Op-Ed: With FCC’s C-Band Auction on the Horizon, Broadcasters Need Proven, Cost-Effective Alternatives

Those currently reliant on satellite must explore moving to IP-based solutions

Last week, the FCC unanimously voted to move forward with its plan to reallocate spectrum in the upper C-band (3.98 GHz to 4.2 GHz). That includes auctioning 100 MHz — and up to 180 MHz — of spectrum no later than July 2027.

LTN Executive Chairman/Co-Founder Malik Khan previously held top executive roles at Motorola, Sitara Networks, Converged Access, and NexTone.

These developments underline the urgency for broadcasters to find trusted, proven, and cost-effective alternatives as the remaining C-band satellite spectrum is repurposed.

Many networks and station groups that we work with have already decided to migrate a large portion or all of their channels away from satellite to an alternative model harnessing broadcast-grade IP video-distribution technology. Transport Stream Over Internet Protocol (IP-TS) B2B distribution offers more flexibility than satellite and much-needed cost- and availability-certainty, which will become harder for satellite-reliant broadcasters to achieve as pressure on spectrum availability grows.

Just this year, Tennis Channel and Mid-Atlantic Sports Network (MASN) joined TelevisaUnivision and MSG Networks in transitioning their channels to LTN’s broadcast-grade IP-TS multicast network. This is part of a wider trend that proves the readiness of IP transport.

At LTN alone, we’ve seen a 45% annual growth in channel count over the past nine years, now delivering nearly 8,000 channels and millions of live events annually over our purpose-built IP network, which is present in every U.S. TV market. We’ve delivered successful satellite to IP migrations for nearly 2,000 Tier 1 broadcasters, MVPD/vMVPD headends, and content-owner sites and now reach affiliates across 98% of pay-TV households.

Our experience shows that it’s becoming faster and easier to migrate from satellite to IP. The infrastructure is already in place with purpose-built, broadcast-grade IP networks delivering video at <200-ms latency and providing service-level agreements (SLAs) to match or exceed the reliability of satellite.

It’s important to note that IP migration isn’t always all-or-nothing. Many successful approaches start with hybrid models, moving one or more channels to IP and keeping some on satellite, or dual-illuminating until a full switchover. Also, the typical time-to-market for an IP migration is shrinking: today, an MVPD can switch any group of channels from satellite delivery to IP-TS delivery within hours via a high-capacity LTN gateway. And, for satellite operators, partnering with IP providers can offer effective ways to ease transponder loads, offer more-customized delivery packages, and meet growing demand for dynamic-distribution capabilities during live events.

Further motivations for moving to IP include the ability to deliver higher-quality content and more-localized variants by removing channel bandwidth limit and distribution capacity, along with broader distribution capability via multicast technology. Meanwhile, purpose-built IP video networks help broadcasters handle complex blackout and rights-management requirements directly within the network, along with full visibility into signal health and connectivity metrics. Importantly, an IP-based model enables broadcasters to deliver content to legacy and digital platforms via the same distribution network.

For nearly 40 years, Malik Khan has been a visionary leader within the network-technology industry, successfully bringing to market and growing high-quality, highly differentiated products and services. Prior to co-founding LTN in 2008, he held top executive roles at Motorola, Sitara Networks, Converged Access, and NexTone.