3-21-13
This ruling from the FCC is in response to an "informal objection" filed by Great Radio which was trying to get two stations from Bob Pfunter's Pembrook Pines. The stations were foreclosed upon and went to auction. Great Radio won the bid for two stations, WVIN-FM and WABH-AM. Pfuntner won the bid for WQRW-FM. Before the court approved Great Radio?s acquisition of the two stations, Pfuntner was able to pay the debt on the other two allowing him to re-acquire them. That's when Great Radio tried to block Pfuntner.
Broadcast attorney John Garziglia says what's interesting about this case is "what would otherwise be a routine court case over a debt owed was that the disgruntled buyer at the foreclosure sale to whom the stations would not now be sold decided to try to use FCC processes, since the transaction required FCC consent, to delay the return of the stations to the debtor/licensee, presumably in some sort of effort to force a sale to it or seek compensation for its trouble. The disgruntled buyer?s only basis for objection was an allegation that the wrong FCC form was used." The commission decided that wasn't sufficient enough to turn the stations back over to Great Radio.
Garziglia says the FCC?s Audio Division should be commended for taking swift action. "The FCC did not allow what appears to be a wrongful use of FCC processes to delay the transaction returning full control to the debtor/licensee. Too often in situations like this, a third-party uses the FCC?s objection process to try to extract some kind of recompense or to stifle competition. Then months or even years go by before the FCC issues a decision. Here, the Audio Division issued their decision four months after the objection was filed. This is fairly quick for such an FCC decision."
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