Broadcast TV Is Obsolete. Let's Auction the Public Airwaves
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Spectrum AuctionBroadcast TVTelecommunications Policy
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Spectrum Auction
Broadcast TV
Telecommunications Policy
The article argues that broadcast TV is obsolete and proposes auctioning the public airwaves, sparking a discussion about the future of telecommunications policy.
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Sep 26, 2025 at 8:16 AM EDT
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It also seems odd to hold up the FCC's spectrum auctions as wildly successful. The FCC made bank, sure, but ATT and the rest assumed a mountain of debt, tied themselves in knots to get over it, and generally speaking consumers are worse off today because of it. We also have a case study in Dish who had a lot of spectrum and signally failed to do anything with it, so it's not clear that more spectrum would help. Selling more spectrum should not be undertaken without very tight guarantees that it is used for the benefit of citizens, and not merely locked up and used to extract rent.