RichPowers

I don’t know if any of you read this before, but it was a first for me…

I don’t know if any of you read this before, but it was a first for me…

I have heard it expressed repeatedly that part 15 originally was NEVER INTENDED as a means to publicly broadcast radio to a listening audience. It’s been said numerous times on this forum and that forum, by advocates and foe alike..
Well, guess what an official FCC document stated 36 years ago?..

I excerpted some key points from this document, not all of it positive, please read it all, but make special note of the paragraph in bold..

Part 15 of our Rules permits operation in the AM Broadcast
Band of a miniature transmitter, called a Low Power Communication
Device, without an individual license provided that the input power
to the device does not exceed 100 milliwatts and that the total length
of the transmission line plus the antenna does not exceed 10 feet.... etc. etc.

These technical specifications are designed to limit
communication range for the protection of authorized radio services
from harmful interference, and yet are considered to be sufficiently
lenient that a reasonable operating range is provided for a Low Power
Communication Device. Moreover, regardless of strict adherence to
the technical limitations in Part 15, a Low Power Communication
Device is permitted to operate on a sufferance basis only,

Intermision..
===============================================================
suf·fer·ance
Noun: Absence of objection rather than genuine approval; ie: toleration.
================================================================

Because of this overriding noninterference condition and the severe technical
limitations imposed, Part 15 cannot be used to provide a regular broadcasting service.
The intent of Part 15 is to provide the radio enthusiast with
an opportunity to experiment with radio, and to entertain friends or
neighbors within a very limited communication range.

Ain’t that great!!.. unfortunately in the next line it dampened it a bit..

The Commission never intended that Part 15 be used to establish a low power
broadcast facility to service an entire community.

Well, I never intended to drink more than a couple beers last Saturday, but the actual result was that I got drunk off my butt. – Probably a bad example, but the point is that intent only gets the ball rolling, it doesn’t determine the extent of how far it will go. — In other words, initial intention ain’t the law (is it?).

But anyway, the big ta-da is that the FCC acknowledged the intent of part 15 is to enable broadcast to your neighborhood – 36 years ago!

What do you all think about that?

Source:
http://transition.fcc.gov/ftp/Bureaus/Mass_Media/Databases/documents_collection/74-87.pdf