More minorities and women should get into tower ownership and control their own destiny. That was the thrust of some experts speaking at the Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council’s Access to Capital and Telecom Policy conference in Washington last week.
That’s especially going to be important post incentive-auction and the subsequent spectrum re-pack.
Ravi Kapur is founder and CEO of Diya TV, the nation’s first South Asian broadcast television network, broadcasting 24/7 to nearly 70 million Americans in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Hartford, Columbus, Fresno and Springfield. The American dream is about ownership, he told attendees; “I wasn’t taught I have to lease a channel indefinitely.”
“We need to own infrastructure, meaning I own the tower and the station — end-to-end.”
Roberts Broadcasting Company President and Founder Steven Roberts said there’s opportunities for broadcasters to invest in building towers and providing land for cell and broadcast towers. “All of these places need people to do the work,” adding broadcasters should send Congress and the new Administration the message that “women and minority-owned businesses are here” and can do the work.
