Translator Surge, UHF Growth: The Latest FCC Station Totals

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Don’t think for a minute that broadcasters have quenched their thirst for FM translators or a booster.


The number of translators and boosters surged again in the third quarter, just-released stations totals from the FCC show.

According to the official Broadcast Station Totals as of Sept. 30, 2019, some 8,177 boosters and translators are licensed with the Commission.

That’s up by 51 from June 30, and represents an increase of 456 translators and boosters since June 30, 2018.

Meanwhile, the number of educational UHF stations dipped, as the ongoing post-spectrum auction repack process is yielding additional channel-sharing agreements. But, the number of commercial UHF stations bounced back from a Q2 decline.

Below is a full look at the current totals, which show 359 more stations licensed by the Commission as of Sept. 30 compared to June 30, 2018.


 

BROADCAST STATION TOTALS AS OF SEPTEMBER 30, 2019

TOTAL BROADCAST STATIONS: 33,492

TOTAL BROADCAST STATIONS at the end of Q2 2019: 33,508
TOTAL BROADCAST STATIONS at the end of Q2 2018: 33,133

All comparisons below to the end of Q2 2019

AM STATIONS                  4601 (minus 9)
FM COMMERCIAL             6728 (plus 2)
FM EDUCATIONAL            4122 (minus 57)
TOTAL                          15,451 (minus 64)

UHF COMMERCIAL TV      1012 (plus 11)
VHF COMMERCIAL TV       368 (minus 2)
UHF EDUCATIONAL TV      261 (minus 6)
VHF EDUCATIONAL TV      119 (unchanged)
TOTAL                            1,760 (plus three)

CLASS A UHF STATIONS   356 (minus 1)
CLASS A VHF STATIONS    31 (plus 1)

FM TRANSLATORS & BOOSTERS 8177 (up 51)
(up from 7721 as of June 30, 2018)

UHF TRANSLATORS               2730 (down 12)
VHF TRANSLATORS               901 (down 5)

UHF LOW POWER TV             1451 (up 6)
VHF LOW POWER TV             449 (down 3)

LOW POWER FM             2,186 (up 8)