I've been looking in several topics, and all of you guys are right.
The people who ruined radio, are Clear-Channel. In the house with $20 billion of debt.
The goverment who put us at the worst power level to not ruin those heavy 100kw and 50kw FM/AM's and Clear-Channel, the FCC.
The people who made made a decision to not have LPAM in the U.S., the National Assiocation of Broadcasters.
Not only that, Clear-Channel has been put up to the test, to run "We are the local broadcasters, of radio and television."
This is total BS! Clear-Channel probably owes $20 billion to it's employees. The FCC probably won't care, a dearly thing about LPAM, and guess who made that decision? The national assocation of stupid, smocks, and lying broadcasters!
Does anyone agree who made that decision? Or did the NAB not make the NO LPAM decision?
From what I've heard the NAB has stood in the way of LPAM and NPR has joined them to make a eunuch out of LPFM.
Corporate mass ownership is deliberately neutering radio so that web-based and satellite based entertainment mediums get the business.
Even if my opinion is right, it is not necessarilly the opinion of part15.us nor its members.
Check out http://home.recnet.com/lpam for a brief overview of the RM 11287 petition for low power AM. In most cases the facilities would have been similar to 10 watt TIS stations. I was one of the signees of that petition.
One of the problems that always crops up is that no one can agree on a power level. Others wanted 30 watts. A few wanted 50. A split like that is not going to get through the FCC.
The big companies, NAB, NPR are against LPAM, LPFM and anything else that doesn't help line their pockets. There is not an association with enough clout and funding to lobby for the little guy.
RM 11287 was never acted on by the FCC. It languished due to neglect and lack of interest after it failed to gain momentum.
Frankly with this new push to "save" AM by moving them to FM, that's not saving AM at all. It is the AMization of the FM band, which isn't really saving AM at all.
I suggested to Commissioner Pai that perhaps the AM band could be useful for small 10 watt community based stations after all, with 10 watt / 50 foot antenna stations. I haven't heard back from him at this point.
For the record I do have an LPFM application pending in this filing window. I am retired. I need something to do. I can't receive my Part 15 off the property, so in that aspect I am only singlecasting to myself. If I don't get the LPFM then radio will be relegated to a hobby and I will have to find a different route to supplementing our income.
While a few hopeful applicants await their fate on LPFM, the frequencies are being grabbed by large commercial stations for use as translators and boosters.
The FM frequency I use with the C.Crane FM Transmitter now has a C.P. (Construction Permit) for a 250Watt Booster that will force me out, licensed to a 80,000 Watt station.
To make it more insane, the booster transmitter will be on the same tower as the 80,000 Watt owner, thus will serve the same footprint and will not extend service to a fringe area.
This is happening because now, it's legal for commercial stations to use translators to re-broadcast their HD-digital programming!
I just noticed that a local classical music group, which leases the HD channel of a rock FM station, and is also heard in analog on that station's 250 Watt booster, is planning to PURCHASE the booster station! What it looks like is that they plan to convert the booster into an LPFM station! That may be the next thing that happens to a lot of booster-translators.
Instead of donating money to classical radio stations, people should just collect CD albums.
Instead of donating money to religious stations, people should just read the Bible they already have.
But we SHOULD support radioboy and other Part 15ers who are trying to serve us with the programming not available anywhere else.
Thank you to the people who have tried
to get LPAM and LPFM going.
If I could, I would be involved, too.
Well... at least we have something.
I could be wrong - I probably am -
but I think most countires don't
have anything like Part 15 at all.
(...With the exception of New Zealand.)
???
Bruce, DOGRADIO
it goes NPR/Crap Channel > NAB > Congresss > FCC
need i illustrate more into how LPFM got Neutered and LPAM went into oblivion never to see the light of day?
we are lucky to have 15.219 and 15.239 in this country
are the only countries I have heard of
that have something like Part 15. And
of course I would take the New Zealand
regs any day.
I'm really drawing a blank on this. What
other countries have something like Part 15
for AM and/or FM BC?
Bruce, DOGRADIO
We have an application for LPFM where I work. There is one available channel so hopefully we can get through it. With regard to translators, AM stations in Tampa are gobbling up rebroadcasts of AM to the translators. For example, WFLA 970 blankets the Tampa Bay Area and is running a translator with a 5 mile radius. Same for WDAE 620. Guess what, both are owned by CC.
In the middle of Carl's post: "To make it more insane, the booster transmitter will be on the same tower as the 80,000 Watt owner, thus will serve the same footprint and will not extend service to a fringe area."
I believe the transmitter talked about here is unlikely to be the translater TX, but rather the microwave unit which sends the signal wirelessly to its receiver counterpart at the translator (usually more than one BTW, which may be owned or leased)...so, of course, it's mounted on the same tower. The translator signal is broadcast on an actual FM Stereo digital HD transmitter located in the "fringe" area, right where it's licensed to be. It's not a "booster" signal per se'; it's on a different frequency of course, because it can't be perfectly sync'd.
Lots of full power FM stations operate just this way.