Our Mission Independent Public Media (IPM) is a new initiative dedicated to preserving community-based public television stations throughout the United States. Formed by a consortium of five non-profit organizations known as the EBS Companies, IPM’s goal is to recapitalize and sustain public television stations currently at risk.
Public TV Challenges Public television faces a multitude of internal and external challenges that threaten its survival. According to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, non-federal financing for public television declined by more than $120 million between the last two reported years with decreasing viewer and business support, reduced foundation grants, elimination of state subsidies, and cutbacks from educational institutions. In addition, federal government funding is threatened by continued budget cuts.
These rapidly shrinking revenues, combined with escalating costs, shifting technologies and changing viewership, are forcing long-time public TV licensees to assess their capacity to continue their on-air operations.
Public television operates on channels dedicated to non-profit, non-commercial use, and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will not assign any more of these channels. Yet many stations are now being forced to consider selling their licenses to institutions that may not serve the local community. These sales threaten public television, if this becomes a trend, public television as a valued, community-wide resource could disappear.
Public television finds itself in the same evolutionary process as print journalism. Old financing models no longer work, and to survive, public TV must adopt a new model.
Relying initially upon the EBS Companies’ resources, Independent Public Media intends to purchase financially strapped public TV stations and implement a sustainable operating model designed to serve wider, more diverse audiences.
Preserving Public TV Independent Public Media will work with public broadcasters that are reassessing the ongoing viability of their television operations. For instance:
Universities, school boards, community colleges, and similar educational institutions that are beginning to use new technologies to meet their instructional mission and goals, and where operating a public television station may no longer be cost-effective.
Entities that operate multiple TV stations, but are considering reducing the number.
Licensees unable to sustain ongoing shortfalls and long-term deficits in their television operations.
Community and institutional licensees who see their radio operations as being successful while their public television stations are struggling.
Financial Support Independent Public Media is supported by the following non-profit organizations:
Instructional Telecommunications Foundation
Chicago Instructional Technology Foundation
Denver Area Educational Telecommunications Consortium, Inc.
2011 – The EBS Companies formed Independent Public Media to preserve and evolve Public TV.
2008 – EBS Companies launched Mobile Citizen to provide low-cost 4G mobile broadband service exclusively to educational and non-profit organizations.
2006 - John Schwartz resigned as chief executive of Public Communicators Inc. (PCI). He remains on the PCI Board.
2006 - The Instructional Telecommunications Foundation (ITF) and the other EBS Companies closed a spectrum deal with an affiliate of Clearwire Corporation.
2005 - The FCC revised its rules and the spectrum band plan to facilitate wireless broadband service. Instructional Television Fixed Service (ITFS) was reborn as the Educational Broadband Service (EBS).
2003 - The Goldman Sachs spectrum agreement with the EBS Companies was terminated in the wake of the dot com / telecommunications bust.
2001 – An entity controlled by Goldman Sachs entered into a spectrum agreement with ITF and other EBS companies. The resulting royalties helped ITF and the EBS Companies expand their operations and philanthropic giving.
2000 - Public Communicators Inc. took on the role of operating Free Speech TV (FSTV).
2000 - Free Speech TV was launched on DISH Network and for the first time carried live programming.
2000 - Schwartz, together with other public media advocates, created the national ITFS Spectrum Development Alliance, an organization intended to foster wireless broadband on ITFS.
1998 – By the late 1990s, the wireless cable industry was in trouble. Some operators went bankrupt. Both ITFS licensees and commercial operators backed a new use of the spectrum: wireless broadband.
1997 - ITF activated the last of its seven ITFS stations.
1995 - The 90’s Channel was dropped from cable systems operated by TCI, then the world’s largest cable provider. The 90’s Channel was folded into Free Speech TV.
1995 - John Schwartz helped launch Free Speech TV, an independent television network. At first, FSTV was primitive: it distributed its programs on videotape to local cable channels, chiefly public access channels.
1992 - Congress rewrote the Cable Act, requiring that cable TV programming be made available to wireless cable on non-discriminatory terms. As a result, the wireless cable industry expanded.
1990s - ITFS systems were an important source of educational video programming for classroom use.
1989 - Schwartz, with other public media advocates, introduced The 90’s Channel, a cable channel that carried eclectic and sometimes controversial programs. Initially The 90’s Channel was seen only on a handful of cable systems. It was operated as a project of Denver Area Educational Telecommunications Consortium, one of the ITFS companies.
1986 – ITF’s first ITFS operation went on the air in Sacramento, followed by Philadelphia.
1983 - The FCC changed its rules to allow commercial operators to lease excess air time from ITFS licensees, providing a source of revenue. The principal commercial use: “wireless cable,” a video service intended to compete with cable TV.
1983 - Schwartz also founded three other local ITFS entities: Chicago Instructional Technology Foundation, Portland Regional Educational Telecommunications Corp., and the Twin Cities Schools Telecommunications Group. Soon after, Schwartz founded Instructional Telecommunications Foundation (ITF), a national organization. All of these entities ultimately received ITFS licenses from the FCC. Although it took many years, ITF ended up securing seven for its spectrum portfolio.
1983 - John Schwartz founded Denver Area Educational Telecommunications Consortium, a local organization that applied for and received a license from the FCC to operate what is now called an Educational Broadband Service (EBS) system. At the time, EBS was known by its original FCC name: Instructional Television Fixed Service.
1980 - KBDI-TV in Broomfield, Colorado went on the air.
Independent Public Media Headquarters 655 S. Sunset Street, Suite A
Longmont, Colorado 80501
