Sec.  27.1232   Planning the transition.

   (a) The Transition Planning Period. The Transition Planning Period is a
   90-day period that commences on the day after the proponent(s) files the
   Initiation Plan with the Commission.

   (b) The Transition plan. The proponent(s) must provide to each BRS and EBS
   licensee within a BTA, a Transition Plan no later than 30 days prior to the
   conclusion of the Transition Planning Period.

   (1) The Transition Plan must:

   (i) Identify the call signs of the stations that are transitioning;

   (ii)  Identify  the  specific channels that each licensee will receive
   following the transition;

   (iii) Identify the receive sites at which replacement downconverters will be
   installed (see  Sec. 27.1233(a));

   (iv) Identify the video programming and data transmission tracks that will
   be migrated to the MBS and provide for the MBS channels to be authorized to
   operate with transmission parameters that are substantially similar to those
   of the licensee's operation prior to transition (see  Sec. 27.1233(b));

   (v) Identify the technical configuration of the MBS facilities;

   (vi) Identify the approximate time line for effectuating the transition,
   which, unless dispute resolution procedures are used, may not exceed 18
   months from the conclusion of the Transition Planning Period;

   (vii)  Provide for the establishment of an escrow or other appropriate
   mechanism for ensuring completion of the transition in accordance with the
   Transition Plan.

   (2) The Transition Plan may provide for interruptions of EBS transmissions,
   so long as those interruptions are limited to a period of less than seven
   days at any reception site. The proponent(s) must coordinate with each EBS
   licensee to minimize the extent of any disruption.

   (3) The Transition Plan may provide for the shifting of an EBS licensee's
   program to alternative channels. Such shifting may not be considered an
   interruption, if the EBS licensee's receive sites are equipped to receive
   and internally distribute the channel to which the programming is shifted.

   (4) The Transition Plan may provide for the installation of an appropriate
   filter  on  an MBS transmitter if the proponent(s) determines that the
   installation of a filter will mitigate interference from transmissions in
   the MBS to operations outside the MBS.

   (c) Counterproposals. No later than 10 days before the conclusion of the
   Transition Planning Period, affected BRS and EBS licensees may submit a
   counterproposal to the proponent(s) if they believe that the Transition Plan
   is unreasonable. The proponent(s) may:

   (1) Accept the counterproposal, modify the Transition Plan accordingly, and
   send the modified Transition Plan to all EBS and BRS licensees in the BTA;

   (2) Invoke dispute resolution procedures for a determination of whether the
   Transition Plan is reasonable and take no action until a determination of
   reasonableness is made; or

   (3) Invoke dispute resolution procedures for a determination of whether the
   Transition Plan is reasonable, but may implement the transition immediately.

   (d) Safe harbors. An offer by a proponent(s) shall be reasonable if it meets
   one of the following safe harbors:

   (1) Safe harbor No. 1. This safe harbor applies when the default high-power
   channel assigned to each channel group is authorized to operate after the
   transition with the same transmission parameters (coordinates, antenna
   pattern, height of center radiation, EIRP) as the downstream facilities
   before the transition. If the proponent(s) does not propose a change in the
   geographic coordinates of the facilities (other than as necessary to conform
   the actual location with the Commission's Antenna Survey Branch database),
   the proponent may also propose the following to the extent consistent with
   this subpart:

   (i) An increase in the height of the center of radiation of the transmission
   antenna or a decrease in such height of no more than 8 meters (provided that
   such change does not result in an increase in antenna support structure
   lease costs to the EBS licensee and the consent of the owner of the antenna
   support structure is obtained).

   (ii) A change in the EIRP of the transmission system of up to 1.5 dB in any
   direction.

   (iii) Digitization, precision frequency offset, or other upgrades to the EBS
   transmission or reception systems that allow the proponent(s) to invoke more
   advantageous interference protection requirements applicable to upgraded
   systems.

   (2) Safe harbor No. 2. This safe harbor applies when an EBS licensee has
   channel-shifted its single video programming or data transmission track to
   spectrum licensed to another licensee. Under  Sec. 27.5(i)(2), that track must be
   on the high-power channel licensed to the EBS licensee upon completion of
   the transition. For example, before the transition, an A Group licensee
   might have shifted its EBS video programming to channel C1. If one of the
   pre-transition  A Group channels is licensed with technical parameters
   substantially similar to those of pre-transition channel C1, the Transition
   Plan may provide for high-power channel A4 to be licensed with the same
   technical parameters as the pre-transition channel C1. However, if the
   pre-transition A Group channels are licensed to operate with technical
   parameters materially different from those of pre-transition channel C1, the
   proponent(s) may:

   (i) Arrange a channel swap with the licensee of the C Group so that the A
   Group licensee will receive high-power channel C4 (which will automatically
   be licensed with the same transmission parameters as the pre-transition
   channel C1) in exchange for channel A4.

   (ii)  Arrange  for  high-power channel A4 to operate with transmission
   parameters substantially similar to those of the pre-transition channel C1 (
   see paragraph (d)(1) of this section).

   (3) Safe harbor No. 3. This safe harbor applies when a four-channel group is
   shared  among multiple licensees in a given geographic area. Absent an
   agreement otherwise, a proponent may:

   (i) Secure a 6 MHz MBS channel for each licensee in exchange for the non-MBS
   channels assigned to the group. Following the channel swap(s) necessary to
   secure those additional MBS channels, the Transition Plan can provide for
   the licensing of the remaining channels in the LBS, UBS, and Guard Bands on
   a pro rata basis (with channel(s) in each segment being disaggregated when
   and if necessary to provide each with its pro rata share of the spectrum in
   each segment);

   (ii) Provide for pro rata segmentation of the default MBS channel for the
   group, provided that the proponent commits to provide each of the licensees
   with  the  technology  necessary for its EBS video programming or data
   transmissions  to be digitized, transmitted and received utilizing the
   provided bandwidth. The non-MBS channels would be divided among the sharing
   licensees  on  a pro rata basis (with channel(s) in each segment being
   disaggregated when and if necessary to provide each with its pro rata share
   of the spectrum in each segment); or

   (iii) Assign the default MBS channel assigned to the channel group to one of
   the licensees, if that licensee is the only one that elects to migrate video
   programming or data transmission tracks to the MBS. The remaining spectrum
   assigned to the group may be allocated among the licensees on a pro rata
   basis, with the 6 MHz in the MBS counting against that licensee's portion.
   To the extent necessary, the non-MBS spectrum can be disaggregated when and
   if necessary to provide each with its pro rata share of the spectrum in each
   segment. If the proponent chooses to effectuate a channel swap to provide
   more than one channel in the MBS, the remaining channels assigned to the
   group (after considering that one or more LBS/UBS channels and associated
   Transition  Band  channels  will have been swapped away to provide the
   additional MBS channel) can be allocated among the licensees on a pro rata
   basis (with channel(s) in each segment being disaggregated when and if
   necessary to provide each with its pro rata share of the spectrum in each
   segment).

   (4) Safe harbor No. 4. This safe harbor applies when an EBS licensee uses
   one or more of its channels for studio-to-transmitter links. The proponent
   may provide for one of the following options:

   (i) The use of the LBS and/or UBS band for the point-to-point transmission
   of the EBS video or data (through superchannelization of the licensee's
   contiguous LBS or UBS channels), provided the proponent commits to retune
   the existing point-to-point equipment to operate on those channels or to
   replace the existing equipment with new equipment tuned to operate on those
   channels  and  the  proposal  complies  with the LBS/UBS technical and
   interference protection rules;

   (ii)  The  migration of the EBS programming to the MBS by retuning the
   existing point-to-point equipment to operate in the MBS or replacing it with
   equipment tuned to operate in the MBS; or

   (iii)  The  replacement of the point-to-point link with point-to-point
   equipment licensed to the EBS licensee in alternative spectrum, so long as
   the replacement facilities meet the definition of “comparable facilities”
   set out in  Sec. 101.75(b) of this chapter.

   [ 69 FR 72034 , Dec. 10, 2004, as amended at  71 FR 35192 , June 19, 2006]