In 2016 the U.S. Federal Communications Commission launched an auction that will allow broadcasters to sell all or parts of their broadcast spectrum, which could then be purchased by wireless carriers looking to expand their reach.

Some analysts initially projected that just public TV stations could bring in as much as $2.3 billion, according to reported federal estimates.

The advocacy group Free Press is encouraging public broadcasters to invest their earnings back into local news and information. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” said Mike Rispoli, the New Jersey director of Free Press. “There is a crisis in local news and how people get information now. This is a lot of money to infuse and support local journalism and information needs.”

Read all about it at the Nieman Lab site from Harvard University.