggested by CTIA.