Uncoordinated Coordinates

Contract: Larry Wilson’s buy of KXL-AM/KXTG-FM Portland OR. When it comes to a station’s engineering parameters, there is no such thing as close enough – the station is supposed to be built as licensed by the FCC. Communications attorneys Erwin Krasnow and John King of law firm Garvey Schubert Barer describe how Wilson’s contract made sure his acquisitions were engineered properly.

Uncoordinated Coordinates

By Erwin Krasnow (EKrasnow@gsblaw.com) and John King (JKing@gsblaw.com)

Buyers of radio stations can encounter problems at the FCC when they discover inconsistencies in the technical specifications of the facilities – after the closing.

For example, the geographic coordinates on the license may not accurately reflect the location of the tower structure, or they may be different than those specified in the FCC Antenna Structure Registration. (The potential for error is compounded by the fact that the broadcast license database and the ASR database use a different geodetic datum, which yields different sets of coordinates to describe the same place on earth.)

Buyers can reduce the risk of this kind of post-closing risk and headache by requiring Seller to represent and warrant the correctness of the technical specifications. The Asset Purchase Agreement by and among Rose City Radio Corporation, Vulcan Inc. and Alpha Broadcasting Corporation for the sale of Stations KXL(AM) and KXTG(FM), Portland, Oregon, contained the following representation and warranty of the seller concerning the licensed tower site:

“Where required, the current, correct vertical elevation and geographical coordinates of the antenna supporting structures of each Station are properly registered with the FCC and the United States Federal Aviation Administration (“FAA”) and materially comply with and materially correspond to the current vertical elevation and geographical coordinates authorized by the FAA, FCC and any other Governmental Entity.”

--Erwin Krasnow (ekrasnow@gsblaw.com), John King (jking@gsblaw.com) of Garvey Schubert Barer
Erwin Krasnow, former General Counsel of the National Association of Broadcasters, is co-chair of Garvey Schubert Barer's Communications and Information Technology Group.

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