Skip to main content
Home

Main navigation

  • REC Home
  • Apply
    • REC Services Rate Card & Policies
    • LPFM Construction Completed
    • LPFM License Modification
    • New FM Booster Station
    • New Class D FM Station in Alaska
    • New Low Power FM (LPFM) Station
  • Initiatives
    • RM-11846: Rural NCE Stations
    • RM-11909: LP-250 / Simple 250
    • WIDE-FM
    • RM-11952: Translator Reform
    • RM-11843: 8 Meter Ham Band
    • PACE - LPFM Compliance
  • Services
  • Tools
    • Today's FCC Activity
    • Broadcast Data Query
    • Field strength curves
    • Runway slope
    • Tower finder
    • FM MODEL-RF Exposure Study
    • More tools
    • Developers - API
  • LPFM
    • Learn about LPFM
      • Basics of LPFM
      • Self Inspection Checklist
      • Underwriting Compliance Guide
      • Frequently Asked Questions
      • FCC Rules for LPFM
      • HD Radio for LPFM
      • Transmitters certified for LPFM
      • Interference from FM translators
      • RadioDNS for LPFM Stations
    • 2023 Window REC Client Portal
    • myLPFM - LPFM Station Management
    • LPFM Station Directory
    • Spare call signs
    • REC PACE Program
    • More about LPFM
  • Reference
    • Pending FCC Applications
    • FCC Filing Fees
    • Radio License Renewal Deadlines
    • FCC Record/FCC Reports
    • Pirate Radio Enforcement Data
    • Premises Info System (PREMIS)
    • ITU and other international documents
    • Recent FCC Callsign Activity
    • FCC Enforcement Actions
    • Federal Register
    • Recent CAP/Weather Alerts
    • Legal Unlicensed Broadcasting
    • More reference tools
  • LPFM Window
  • About
    • REC in the Media
    • Supporting REC's Efforts
    • Recommendations
    • FCC Filings and Presentations
    • Our Jingles
    • REC Radio History Project
    • Delmarva FM / Riverton Radio Project
    • J1 Radio / Japanese Broadcasting
    • Japan Earthquake Data
    • REC Systems Status
    • eLMS: Enhanced LMS Data Project
    • Open Data at REC
    • Our Objectives
  • Contact

Breadcrumb

  • Home

Operational Status

Michi on YouTube

Most popular

fcc.today - real time updates on application activity from the FCC Media Bureau.  fccdata.org - the internet's most comprehensive FCC database lookup tool.  myLPFM.com - Low Power FM channel search and station management tool.  REC Broadcast Services - professional LPFM and FM translator filing services. 

Other tools & info

  • Filing Window Tracking
  • Enforcement Actions
  • REC Advisory Letters
  • FAQ-Knowledge Base
  • U/D Ratio Calculator
  • Propagation Curves
  • Runway Slope/REC TOWAIR
  • Coordinate Conversion
  • PREMIS: Address Profile
  • Spare Call Sign List
  • FCC (commercial) filing fees
  • Class D FM stations in Alaska
  • ARRR: Pirate radio notices
  • Unlicensed broadcasting (part 15)
  • FMmap - broadcast atlas
  • Federal Register
  • Rate Card & Policies
  • REC system status
  • Server Status
  • Complete site index
Cirrus Streaming - Radio Streaming Services - Podcasting & On-demand - Mobile Apps - Advertising

Industry News

RAB to Acquire National Radio Talent System

Radio World
4 years 8 months ago

The Radio Advertising Bureau plans to acquire the National Radio Talent System. The roaming radio broadcast training course will continue to operate under its brand name and network of Radio Talent Institutes with oversight by the RAB. Dan Vallie, National Radio Talent System founder and president, will advise the RAB as it integrates the institute into the organization.

College students, recent graduates and radio interns apply to be accepted into the 10-day institutes. Sessions include on-air, programming, sales, writing, news, sports, promotions, videography, podcasting, social media, engineering and management. Each student participates in RAB training and takes the exam to earn their Radio Marketing Professional Certification.

In a statement, RAB’s President and Chief Executive Officer Erica Farber said, “An integral part of the RAB’s mission is providing the industry with the tools and resources to help broadcasters attract new sales talent to the medium and enhance radio’s professionalism through training and support. The integration of the National Radio Talent System into the RAB delivers on the mission in so many ways…”

“The future of our companies is dependent on the next generation of committed, prepared and talented radio professionals,” said Susan Larkin, Entercom Communications’ chief operating officer and RAB board chair. “The National Radio Talent System is unique in that it provides a radio talent farm for the industry, an incubator of well-rounded, well-educated college talent with a passion for radio.”

As previously announced, all 2020 programs were rescheduled for 2021 due to COVID-19.

 

The post RAB to Acquire National Radio Talent System appeared first on Radio World.

RW Staff

Best Practices for RDS Subcarrier Injection

Radio World
4 years 8 months ago

It’s been a few years since we’ve discussed RDS best practices, but the items we have covered in this series of articles over the last decade are more relevant than ever.

At this point, just about every new automobile manufacturer supports some form of RDS when a receiver is tuned to an analog FM station.

The big shift is that visibility and support for the Program Service (PS) field and PS scrolling are fading in favor of RadioText (RT) and RadioText Plus Tagging (RT+ Tagging).

Larger 6- to 12-inch LCD displays are in almost every vehicle you see on the lots now. These have multiple lines for text messages, and the eight-character PS scrolling really does catch the eye. The full station name, title and artist with RadioText and RT+ Tagging really helps stations look better in the dash.

Also, with National Highway Traffic Safety Administration guidance and regulations related to driver distraction in the United States, many automotive manufacturers have dampened or defeated PS scrolling from working in their vehicles.

Even with RadioText, modern receivers want more information, and RT+ Tagging is supported in more vehicles. Radio World has covered a variety of topics on how to optimize RDS for these fields, and other tips and tricks. You can find that information in a 2018 ebook at radioworld.com.

Another great resource is “NRSC-G300-C: RDS Usage Guideline,” last updated April 2018). It can be found online at www.nrscstandards.org, under Standards & Guidelines.

RDS Subcarrier Injection

Let’s dig into detail about the importance of proper RDS subcarrier injection. This is still a common problem I work with, both in my professional capacity at iHeartMedia and personally as I travel and see various RDS implementations across the country.

While it’s difficult to come up with hard facts, a lot of stations are not following the NRSC-G300-C guidelines in Section 4 to ensure there is proper synchronization with the 19 kHz pilot and maintaining 6% (4.5kHz) to 7% (5.25kHz) injection of the 57 kHz RDS subcarrier.

First, let’s understand how the RDS subcarrier injection is described numerically.

Often in North American broadcast products, documents and discussion, you will see the RDS subcarrier injection referenced in terms of percentage, such as 6%.  This is referenced as 6% out of 100% modulation referenced to 75 kHz deviation. So, 75 kHz x 0.06 (six percent) = 4.5kHz deviation. And 75 kHz x 0.07 (seven percent) = 5.25 kHz deviation.

You will often see these methods used (percentage and referenced as deviation) when discussing injection, sometimes interchangeably.

Suppose you have a measurement made in kHz deviation and want to translate that into percentage. For example, a modulation analyzer may say the RDS injection is 4.875 kHz but not tell you the percentage:

4.875 kHz / 75 kHz = 0.065 x 100 = 6.5%

The international markets are more focused on kHz deviation levels. You may encounter product measurements, manuals, documentation or other articles referencing kHz deviation, and now you know the basic math converting between these two. We’re really discussing the same thing, just a different reference level.

Regulatory Guidance

In the United States, no Federal Communication Commission authorization, notice, application or license is required by a broadcast station licensee wishing to transmit a subcarrier. Subcarriers are also known as Subsidiary Communications Authority or SCA. A subcarrier or SCA is a separate audio or data channel transmitted along with the main audio signal over a broadcast station. RDS is considered an SCA, and stations can start or stop transmission at any time as per 47 CFR Section 73.293.

The FCC allows total FM carrier deviation above 100% modulation referenced at 75 kHz under 47 CFR Section 73.1570(b)(2)(i) and (ii). The total peak modulation may be increased 0.5 percent for each 1.0 percent subcarrier injection modulation, but in no event may the modulation of the carrier exceed 110 percent (82.5 kHz peak deviation).

What does this mean in practical terms?

If your 57 kHz RDS subcarrier is the only subcarrier on the station, and you desire 6% injection, half of that injection (3%) can be added to your overall total modulation envelope. Thus, the maximum permitted FM modulation envelope on the station is 103%, or 75 kHz x 1.03 = 78.25 kHz deviation.

Field Observations

My general advice and guidance for most full-power stations is to use 6% (4.5 kHz) injection as optimal for most applications.

You may want to consider up to 7% (5.25 kHz) injection if you are on a noisy channel with nearby co-channel interference, have extreme terrain challenges in your service area or are trying to provide the best experience in the far field (i.e. the desired, or largest portion of your audience is at or beyond your protected service contours).

Another area where higher injection helps is on lower-powered stations such as translators. Many FM translators are used well beyond their official “protected” 60 dBu service contour, so having a high injection level on these stations is encouraged.

Raising the injection of the subcarrier increases the signal-to-noise ratio of the digital subcarrier and makes it easier for receivers to decode it error-free, especially in the far field and in challenging FM environments (multipath, interference, low signal, etc.).

While this evidence is anecdotal, I have never seen a situation where going above 7% (4.5 kHz deviation) has been helpful. And I have found stations unintentionally injecting over 10%, actually causing some RDS receivers to stop working. In a sense, if the signal is too high, it can degrade decoding performance in select receivers.

Similarly, I find a lot of stations out there that are injecting below 4% (3 kHz deviation), where RDS decoding is very difficult.

Both situations (subcarrier injection too high or too low) can cause spotty RDS displays. Information may never populate or may not update quickly upon change. Focusing on your RDS injection and knowing it is in the 6% to 7% range is very important.

Measuring Injection

Knowing how to set up your RDS encoder injection properly is important. It’s a key performance item for RDS displays to work.

With the growing receiver base, and with more broadcasting offered enhanced metadata with station branding, title, artist and even advertiser messages, you want to make sure every station you maintain has the RDS injection set properly.

RDS injection measurement has long been an issue. Many engineers in the field do not have access to tools to measure this important metric. We will discuss some available products, new ones that you can buy as well as common legacy offerings you might be able to find on the shelf somewhere.

One important note: It is highly desirable to make this measurement at the RF sample output of your exciter or transmitter This gives you the most accurate reading before environmental effects are put into the equation (such as multipath).

Many of these products will work anywhere within the coverage area, and you could locate them at the studio, for example, if you have good RF reception there. However, you will notice all of your FM modulation parameters are subject to more variations. For the most stable results, it’s best to measure this at the transmitter site.

Note that when using an RF sample output, be sure you do not exceed the maximum input specifications of the measurement device. When in doubt, use attenuators to be safe, and slowly decrease the attenuation to get a high desired signal without overloading the unit. Variable attenuators are the best for this application.

Belar

Belar is a well-known vendor in this space, and it offers highly accurate RDS injection measurement tools in their flagship FMHD-1 product. This is some of the most comprehensive details I’ve seen out of a monitor specifically related to RDS injection.

As shown in Fig. 1, you can view the current average RDS in the Analog Bar Graph menu, and you can view a detailed histogram of RDS injection, measured in percentage, over time.

Fig. 1: The Belar FMHD-1 shows the current average RDS in the Analog Bar Graph menu.

These details can be viewed using a software application connected to the FMHD-1, and it can be accessed remotely if attached to a computer that has Remote Desktop, VNC or another screen sharing solution installed and running.

Belar offers FMCS–1L and the RDS-1, which interface with their Wizard line of analyzers that show RDS injection.

Deva

Deva has several products in its portfolio that offer RDS injection monitoring. Shown in Fig. 2 is the Band Scanner Pro.

Fig. 2: The Deva Band Scanner Pro shows numerous modulation measurements, including RDS injection and decoded RDS text.

What I like about the Band Scanner Pro is that it’s portable and can go into your laptop bag and go from site to site easily. It travels well on planes and such. It’s a very small, portable tool that offers easy access to diagnostics of all RDS parameters and allows the user to dig into deeper binary information contained in the RDS subcarrier.

Deva also makes the Radio Explorer line, the DB4005 rack-mount monitor that can be accessed remotely, and other products that can measure RDS injection.

Inovonics

Inovonics offers the 531N FM modulation monitor, which has a native HTML5-based web browser to remotely access and view measurements. Included in those measurements are the RDS injection, as shown in Fig. 3.

Fig. 3: The Inovonics 531N shows RDS injection and on a different screen decoded RDS text.

Inovonics also made a model 510 RDS monitor. While no longer in production, you might find legacy units around the shop or in the rack. This model can calculate RDS injection when calibrated properly.

Worldcast/Audemat

Worldcast and Audemat have long been in the RDS space. Many engineers are familiar with their line of RDS encoders, but they have made several products that can monitor RDS as well.

A popular legacy product that has many field installations is the Audemat Golden Eagle.  It offers RDS injection measurements on its front panel as shown in Fig. 4. The Golden Eagle HD also offers it in the remote client software package.

Fig. 4: The Audemat Golden Eagle includes a bargraph display of RDS injection.

Audemat also has the Navigator and Navigator HD, FM MC5 and other products, current and legacy, that measure injection.

A recent breakthrough in RDS encoding products on the market, the Audemat RDS Encoder 2019 model, includes an FM tuner in the encoder that can be used for continuous RDS injection measurements. This really is a nice touch, and I’m happy that Worldcast/Audemat included an integrated receiver in this product.

This helps close the gap of stations not having the proper equipment to measure RDS injection, as well as other parameters. I’ve heard countless times where an engineer is on-site installing an RDS encoder or making changes to the air chain, only to tell me they do not have a modulation monitor, nor an RDS receiver in their car. The new Audemat RDS Encoder resolves both problems. The tuner’s results are available in the same HTML5 interface that you use to configure the RDS encoder. So, those stations who chose this product can have a 1:1 ratio of RDS encoder and RDS monitoring.

Also, as discussed, having the modulation monitor at the transmitter site yields more accurate results. Having the RDS encoder at the transmitter site is also highly desired and offers optimal transmission of the RDS signal.

Combining these functions into a single device at the transmitter site solves many problems that we have had in the industry of not having the correct test and measurement equipment for RDS.

In Fig. 5, you can see the FM Tuner tab showing the RDS injection as well as decoded PS, RadioText, PTY Code with format name resolution, TA/TP status modes, Alternate Frequency (AF) listings decoded, as well as displaying the PI Code with legacy NRSC-4 callsign back-calculation (does not work on some stations as per NRSC-4-B and NRSC-G-300-C).

Fig. 5: The new Audemat RDS encoder includes a tuner that shows RDS injection and decoded RDS data.

This is a nice combination of hardware to have in the field, and I strongly recommend that other manufacturers consider an integrated tuner to close the test and measurement gap that nearly every broadcast engineer in the field has encountered.

What if I don’t have an analyzer?

The list above offers a comprehensive (but not all inclusive) view of products that are available on the market to measure RDS injection.

Inevitably you may occasionally find yourself in a situation where you do not have a professional injection measuring device at your fingertips. Maybe the station you are working on does not have a monitor that measures injection, or maybe you just forgot to bring it to the site.

While it is typically not quite as accurate, the method discussed below can achieve very good results, especially on a modern exciter.

Temporarily kill the analog FM audio on the station, leaving the stereo pilot and RDS subcarrier online. Many exciters offer a 100% scale (default) and an extended scale that shows 10% to 20% modulation. With the analog audio silent, and if you know the FM pilot injection (you should; it’s an FCC requirement), you can reasonably calculate the RDS injection by subtracting the total modulation minus the FM pilot.

For example, in Fig. 6, we show a GatesAir Flexiva FAX-50 exciter on the test bench, with no analog modulation, 8% 19 kHz stereo pilot injection. The extended modulation scale reads 12.5%, so it can be reasonably assumed that the RDS subcarrier is 12.5% – 8% = 4.5%.

Fig. 6: An example of using an expanded baseband modulation scale to measure RDS injection levels in a pinch. This is from a GatesAir Flexiva FAX-50 exciter on the test bench.

When you are using this method, I strongly recommend running a quick confirmation test by disabling the RDS encoder’s output in software, or disconnecting the SCA BNC output to your air chain temporarily. Total modulation should in this case drop from 12.5% to 8%, thus confirming the 4.5% difference is indeed the RDS subcarrier and not some other source of signal or noise in the measurement.

This trick will get you out of a bind, although it has some downfalls. I strongly recommend using an RDS injection monitor for accuracy, and to minimize disruption to your listeners. After all, this last example requires you to create dead air on the live broadcast station, and often you need to adjust in the encoder’s output, or processor/exciter input stage, prolonging the period of dead air. There’s also the potential of measurement error, since the expanded scale of the exciter is not specifically looking for the 57 kHz subcarrier, and does not decode RDS. Precision matters now that RDS is so visible in the dashboard.

Alan Jurison is a senior operations engineer for iHeartMedia’s Centralized Technical Operations Engineering team. He chairs the NRSC Metadata Usage Working Group. His opinions are not necessarily those of iHeartMedia, the NRSC, Radio World or our sponsors.

The post Best Practices for RDS Subcarrier Injection appeared first on Radio World.

Alan Jurison

Wikipedia Updates Radio Infoboxes

Radio World
4 years 8 months ago
Wikipedia’s New Infobox for Radio Stations

The volunteer editors at Wikipedia are shaking up some of the information included in radio station articles. A new “infobox” — basically a sidebar that provides a quick overview of the article’s subject — has been rolled out for radio stations.

The new template harmonizes the radio and television station infoboxes, reorganizing content and adding several new fields.

It went live on Aug. 8, although some maintenance edits are still being made to finish the migration.

Among the additions to the new infobox is a “licensing authority” field. For U.S. stations, if this is set to FCC and the station’s facility ID is in the infobox, it automatically adds links to the station’s LMS and public file database entries.

The documentation for the new radio station infobox, along with a listing of all the supported fields, can be found here.

Because Wikipedia pages tend to appear high in Google search results, it is worth checking your stations’ articles to see if there is incomplete or missing information, both in the new infobox and the article. However, take care in editing an article. Wikipedia’s rules against promotional and paid editing are strict and it’s easy for a company to run afoul of them.

Readily verifiable information, such as adding the station’s FCC facility ID, RDS program service name, or slogan to the infobox, will likely be uncontroversial.

Adding full program schedules and DJ bios to the article, however, will likely be reverted as too promotional. All changes to articles are tracked and connected to user accounts and/or IP addresses, so if edits are made from an IP address connected to the company, it may be flagged as problematic.

If significant information is missing from the page, consider posting something to the article’s talk page, along with links for verification, and asking an editor to incorporate it into the article.

Wikipedia’s Old Infobox for Radio Stations

On Wikipedia, third-party sources are always preferred, so a newspaper or magazine article is a more trusted source than a station’s website.

If a station logo is missing, one can be uploaded, but encyclopedia’s rules about non-free images can be complicated. Unless a logo is released for public use under a Creative Commons license (basically relinquishing trademark and copyright rights), it must be low resolution and limited to use only in an article infobox. This can be another situation where asking an editor for help may be the best strategy.

For more information about how radio stations are included in Wikipedia, visit WikiProject Radio Stations. The project includes a list of Wikipedians working actively on radio station pages who might be willing to help make sure your station’s page is complete.

 

The post Wikipedia Updates Radio Infoboxes appeared first on Radio World.

T. Carter Ross

Inside the August 12 Issue of Radio World Engineering Extra

Radio World
4 years 8 months ago

In this issue, Cris Alexander and the EE team bring you two special in-depth articles: a look at an RDS best practice topic from data guru Alan Jurison, and the full text of a white paper that Dave Kolesar and Mike Raide had planned to present at this spring’s NAB Show, summarizing and updating their findings about all-digital AM operation.

Read It Online Here.

Prefer to do your reading offline? No problem! Simply click on the link above, go to the left corner and choose the download button to get a PDF version.

Metadata

Best Practices for RDS Subcarrier Injection

With dashboards using so much data, it’s important to maintain proper injection levels.

Digital Radio

A Case Study in All-Digital AM HD Broadcasting

Refinements, performance tests, multicasting and lessons learned at digital station WWFD(AM) in Frederick, Md.

Fundamentals

What to Know About Gain Structure

Larry Wilkins explains why broadcast engineers should take note of this concept even for digital operations.

 

The post Inside the August 12 Issue of Radio World Engineering Extra appeared first on Radio World.

RW Staff

Digital Alert Systems Updates EAS Equipment

Radio World
4 years 8 months ago

Digital Alert Systems has made available an update for the FEMA IPAWS certificate in One-Net and DASDEC units. The current certificate expires in late October. Without the new certificate the units will not function properly within the EAS network after Oct. 28.

[Check Out New Products at Radio World’s Products Section]

Digital Alert Systems EAS Product Manager Jon Rue said, “We encourage our DASDEC and One-Net customers to update their certificate files before Oct. 28 to avoid any message delivery disruption. … While we understand this does take time, our customers should be encouraged to know we are working with FEMA IPAWS to automate this process in the future.”

Go here to learn more and download the needed file.

 

The post Digital Alert Systems Updates EAS Equipment appeared first on Radio World.

RW Staff

Joe Rogan and “The Daily” Add to Audience Strength

Radio World
4 years 8 months ago

Who’s on top of the podcasting world these days?

Media Monitors has released its latest Podcast Listener survey; the findings are shown in three charts below. The results reflect the ongoing popularity of certain podcasts but also the shifting relationships and acquisitions on the business side of podcasting.

Top Shows

Joe Rogan

Media Monitors reported that “The Joe Rogan Experience” and “The Daily” from The New York Times remain at the top, but “both shows seem to have expanded their audiences since our last survey was taken. Each podcast doubled the total number of respondents that reported listening in the past seven days.”

The New York Times’ “1619” enjoyed strong gains, helped by national attention on racial issues including Black Lives Matter.

“Office Ladies” appeared for the first time this quarter, likely drawing on a dedicated fan base from the TV series “The Office.”

“My Favorite Murder” and “Crime Junkie” made repeat appearances, with MFM down somewhat. Comedy podcasts “The Misfits Podcast,” “Ear Biscuits” from Ramble, and “Unlocking Us with Brené Brown” from Cadence13 all were notable.

Top Publishers

Media Monitors noted that the second quarter “saw further consolidation in the podcast space” as Spotify purchased exclusive rights to “Joe Rogan” and SiriusXM closed its deal to buy Midroll/Stitcher/Earwolf.

The latter deal, it said, gives SiriusXM some level of access to Midroll’s represented shows “but it is unclear how that relationship will evolve moving forward.”

Also notable was the recent acquisition of Serial Productions by the New York Times. “Although the exact terms of the deal are unclear (including a reported “’creative and strategic’ partnership with ‘This American Life’), The New York Times has clearly moved to increase their footprint in upper echelon of podcasting.”

Two NPR’ daily news programs broke int the Top 25: “Up First” and “Consider This from NPR.” MM also recommended keeping an eye on Crooked Media, breaking into its Top 25 chart with “Pod Save America.”

iHeartMedia has the most podcasts in the top 200, 13 podcasts. “These include a mix of their radio-first properties published in podcast form, as well as their podcast-first Stuff Media properties. Coming in second is NPR with 12, followed by Wondery with 8. This seems to bode well for Wondery’s new standalone app and premium service, debuted in June.”

MM added that The New York Times (tied at 7) would jump to #4 if combined with This American Life & Serial Productions.

Top Genres

Comedy (including sub-categories) remains the most popular genre in the survey, while news is tied with society and culture at #2; also popular are true crime and sports.

Media Monitors is a network and local monitoring company that covers various media; its survey was conducted in late June. Participants had to be 18 or over and were screened on whether they had listened to a podcast in the last week, then were asked to list the titles, and were encouraged to consult their app during the survey. These “unassisted” responses were then matched back to RSS feeds that were polled to collect info about genre and publisher.

The post Joe Rogan and “The Daily” Add to Audience Strength appeared first on Radio World.

Paul McLane

FCC Continues Its Campaign of Political File Settlements

Radio World
4 years 8 months ago

The Federal Communications Commission continues almost daily to announce new settlements in the form of consent decrees with various U.S. radio broadcast companies that were not complying with the rules about their political files.

You’ll recall that in late July the commission announced consent decrees covering six big-name radio companies. (Read about that here.) We reported subsequently that the commission has been using the same template with a growing list of broadcasters.

More have been posted over the past couple of weeks. A sampling of the most recent includes agreements with Liberty in Christ Jesus Ministry, Sun Broadcasting, Heidelberg Broadcasting, Radio Fiesta, Thornburg Communications and Glades Media.

The basic pattern throughout is that the Audio Division of the Media Bureau suspends consideration of a company’s station license renewals, then determines that the broadcaster hasn’t complied with the political file rules, presumably through analysis of information that stations have posted (or not posted) in its online database.

It then gets the company to agree to a series of compliance steps and reporting. At that point the commission says it won’t investigate further, and lifts the suspension. The agreements don’t involve financial penalties.

The consent decrees all use much the same language, including a historical discussion of the need for political files and a statement that the FCC has taken into consideration the difficulties that radio stations face because of the pandemic.

The rules state that radio stations must maintain records of requests for schedules of ad time from candidates and certain issue advertisers, and of deals resulting from those requests. The records must include what advertising aired, advertising preempted, and the timing of any make-goods, along with other information.

Since March 2018 all radio stations were supposed to be uploading new public and political files to the FCC’s online site. More info about the rules can be found here.

The post FCC Continues Its Campaign of Political File Settlements appeared first on Radio World.

Paul McLane

NAB Show New York Will Spread Over 10 Days Online

Radio World
4 years 8 months ago

The pandemic has been tough on trade show planners, no question. But with no physical convention center to occupy, event organizers at least are free to experiment with different formats.

Witness what the National Association of Broadcasters is doing with its NAB Show New York. It will hold that event this year virtually, which is no surprise at this point; but it will also spread it out over a 10-day period.

Executive Vice President of NAB Conventions Chris Brown said in an announcement that the association is “continuing to evolve the digital event model.” He mentioned a more robust platform and enhanced experience for participants as selling points.

The content of NAB Show New York targets the television, film, online video, live events, podcasting, advertising, corporate A/V, production and post business segments. Typically the show is co-located with the AES convention at the Javits Center in New York.

Brown said the 10-day virtual format offers “a longer, more flexible schedule that optimize opportunities for conducting business, networking and peer-to-peer learning.”

In lieu of exhibit booths, the event includes a marketplace that will feature “immersive tours, new product demonstrations, authoritative white papers, and live chats with representatives from exhibiting companies.”

The fall Radio Show also will be held virtually, on Oct. 5 to 9.

The post NAB Show New York Will Spread Over 10 Days Online appeared first on Radio World.

Paul McLane

Radio World to Stream “Fall Product Peeks 2020”

Radio World
4 years 8 months ago

A new 30-minute Radio World webcast explores new products from several of radio’s leading technology vendors.

Editor in Chief Paul McLane spends a few minutes with each of the manufacturers listed below to learn what they are offering for radio broadcasters. The format is intended to be fast-moving so you can learn about new products without taking up a lot of your day.

You can register here; the webcast goes live on Aug. 26, registrants will receive a reminder email.

From RCS Worldwide, Nate Mumford discusses the company’s cloud-based remote offerings. Though working outside the studio, your radio staff can continue to add audio, metadata or schedules as well as massage a log, automatically send a music log to automation and stream from any location. He also covers brand-new unique hybrid workflows between RCS products.

At Wheatstone, Jay Tyler introduces the Blade 4, a new WheatNet-IP I/O access unit coming out this fall. He explains what’s new in AoIP architecture and walks you through Blade 4 features, including dual ports and power supplies; new onboard apps; advanced source attribution for automating routing and control; codec integration with the AoIP network; and interoperability improvements using AES67 and NMOS.

Marty Sacks of Telos Alliance explains how the Axia Quasar AoIP Console builds on the company’s deep AoIP expertise. He describes its native AoIP architecture; features like new Source profiles, automatic mix-minus and automixing on all channels; and highly customizable design including user-assignable buttons in the Master touchscreen module and every channel strip. Marty also sets the stage for the future of consoles — hardware, software, cloud — based on the needs of the user.

And WideOrbit’s William “Dub” Irvin talks about how WO Automation for Radio helps stations manageoperations from any location. The conversation includes a sneak peek into v5.0, available soon, which allows for full control of the automation system, including true voice tracking and recording capabilities, through native apps that can be installed and used from anywhere.

This is a free sponsored webcast, part of Radio World’s ongoing series about radio and audio products and technology trends. Register here.

The post Radio World to Stream “Fall Product Peeks 2020” appeared first on Radio World.

Paul McLane

BIA Lowers Local Ad Spending Projections Again

Radio World
4 years 8 months ago

We already knew that U.S. commercial radio was going to bring in a lot less money from local advertising this year; but the latest projection is not any more encouraging.

BIA Advisory Services expects over-the-air radio advertising to finish at about $11.2 billion for 2020. Its prior projection four months ago was $11.4 billion; and before the pandemic, BIA originally had projected that OTA radio would bring in about $13.1 billion.

So this latest forecast suggests a –15% differential from “what might have been” for radio this year.

More broadly, the research company predicts that spending on all local advertising in the U.S. will be down about 6% despite strong anticipated political advertising, as shown here:

The firm lowered its previous estimates in almost all media categories. It now projects total 2020 local ad spending at $140.4 billion, down from a projection of $144.3 billion four months ago.

Mark Fratrik

Its chief economist Mark Fratrik said in the announcement, “Right now, we believe a realistic view of the economy overall and the advertising marketplace is that after a dramatic decrease in the second-quarter and a bumpy start to the third, the remainder of the year will turn positive but end up with an overall decline in local advertising for the year.”

He pointed to local political ad spending as one positive area, with campaigns making more use of online rallies and events. Segments showing “some COVID resilience” include healthcare and finance & insurance, but even those are down in terms of overall ad revenue spending.

The post BIA Lowers Local Ad Spending Projections Again appeared first on Radio World.

Paul McLane

Pagination

  • First page « First
  • Previous page ‹ Previous
  • …
  • Page 917
  • Page 918
  • Page 919
  • Page 920
  • Current page 921
  • Page 922
  • Page 923
  • Page 924
  • Page 925
  • …
  • Next page Next ›
  • Last page Last »

REC Essentials

  • FCC.TODAY
  • FCCdata.org
  • myLPFM Station Management
  • REC site map

The More You Know...

  • Unlicensed Broadcasting
  • Class D Stations for Alaska
  • Broadcasting in Japan
  • Our Jingles

Other REC sites

  • J1 Radio
  • REC Delmarva FM
  • Japan Earthquake Information
  • API for developers

But wait, there's more!

  • Join NFCB
  • Pacifica Network
  • LPFM Wiki
  • Report a bug with an REC system

Copyright © REC Networks - All Rights Reserved
EU cookie policy

Please show your support by using the Ko-Fi link at the bottom of the page. Thank you for supporting REC's efforts!