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In this letter to the editor, the author comments on Radio World’s ongoing, extensive coverage on shortwave radio. Comment on this or any article. Email radioworld@futurenet.com.

I am relieved to see the discussion of shortwave relevance is still relevant.

In my contest blog (WQ6X.Blogspot.com), I have broached this topic several times. Searching the word “shortwave” in the blog, I come up with many entries, the first being “Does Shortwave Radio Have a Future?,” wherein I referenced the article in the Feb. 20, 2019, issue of RW on this topic.

I was a big fan of WTWW on shortwave until the shutdown of their station due to obvious lack of funds to keep it reliably on the air. I’m not looking for another religious broadcaster to buy the site and offer us just more of the same.

I would like to see stations like WTWW back on the shortwave medium with their own transmitters. Yes, I’m remembering the way it was. Is there any REAL reason we cant bring back some of the relevant activities from our glorious past?

While I am a dedicated radio amateur, I still thoroughly enjoy shortwave broadcasts from around the world, which also serve as a propagation-prediction tool.

Back when the NIST was proposing dropping the Space-WX forecasts on WWV/WWVH (because we have internet now), numerous people including me wrote in to remind them that, when we operate mobile, maritime mobile or camping out on mountaintops (often w/o cellphone or internet access), we rely on those broadcasts to receive up-to-date information. As of 2024, those broadcasts are not only STILL with us, they have become more relevant than ever.

Thank you for keeping the discussions about shortwave relevance relevant.

— Ron Fitch, WQ6X, president, Amateur Radio Club of Alameda

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The post Letter: Let’s Restore Shortwave to Its Former Glory appeared first on Radio World.

So you’re in your rack room searching for a set of headphones. Or you have some plugged into equipment, but no place to store them, so they dangle onto the floor. Sound familiar?

Chief Engineer William Harrison at FM station WETA in Washington, D.C., developed a solution and shares it with Workbench readers. 

We’ve received so many positive comments about the “do-it-yourself” construction projects we’ve published, and William’s submission is definitely worth considering.

In addition to these photos of the construction, William included a parts list to construct 10 headphone rack hooks. They’re are designed to screw into a standard broadcast-type equipment rack, accepting 10-32 rack screws.

William’s pictures make the project easy, and the finished quality is impressive. Follow along with the pictures and descriptions. Send your tips

Click on the photo to toggle between step-by-step pictures of the installation process.

William spent $50.93 to build 10 of these hooks, or about five bucks each. You can lower the cost to under $3 by using standard nuts and washers instead of the knurled thumb nut and self-retaining washer. 

18-8 Stainless Steel Threaded Rod, 10-32 Thread Size, 4 Inches Long
www.mcmaster.com/95412A450/
$12.12 per pack of 10; $12.12 total

Black Phenolic Plastic Ball Knob, with 10-32 Threaded Hole, 11/16-inch Diameter Head
www.mcmaster.com/6046K11/
$1.03 each; $10.30 total

High-Temperature Silicone Rubber Tubing for Air & Water, Soft, Durometer 50A, 3/16-inch ID, 3/8-inch OD, Opaque Black
www.mcmaster.com/5236K852/
$1.95 per foot; $5.85 total (cut into 3-inch pieces)

Self-Retaining Washer for Number 10 and M5 Size, 0.277-inch ID, 1/2-inch OD, 0.052–0.072-inch-thick
www.mcmaster.com/91755A141-91755A384/
$14.65 per pack of 100; $14.65 total

Brass Flanged Knurled-Head Thumb Nut, 10-32 Thread Size
www.mcmaster.com/92741A140/
$8.01 per pack of 10; $8.01 total

Workbench submissions are encouraged and qualify for SBE recertification credit. Email johnpbisset@gmail.com.

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The post Hook Those Cans appeared first on Radio World.

The woman who serves as Market President for iHeartMedia in Eau Claire, Wisc., and Rochester, Minn., has been appointed to the NAB Radio Board of Directors. She assumes the seat last held by Joel McCrae.

Jeanna Berge was appointed to the National Association of Broadcasters Radio Board of Directors by Chair Collin Jones, in accordance with NAB by-laws. The appointment is effective immediately.

Berge has been in Eau Claire since she started her broadcast industry career, beginning in 2011 as an Account Executive. She rose to SVP/Sales in 2018 and earned her current title and responsibilities in 2021.

David Antoine, CBRE, CBNT, has joined equipment dealer Broadcasters General Store as a sales engineer.

Based in New York City, Antoine has worked for broadcast organizations including Westwood One, WQXR, Emmis and Inner City Broadcasting. He most recently was the chief technology officer of jazz station WBGO in Newark, N.J.

Supply side experience includes DSI RF Systems, Aeta and Lawo North America. Antoine also is on the board of directors of the Society of Broadcast Engineers.

Send items for People News to radioworld@futurenet.com.

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The post David Antoine Joins BGS appeared first on Radio World.

The world’s largest on-demand audio platform, which is very much diving into the podcast arena, saw its shares rise on a largely down Tuesday thanks to an upgrade courtesy of UBS.

Spotify‘s 1-year target price was hiked to $274 per share, as UBS raised its rating on “SPOT,” which trades on the NYSE, to “Buy” from “Neutral.” The price target adjustment is significant, as it is up from the prior level of $170.

In an interview for Yahoo! Finance, Alexandra Canal shared how UBS sees sustainable margin expansion and stronger bottom-line trends in the coming year for Spotify.

This is driven by several key factors, including strong subscriber loyalty, advertising growth, and steady price increases.

But, Canal notes that Spotify has “really struggled with that valuation question.” There’s also a lack of profitability, due to the enormous royalty payments it must pay for the right to allow its users to stream music.

EBITDA is “finally in positive, solid territory,” though, Canal notes, and that’s a big plus for the streamer. Podcasts are expected to break even in the first half of 2024, with $1 billion spent over the past few years to build the segment.

One year ago, SPOT was priced at $121.17; as of 11:26am Eastern it was priced at $219.75, up $1.14 on word of the UBS report.

Matthew Davidge and Julie Huang have teamed up as equity interest holders in a variety of broadcast TV stations, including low-power facilities licensed to Roseland Broadcasting Inc.

The pair are also partners in SagamoreHill, and in an Upstate New York city it is Louis Wall that holds majority interest in a low-power TV station branded as “NBC Watertown.” Now, that operation is in position to greatly expand its coverage area thanks to a deal involving three LPTVs across the region.

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The 5G Broadcasting Network focused on the development and deployment of direct-to-mobile broadcast communications in the U.S. and around the world led by CEO “SuperFrank” Copsidas has teamed with two low-power TV station owners for the filing of a pair of new experimental 5G broadcast licenses.

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Broadcast Electronics, the Elenos Group-owned designer and manufacturer of broadcast products including transmitters for radio and TV, has given a long-standing Adult Alternative FM serving the nation’s No. 1 market an audio media management system boost.

BE worked with Fordham University-owned WFUV-FM 90.7 in New York to upgrade the station’s system to AudioVAULT 11.

WFUV, says Director of Technical Operations George Evans, “has the unique mandate to champion music discovery and foster an appreciation of our diverse musical heritage but also to train the university’s next generation of multimedia professionals through educational programs and practical experience.”

With its selection of AudioVAULT 11, WFUV has the ability to gain workflow improvements. A new AudioVAULT Scheduler is in place for program and content distribution tasks. AudioVAULT Anywhere is present for remote voice tracking, playlist and program management, file playback, remote broadcast, sports, and remote talent needs.

Additionally, CloudVAULT enables cloud-based shared and redundant content storage via a secure Microsoft Azure platform.

There is also seamless integration with Adobe Audition digital audio editing software. Additionally, enhanced AVWatchDog provides an extra set of eyes and ears to monitor and track a full range of schedules and playlists days in advance to ensure everything is in place, and should something be missing, it will proactively notify you so you can take corrective action, BE notes.

“We are extremely pleased to partner with WFUV and thank them for trusting Broadcast Electronics to help deliver their content to Greater New York City,” said Rich Redmond, President/COO of Broadcast Electronics. “AudioVAULT 11 simplifies operations, provides seamless cloud-enabled disaster recovery, and puts more power in the hands of WFUV programmers, journalists, and students to create compelling content that connects with their listeners.”

Quicklink, known for its remote production products, has brought to market the Quicklink TX (Skype TX) 2110, bringing the integration of Skype and Microsoft Teams callers into ST 2110 media workflows.

This new support enables the globally adopted Quicklink TX solution to integrate seamlessly with uncompressed IP video workflows conforming to the SMPTE ST 2110 specification.
The SMPTE ST 2110 suite defines standards for transporting video, audio, and metadata
essences as separate streams over professional IP networks. Quicklink’s support for ST
2110 empowers broadcasters to unlock new efficiencies in live production.

“We have seen a rapid growth of demand for IP video and adoption of the ST 2110
standard,” said Richard Rees, CEO of Quicklink. “By introducing ST 2110 support to
the Quicklink TX, our products now align perfectly with customers transitioning their
facilities to IP.”

The Quicklink TX is offered in a number of channel configurations for complete workflow
flexibility and is relied upon by leading broadcasters worldwide to integrate remote Skype
and Microsoft Teams guests into live productions with exceptional full HD quality.

The Quicklink TX IP-3 and Quicklink TX IP-6 are offered in addition to the established HD-SDI options. The interoperability with ST 2110 infrastructure simplifies workflows and expands possibilities for remote contribution over modern IP networks.

The exclusive global provider of Philips Professional Displays and complementary
solutions has struck a partnership the world’s leading sports entertainment platform and Europe’s largest football broadcaster.

It brings the platform’s live and on-demand content streaming services into hotel guest rooms for the first time, exclusively via Philips MediaSuite hospitality TVs.

Set to be unveiled and demonstrated for the first time at ISE 2024 in Barcelona (Philips Booth 3P500), this latest global partnership — with DAZN — strengthens PPDS’ mission to deliver the industry’s most extensive and flexible choice of in-room TV entertainment services for hotels.

The DAZN app will be available for the first time via hotel guest room TVs, embedded directly onto Philips MediaSuite TVs. Hotel brand partners include Accor, IHG, Marriot, and Radisson.

For hotels wishing to subscribe to DAZN for their guests, there are two initial packages that can be selected depending on their target audience.

Launched in 2016, and headquartered in London, DAZN provides an extensive choice of live sports and entertainment, with top division men’s and women’s football/soccer, professional boxing, MMA, motorsport, wrestling, and tennis hosted on the platform annually.

By Brian Galante

Macnica will arrive at the ISE 2024 show this week with strong momentum behind its IPMX product development business. In addition to the launch of the MEG1, Macnica’s first IPMX ethernet gateway, ASTRODESIGN will offer a preview of its forthcoming IPMX AV over IP Gateway powered by Macnica’s full-stack ME10 SoC solution.

ASTRODESIGN will demonstrate its innovation, the IA-1568 IP Gateway, at Stand CS650 in the Fira Barcelona Gran Via’s Discovery Zone, which highlights first-time ISE exhibitors. ASTRODESIGN anticipates that the device will begin shipping in June.

ASTRODESIGN specializes in real-time digital signal processing technology for several industries, and manufactures a wide range of video, audio and measurement products and solutions for use in broadcast and AV environments, including live event venues. The company offers a broad range of product lines, including IP Gateways to support 8K video transmission and JPEG XS compression in SMPTE ST 2110 systems. These products were chiefly engineered for use in the Japanese market.

ASTRODESIGN last year became an AIMS Alliance member to join forces with companies like Macnica to advance IPMX product development. That included developing a new IP Gateway for IPMX systems that would also help ASTRODESIGN expand into new business regions, including North America and Europe. Having worked together before, ASTRODESIGN quickly chose Macnica as its development partner for the IA-1568. Macnica’s ME10 SoC gave ASTRODESIGN a complete 1G AV over IP solution for low-latency transport of 4K60 4:4:4 video, along with a compact, low-profile design that perfectly fits within the IA-1568’s 1RU hardware design.

“Macnica’s ME10 solution provided our engineering team with the proven reference designs we needed to accelerate both product development and time to market while reducing our in-house engineering costs,” said Sean Yoshioka, Sales General Manager for the International Business Division of ASTRODESIGN. “The ME10 also provides with a futureproof solution that allows us to add new features and functions to IA-1568 even after the product comes to market.”

The Macnica ME10 SoC transports HDMI 2.0 4K 4:4:4 video, audio and control data over 1Gb networks in a compact 23x23mm form factor. Ideal for use in larger production runs or within compact product designs, the ME10 supports key functions for IPMX interoperability (device discovery and registration, network resiliency, subframe latency and more) and provides a customizable API and web interface to all IPMX product developers.

Yoshioka anticipates pairing the IA-1568 IP Gateway with ASTRODESIGN’s 8K camera to move 4K video to monitors and display systems inside production studios and stadiums, though this represents just one of many potential use cases. He adds that the ME10’s compatibility with HDMI and its related features, including HDCP for digital content protection and EDID for display identification will be useful in bridging legacy systems and connections with IP networks.

“ASTRODESIGN customers who use the IA-1568 can cleanly feed video from any HDMI output to the IP network, and then receive that video anywhere throughout the network,” said Motoki Nagashima, VP of Video Transport Solutions at Macnica. “That can include feeding a large monitor inside conference rooms to support live presentations, or feeding a large number of displays spread throughout a large sports venue. What’s most exciting for our industry in general is that this partnership represents a major step forward for the IPMX suite of standards, and for freeing end users from the limitations of being locked into proprietary solutions.”

ISE 2024 takes place January 30-February 2 at Fira Barcelona Gran Via. Macnica exhibits at Stand 5G800.

As the first month of January nears its conclusion, broadcast station owner and Assembly Atlanta owner Gray Television is offering a brighter picture to analysts and investors on its Q4 2023 earnings while revealing that it wishes to refinance its senior credit facilities.

There’s more: Hundreds of millions of dollars in proceeds from the sale of Broadcast Music, Inc., before taxes, are expected to be added to Gray’s bank accounts before the end of 2024.

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Singapore’s multinational news channel, Mediacorp-owned Channel News Asia (CNA), is now partnering with AI audio platform Adthos to generate localized news broadcasts.

Using AI, broadcasts have been created which report the news in the Malay language but with a Singaporean accent.

CNA chose to partner with Adthos based on the capabilities offered via its latest release, Adthos for News. This feature allows broadcasters and publishers to generate complete news bulletins with the touch of a button via their newsroom system. Broadcasts can include quotes and clips, with multiple voices, music beds and idents in an instant, while weather, traffic and sports updates can be completely automated and localized for any location.

This first deployment focused on Malay (Baku); an accent of Malay specific to Singapore. Given that the new generation of Singaporeans mostly speak in English, it can be more challenging for broadcasters to find good voiceover talent that offers the diversity of accents.

Adthos CEO Raoul Wedel commented, “This is the first large scale project we have completed with one of our Asian clients and it’s been exciting to see what we have been able to do. In a region where there are so many languages and dialects, being able to offer this level of localization so quickly and easily offers a lot of potential for reaching and engaging larger audiences. We’re also delighted that AI is helping to preserve cultural diversity in languages not commonly spoken.”

Following the success of this project, CNA is planning to use Adthos for News for other languages in the future.

The international software company that helps broadcasters create radio through such products including the PlayoutONE automation system with WebVT for remote broadcasting is welcoming back its former SVP of Product Innovation.

Rejoining Aiir is Andy Buckingham. 

He’ll be back at the Ricki Lee-helmed company in February. He exited in 2020 to form his own company. Now, Buckingham takes up the role of Principal Creative Technologist.

In this position, Buckingham will continue to oversee the development of Aiir Scheduler, as well as focusing on the creation of new products and services.

“After leaving Aiir full-time a few years ago, we retained Andy’s company for development work and he has played a pivotal part in the development of our new product Aiir Scheduler, the world’s first fully cloud-based music scheduler for radio,” Lee said. “I cannot tell you how delighted I am to be welcoming Andy back to our team full-time.”

Buckingham commented, “I’m excited to be rejoining the team at Aiir. In my time away I’ve worked closely with a number of broadcasters, increasing my understanding of the challenges faced in 2024. Alongside that, I’ve been conjuring up new ideas to help overcome those challenges and keep teams focused on their core goal – to create compelling, informative and entertaining radio. I feel Aiir is the best place to realize those ideas and can’t wait to get started.

The FCC’s desire to make alerts issued over EAS available in more languages is raising some technical concerns about the capabilities of the current technical architecture in EAS devices. 

At its monthly meeting in February, the FCC will consider a draft proposal that, if eventually adopted, would create template alert scripts that would be pre-translated into the 13 most commonly spoken non-English languages in the United States — Spanish, Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese, Arabic, French, Korean, Russian, Haitian Creole, German, Hindi, Portuguese and Italian — as well as in English. 

“If you are watching or listening to a program when an emergency alert is issued, you want that potentially life-saving information delivered in a language that you will understand,” said FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. 

The pre-translated template-based announcements and audio files would be produced by the commission, and would be pre-installed in the EAS equipment operated by EAS participants. 

However, comments on a listserv maintained by the Society of Broadcast Engineers shows some broadcasters are worried the current technical framework in EAS equipment at radio stations might be strained carrying out the FCC’s goals.

The draft proposal (PS Docket 15-94) if adopted would seek comment on the feasibility of “removing the technical and logistical barriers associated with EAS alert translation by proposing and seeking comment on a simplified multilingual alert processing approach for EAS alerts.

The proposal says any new template-specific event code would be added to the EAS protocol for each template alert type, for example an earthquake or wildfire. “We propose that alert originators would initiate the template alert in legacy or CAP like any other EAS alert, using the applicable template event code,” the draft proposal states.

An EAS device would then use that event code to tap into the appropriate template using the stored or linked audio in the languages that correspond to the language of the EAS participant’s programming content, according to the FCC. 

The commission says participants would download and store the prerecorded audio files for the language(s) of their programming content, and any other languages they wish to include in their template alerts, in their EAS device. 

The commission asks what storage capabilities would be required for 30 second messages created with 16 template audio files for each of the 13 proposed template languages, in addition to the English language version. The total would be 224 audio file

The FCC also would need to establish a process by which radio stations could broadcast the required English-speaking alert — or a language corresponding to its programming — then have the option to initiate a template alert in one of the supplied foreign languages if the local population within its listening area warrants it.

Among the questions the FCC will ask in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) is how long would manufacturers likely require to develop, test and release updates, and at what cost to EAS participants? And if storage of template visual script and audio files in EAS device models would require addition of memory capacity via firmware update and at what cost? 

The commission’s questions continue: “Would implementing the template alert processing approach present any unique challenges or require modifications with respect to EAS participant transmission processing systems upstream or downstream from the EAS device that would impact the time required for implementation?”

With so many unanswered questions, estimating the cost to make upgrades to EAS boxes is difficult, according to the FCC. It uses an aggregate of labor costs to arrive at an estimate of $12 million for the broadcast industry. 

In addition, the FCC recognizes that there potentially could be costs associated with adding memory capacity, firmware and/or other modifications to EAS devices, and changes potentially could be required to downstream transmission processing systems.

It is also conceivable that there are some older EAS devices in use today that could not be updated or modified to enable template alert processing and transmission, the FCC says. 

Commenters on the SBE listserv question the capability of existing EAS equipment to handle the proposed multilingual upgrades and the cost of modifying existing EAS boxes to do so.

Adrienne Abbott, chair of the Nevada State Emergency Communications Committee, questions the practical application of the FCC bilingual EAS plans.

She says it’s possible the FCC sees the language templates “living” in FEMA IPAWS OPEN office, where the CAP Aggregator would automatically translate the text and audio before passing the activation to the EAS Participants. “Broadcasters would preprogram their EAS equipment for the appropriate language for their audience. Is that possibility realistic?”

Abbott says the plan, if approved, would mean EAS equipment would need to be updated. “Of course, CAP programs will also need to be updated which takes the FCC into FEMA territory,” she says. 

In addition, the draft NPRM is rather vague on the tangibles, Abbott says, including questions on how the language templates would be developed, and whether the languages used would be appropriate for the foreign language community.

“East Coast/Puerto Rican/Cuban Spanish is very different than TexMex Spanish, is very different than California Spanish, is very different than Nevada Spanish. There’s Puerto Rican Portuguese, Brazilian Portuguese and North African Portuguese. And there are multiple, individual dialects within the Chinese and Vietnamese languages,” Abbott says.

The FCC in the draft proposal concedes there is no single “Chinese” language, but rather a multitude of dialects, such as Mandarin and Cantonese. It asks in the proposal what mechanism would be practical and efficient for the commission to employ in identifying specific dialects in which to prerecord the audio messages?  

The FCC will consider the NPRM and likely vote on it at its next meeting on Feb. 15.

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The post The FCC Is Considering More Bilingual Upgrades for EAS appeared first on Radio World.

PARAMUS, N.J. — The Democratic Member of Congress serving Bergen County, N.J., due west of New York across the Hudson River and home to one of the nation’s most prominent retail corridors, on Monday took new action designed to protect AM radio in electric vehicles.

In doing so, he has singularly called out Tesla as a manufacturer of vehicles that are “unsafe in emergencies.”

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For the second consecutive year, the parent company of brands such as The Weather Channel, Local Now, Pattrn, TheGrio and HBCUGo and the owner of 28 broadcast TV stations that seeks to grow exponentially will be hosting an Upfront event this spring in New York.

Allen Media Group (AMG)‘s “AMG Upfront” is planned for Wednesday, April 24, from Noon to 2pm at Avra Rockefeller Center. At the event, AMG will present its latest programming news, technology partnerships, new content, and platform innovations to advertisers.

“The continued steady growth and expansion of Allen Media Group is phenomenal,” said Byron Allen, the founder and Chairman/CEO of Los Angeles-headquartered Allen Media Group. “Our strong portfolio and innovative advertising solutions deliver immense value to our clients, and we are incredibly excited to showcase our unparalleled programming, events and technology to advertisers during this year’s Upfront.”

AMG produces, distributes, and sells advertising as one of the largest independent producers/distributors of first-run syndicated television programming for broadcast television stations.

In 2023 AMG became the first media company to successfully transact its entire 2023-24 Upfront season on alternative currency, Video Amp.

In related news, AMG is welcoming Nancy Eagle as its new SVP/Business & Legal Affairs. Eagle will focus on business and legal affairs related to the development and production of movies, television series, and other premium content for distribution via Allen Media Group Television, Allen Media Group Motion Pictures (AMGMP), the AMGMP digital distribution unit Freestyle Digital Media, the free-streaming service Local Now, and external streaming services and distribution platforms.

Eagle was formerly with Boat Rocker Studios, where she held the position of SVP/Business & Legal Affairs. Prior to that, Eagle spent 25 years with NBCUniversal, also as SVP/Business and Legal Affairs.