Radio Survivor

At the end of last month the FCC released its tallies for the total number of broadcast stations in the US as of Sept. 31, 2009 and Dec. 31, 2009. When you see the big number of 14,420 full-service radio stations it’s a big reminder that radio is still an enormous media presence in this country. This total represents an increase of 23 stations just from the end of September.

Here’s the breakdown for all radio types:

Full-power stations

• AM stations – 4790
• FM commercial stations – 6479
• FM educational stations – 3151
  TOTAL 14,420

  FM translator and booster stations – 6155

  Low-power FM stations – 864

  Grand total: 21,439

Note that FM translators and boosters are low-power stations that may not originate their own programming. They may only retransmit the signal of a full-power station. I’m pretty sure that a very large percentage of translators are non-commercial, thought I don’t have the exact number at hand. This is because the rules for non-comm translators are much looser than for commercial ones. A non-comm translator may be located any distance away from the station it retransmits, whereas a commercial translator must be located within its mother station’s expected broadcast range.

Educational stations encompass all non-commercial stations that have NCE licenses, including college, school, religious, community and public stations. The FCC does not distinguish between them.

Even though many observers have tuned out of radio, it’s going to be a long time before 21,439 broadcast stations are going to be abandoned and forgotten.

Next Tuesday the Federal Communications Commission will reveal the entirety of its National Broadband Plan, over a year in the making. Required by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which authorized $7.2 billion in broadband stimulus spending, The Plan will weigh in on about a thousand broadband related subjects—how to help more people get it, how to help industries provide it, ways to encourage innovations that the FCC hopes will stimulate more broadband adoption, like IP video.

The chances are, though, that it won’t have much to say about radio

Oh yes, it will talk about “radio” spectrum a whole lot—in the sense of licenses from 500 KHz to 2.5 GHz that licensees use to transmit video, voice, text, audio, and whatever. But unlike every other broadband related medium, from social networking through web video, almost no one has anything to say on a policy level about radio delivered over high speed Internet, either through desktops, laptops, netbooks, or smartphones.

Indirectly, however, the National Broadband Plan will no doubt have an impact on both Internet and broadcast radio. Here are my speculations as to why and how. But nota bene, this is strictly thinking out loud stuff; as the saying goes, ‘I’m just talking.’ (more…)

Last month the Federal Communications Commission announced new rules that will give Native Americans “tribal priority” when it comes to applying for radio licenses. Now the agency may extend that principle to wireless licenses as well. Here’s what FCC Chair Julius Genachowski told the National Congress of Native Americans today:

“The Commission recently adopted rules giving priority to Tribes in getting broadcast radio licenses in Tribal communities. These rules will give precedence to federally-recognized American Indian Tribes and Alaska Native Villages that want to set up new radio stations that serve communities on Tribal lands. Many of the comments we received in the broadband context encouraged the FCC to establish a similar priority for wireless licenses. The National Broadband Plan will recommend that the Commission look at expanding any Tribal priority policy to include the process for licensing fixed and mobile wireless licenses covering Tribal lands.”

That’s the National Broadband Plan that the FCC will release on March 16, BTW. This can’t come too soon as far as I’m concerned. Broadband penetration out on the res is somewhere between five and ten percent, according to FCC stats. Even plain old telephone penetration is only around 65 percent.

On top of that, Genachowski says the NBP will propose:

· Creating a separate Tribal Broadband Fund to support sustainable deployment and adoptionprograms in Indian Country;

· Providing funding to upgrade connectivity for federal facilities on Tribal lands,  including those managed by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Bureau of Indian Education, and the Indian Health Service; and

· Allowing more members of the Tribal community to share connectivity funded by the E-rate and Rural Health Care programs.

Those last programs come out of the FCC’s Universal Service Fund. The Health Care program finances connectivity for rural medical centers; E-Rate offers cash to wire up schools and libraries. Despite the huge digital divide, there’s a lot of really creative wireless stuff going on in Indian country. Hopefully this will bring out more.

As Federal Communications Commission watchers everywhere know, a huge part of the agency’s strategy to build out the nation’s broadband infrastructure will be to get more spectrum licenses to the wireless industry. In fact, FCC Chair Julius Genachowski says the Commission’s National Broadband Plan will propose freeing up 500 MHz over the next decade. And then there’s this comment from Genachowski, which has me scratching my head a bit:

“The Plan proposes resolving longstanding debates about how to maximize the value of spectrum in bands such as the Mobile Satellite Service (MSS) or Wireless Communications Service (WCS) by giving  licensees the option of new flexibility to put the spectrum toward mobile broadband use—or the option of voluntarily transferring the license to someone else who will.”

We’ve been watching the WCS fight for a while here at Radio Survivor, and (more significantly) so have Volvo, Ford, Chrysler, Comcast, AT&T, NextWave, and quite a few members of the House of Representatives, all of whom have communicated with the FCC on this matter (Mercedes-Benz just filed a week ago).

Here again is the “longstanding debate,” in a nutshell. As the table below indicates, Sirius XM transmits its content over spectrum very close in proximity to the Wireless Communications Services band. (more…)

Actual students doing college radio

It was some pretty exciting news from the FCC on Tuesday, when they announced the list of 59 organizations who won the non-commercial educational radio license lottery. Although I was thrilled for some of the winners, as a college radio observer, I was saddened and surprised to see that very few colleges or educational institutions applied for these coveted licenses.

As Paul reported on Wednesday, the largest percentage of new licenses went to religious groups (at least 17), whereas only a handful were awarded to educational institutions (colleges, primary or secondary schools). In some cases college radio applicants lost the race against religious groups due to the complex point system (looking at local ownership, population served, etc.) that the FCC uses in its decision-making.

Scanning through the FCC’s grid of groups who applied and won, it’s often quite difficult to figure out which are actually affiliated with educational institutions. For example, Central Florida Educational Foundation (which won a new license) operates a whole network of 10 non-commercial Christian radio stations in Florida.

A closer look at the 7 winners in the college/primary/secondary school category reveals that only a few are likely to have any sort of student involvement in the resulting radio stations. Two of the groups already run networks of religious stations, one runs a LPFM community station, and another runs a public radio station. Of the remaining three institutions, one has both public and student radio stations, another has a broadcasting program, yet no station, and a third currently owns the license for a student station.

So, the question from me is, why didn’t more colleges/universities/high schools go for it back in 2007 and apply for these new radio licenses? It’s clear that religious groups are organized and have the funding to pursue radio expansion, but it saddens me that college radio for the most part sat on the sidelines while these licenses were doled out to groups with a very different take on educational radio. The Future of Music Coalition has a great fact sheet that gives a bit of perspective on the process for obtaining these licenses and it’s a good reminder that financial considerations are probably a key reason why college stations might have been scared off from applying.

Here are the college radio groups who won: (more…)

The Parents Television Council has a message for Sirius radio shock jock Howard Stern’s reported plans to join American Idol: No pasará—he shall not pass.

“WHEREAS Howard Stern is one of the most profane, sexually-explicit and anti-family performers in the history of the broadcast medium;” declares the PTC’s latest resolution and petition (which the group would like you to sign), “and in discussing the possibility of becoming a judge on American Idol on his radio program gave audiences a preview of what he would bring to the table as a judge, talking about getting ‘little boys hard’.”

And, if the reports about this prove true . . .

“We [you, if you sign the petition] will no longer watch the program; we will share our concern with our friends, family and others in our social circle; and we will contact every sponsor and urge them to consider whether they should associate their corporate image with a man who talks about ‘getting little boys hard.’  And if Stern says anything that we feel is in violation of broadcast decency laws, we will take immediate action by filing complaints with the Federal Communications Commission against our local Fox affiliate.  We ask you to immediately repudiate these rumors and commit publicly to keeping American Idol safe for family viewing.” (more…)

Federally recognized Native American Tribes and Alaska Native Villages who apply for AM or FM radio stations will get “Tribal Priority” status, thanks to an FCC decision released today. Tribal Priority will give precedence to their applications or to companies controlled by tribes that want to set up stations intended to serve tribal land areas.

“More tribally-owned stations will mean new opportunities for these rural communities,” predicted FCC Commissioner Michael Copps, who supported the Order, “economic advancement from construction activity to erect broadcast facilities; advertisements for goods and services geared especially to tribal audiences and markets; career and employment opportunities in media-related fields; outlets for the distribution of diverse cultural programming and viewpoints, as well as public safety information for tribal lands. This initiative goes to the heart of localism.”

There are about 14,000 radio stations in the  United States, and 41 are licensed to federal recognized tribes. That’s less than a third of one percent of the total. To get technical, the FCC is giving Native Americans “Section 307(b) priority,” that being the language in the Communications Act that requires the Commission to “make such distribution of licenses, frequencies, hours of operation, and of power among the several States and communities as to provide a fair, efficient, and equitable distribution of radio service to each of the same.”

The FCC is adding some caveats to this windfall. Station owners who get Section 307(b) priority status won’t be able to downgrade their service level. But the agency is also looking into giving Native  American applicants extra bidding credits when they apply for stations.

The discussion leading up to this decision was somewhat contentious, with various groups, including the Catholic Radio Association, charging that Tribal Priority would represent an unfair or even race/identity based form of preference. But Native Public Media, which advocates for Native Americans, noted that the policy would not run afoul of various affirmative action standards, because Native Americans are classified “not as a discrete racial group, but, rather, as members of quasi-sovereign tribal entities whose lives and activities are governed by the [Bureau of Indian Affairs] in a unique fashion.”

Looks like that logic won the FCC over. “Tribes are uniquely situated to provide programming meeting their members’ needs,” the Order notes.  “The existence of a non-tribal commercial station or stations at a community located on tribal lands should not, in our view, preclude the establishment of a first local transmission service owned by a Tribe or Tribes.”

Do you know where your station's public file is?

One of the things that every radio DJ learns during training is the importance of a station’s “public file.”

Every FCC-licensed broadcast station in the United States is required to maintain a public inspection file, containing a number of items including documents pertaining to a station’s license and ownership.

The file should also house FCC complaints, a political file (with details on requests for purchase of airtime by political candidates, etc.), letters and emails from the public (only required of commercial stations), the manual “The Public and Broadcasting,” an issues/programs list related to public service programming, a list of donors, and a number of other items required by the FCC.

If a member of the public enters a radio or TV station requesting to see a station’s public file, they are supposed to be granted access to those documents. Part of the rationale for this is to ensure that stations are serving the public interest.

Unfortunately, some stations (and station staffs) are unclear on the rules regarding public files; so have been hit with hefty fines when they did not comply with public requests.

In the most recent incident, Gaston College radio station WSGE in Dallas, North Carolina was levied a fine of $8,000 by the FCC for “willfully and repeatedly violating Section 73.3527 of the Commission’s rules relating to a noncommercial licensee’s obligation to properly maintain and make available a public inspection file.”

According to the FCC’s forfeiture order (dated January 29, 2010), a member of the public was refused access to the radio station’s public file during regular business hours and was told to make an appointment with the station’s attorney. Upon return to the station, he was eventually given access to the file and complained to the FCC that certain items were either missing or incomplete.

What’s interesting (and alarming) about this case is the station’s allegation that the individual who came to the station requesting access to the file was from a religious institution with a vested interest in trying to get the Gaston College station kicked off the air. According to the FCC’s Forfeiture Order:

“Gaston College characterized the Complainant’s behavior during the first visit as ‘hostile,’ and asked the Bureau to view the Complaint in the context of its past dealings with the Complainant’s employer, Columbia Bible College.

In this regard, Gaston College contended that Columbia Bible College has been engaged in a ‘pattern of harassment and intimidation’ by pursuing FCC proceedings against Gaston College, and that Columbia Bible College’s actions, through the Complainant, are motivated by its prior unsuccessful efforts to acquire the Station. Gaston College alleged that Columbia Bible College is attempting to misuse the Commission’s processes to force the licensee to sell the Station.”

This is enough to send chills up the spine of every college radio station staffer and is a good reminder for stations to get their files in order and instruct all station staff on procedures in regard to requests from the public to view the public file.

At the same time, it’s disturbing to think that there are groups out there who are focused on filing complaints with the FCC in order to get stations kicked off the air.

Looks like the Sirius XM satellite radio service has brought out some big automotive guns in its feud with the  WCS Coalition over tower interference concerns  between wireless and satellite services.  Ford, Volvo, and Chrysler have  written to the Federal Communications Commission to back Sirius on the question.

“We urge the FCC to be cautious and ensure that satellite radio is not degraded by changing the established rules for WCS operations,” Ford told the FCC on January 26. “Sirius XM Radio has spent billions of dollars developing networks that are based on the understanding that mobile WCS devices would not interfere. Automakers have installed tens of millions of satellite radios in their vehicles with that same understanding. Unlike cell phones, automobiles are notdiscarded every year or two – these satellite radios will remain operational and in circulation for years to come.”

Ditto says Volvo using pretty much the same language. And don’t forget, warns Chrysler, “Unlike cell phone service where momentary blips or degradation are easily overcome, satellite radio provides high-quality audio and music  where drop-outs and interruptions are neither expected nor tolerated by subscribers, in large part because competing audio services typically provide error free service.”

As we have reported, the close proximity of the Wireless Communications Services band to the Sirius XM satellite band in the 2.3 GHz area has caused quite a bit of contention about whether WCS activity interferes or could mess with Sirius XM transmissions, especially if various spectrum holders start offering broadband on those frequencies. Sirius insists that coexistence scenarios proposed by the WCS Coalition pose a threat. The coalition, which represents the license area’s owners (among them AT&T, Comcast, and NextWave) say that Sirius’ claims are exaggerated.

Indeed, “The Sun, The Moon And The Stars Must Align For Interference To Occur,” reads one WCS Powerpoint slide.

This feud has been going on for several years now. In fact it predates discussion of the Sirius XM merger. I’m unclear as to when the FCC plans to apply the elbow grease necessary to resolve the issue, but my latest theory is that the policy of the agency is to wait until the  sun turns into a Red Dwarf, thus making the problem moot.

The FCC has begun a more extensive probe of wireless ETFs, evident in a letter they sent to AT&T, Google, Sprint Nextel, T-Mobile, and Verizon Wireless yesterday. The letters, written by the FCC Consumer Bureau Chief, Joel Gurin, and the Wireless  Bureau Chief, Ruth Milkman, requests each company to provide information relating to facts and data on “the consumer experience in the wireless termination fees” with the purpose of “gather[ing] information about whether customers are adequately informed about [insert company]’s Early Termination Fees (‘ETFs’) for wireless service.”

The letter states that the existing ETFs are “substantial” and that the FCC believes that “it is essential that consumers fully understand what they are signing up for.” It also states that there is a growing concern over the fact that “there is no standard framework for structuring and applying ETFs throughout the wireless industry,” and that companies with no ETF policy actually exist.

Requesting each company to provide proof of how they publicize ETFs to consumers, the letter continues on to pose twelve specific questions: (more…)