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General Category => General Radio Discussion => Topic started by: Fansome on May 09, 2018, 0417 UTC

Title: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: Fansome on May 09, 2018, 0417 UTC
Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
By
Radio Ink -
May 8, 2018

U.S. Representative Leonard Lance of New Jersey introduced a bill to Congress on Tuesday to fight illegal pirate radio operators. The PIRATE Act, ‘‘Preventing Illegal Radio Abuse Through Enforcement Act’’ calls for an increased penalty of up to $2,000,000 for anyone convicted of operating a pirate station across the nation. The legislation also mandates the FCC to perform “Pirate Sweeps” no less than twice a year in the country’s top five radio markets to uncover pirate radio operations.

New Jersey Broadcasters Association President & CEO Paul Rotella said, “This is a significant national enhancement of penalty and enforcement for those who would violate our airwaves and should give such offenders pause. The NJBA has been advancing this initiative for many years now and Congressman Lance has championed this legislation in an effort to protect communities from the harmful and potentially life-threatening consequences of the many illegal pirates operating in or near New Jersey.”

New York State Broadcasters Association President David Donovan added, “For too long the citizens of New York have endured the harm caused by illegal pirate radio stations. These stations: 1) interfere with the Emergency Alert System (EAS); 2) interfere with FAA and airport communications; 3) emit levels of RF radiation into local neighborhoods that are above government standards; 3) ignore all consumer protection laws; and 4) blatantly transgress all FCC rules and regulations. We strongly support the PIRATE Act. The PIRATE Act will give the FCC the tools to protect consumers and take illegal pirate operators off the air. We look forward to working with the bill’s 14 initial co-sponsors as well as other members of the House and Senate to move forward with this important legislation.”

NAB Executive Vice President of Communications Dennis Wharton said, “NAB thanks Reps. Leonard Lance, Paul Tonko, Chris Collins and their fellow cosponsors for the bipartisan introduction of the PIRATE Act, which provides the FCC with enhanced penalties and additional tools to take action against illegal pirate radio operations. Pirate radio is a real threat to public health and safety, causes interference to legal radio broadcasts and flouts the rule of law.”

Rotella said most people do not understand the danger pirate radio operators put the public in through their illegal transmissions. “These pirate radio stations cause interference to the Emergency Alert System, and FAA frequencies that could interfere with airline communications and also create excessive, unmeasured RF radiation to residents and businesses in the buildings they operate in, which may present significant health concerns.

Wharton also gave a shout out to the FCC. “Broadcasters also thank FCC Commissioner Michael O’Rielly for his longstanding leadership on this issue, and Chairman Ajit Pai and his Enforcement Bureau staff’s commitment to pirate radio enforcement. NAB strongly supports this legislation to provide greater enforcement tools to the Commission and will work with members of Congress in the House and Senate on its swift passage.”

Rotella concluded, “The NJBA applauds Congressman Lance’s insight in recognizing the harm caused by pirate radio stations and for his determined and thoughtful approach to rectifying this hazardous and unacceptable condition with his proposed legislation.”
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: Matt_B on May 09, 2018, 0515 UTC
Seriously? Hoping this crap does not pass. 

The big broadcasters say the same thing, over and over again...."pirates interfere with us! They've got to be stopped".  Meanwhile, they have 100,000 watt transmitters, and translators/FM outlets for even the strongest stations (WFAN, I'm talking to you.  You can be heard in the Carolinas, for God's sake....why in the hell do you need an FM signal?).  Compare that to most unlicensed stations that have, I don't know, maybe ten watts of power (the output level of an average light bulb)? You don't have to be a rocket scientist to figure out that the 100,000 watt stations will blow a ten watt operation away. 

The reality of the situation is that in the radio business, you have to "pay to play", maybe in more ways than one.  Unless you know someone who works for the big boys as an executive, good luck with that.  "Interference"? The only thing that unlicensed radio interferes with is the big broadcasting groups ability to make a dollar (which they don't seem to be doing anyway).  Note to the big boys....that's called COMPETITIONQuit griping about unlicensed stations which are hurting nobody, and leave the free market to its own devices!

Sorry for the rant, just had to get this off my chest. 
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: redhat on May 09, 2018, 1550 UTC
From another industry newsletter...

Quote
“PIRATE Act” is officially introduced in the House.

Reps. Leonard Lance (R-NJ), Paul Tonko (D-NY) and Chris Collins (R-NY) and their co-sponsors drop the “Preventing Illegal Radio Abuse Through Enforcement Act” into the hopper, to the applause of the NAB and the New Jersey Broadcasters Association. The bill looks like the discussion draft (March 21 NOW) – fines of up to $2 million for “any person who willfully and knowingly” engages in running an unlicensed station. Same potential fine for those who “facilitate” it (like landlords). Daily fines up to $100,000. There would be “biannual sweeps” by FCC enforcement personnel in the “top five radio markets identified as prevalent for such broadcasts.” Those sweeps “shall include identifying, locating and terminating such operations” – and “seizing related equipment.” The NAB’s Dennis Wharton thanks the House backers of the PIRATE Act, “which provides the FCC with enhanced penalties and additional tools.” NAB also gives a shout-out to FCC Commissioner Mike O’Rielly “for his longstanding leadership on this issue.” O’Rielly colorfully says “I think the PIRATE Act has a great chance of becoming law and helping stomp-out this illegal activity.” That may be the first use of “stomp-out” by a Commissioner. The NJBA’s Paul Rotella points out that “unlike New Jersey, which has a statute against pirates, many states do not have such laws.” In the Garden State, pirates face up to $10,000 in fines and 18 months in prison.

In all fairness, there are some FM pirates that are making things TFU for everyone else.  And it is true that the current licensing system has no provision for small communities to have their own voice.  Hatian pirates in NYC or NJ running several hundred watts from an apartment complex using the cheapest chinese gear they could find are asking for trouble, especially because most of these folks are not technical and do not understand the risk they are taking.  Unfortunately, since the translator boom, any free spectrum is gone, and the chance of the commission rolling that back is almost nil. 

+-RH
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: ChrisSmolinski on May 09, 2018, 1603 UTC
Full text of the bill: https://docs.house.gov/meetings/IF/IF16/20180322/108059/BILLS-115pih-HR___-U13.pdf
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: Traveling Wave on May 09, 2018, 1621 UTC
The Definition Section of the Bill  defines Pirate Radio Broadcasting... " as communications on spectrum frequencies between 535 to 1705 kHz or 88 to 108 MHz (AM or FM broadcast bands) without a license issued by the Federal Communications Commission,"... This restriction in the spectrum sounds like the FCC is more concerned with interference to the Big Boys market.
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: Skipmuck on May 09, 2018, 2121 UTC
The Tennessean
'Bobby Bones Show' fake alerts to cost iHeartMedia $1M
Nate Rau, USA TODAY NETWORK - Tennessee Published 2:20 p.m. CT May 19, 2015 | Updated 8:45 a.m. CT May 25, 2017



The Federal Communications Commission fined iHeartMedia $1 million for a 2014 incident in which Nashville-based "The Bobby Bones Show" broadcast fake emergency alerts during the nationally syndicated program.

The FCC has been cracking down on misuse of the Emergency Alert System, fining major media outlets such as Viacom, ESPN, Univision and others. Fines have totaled $2.5 million in the past six months.

"The public counts on EAS tones to alert them to real emergencies," chief of the FCC's enforcement bureau, Travis LeBlanc, said. "Misuse of the Emergency Alert System jeopardizes the nation's public safety, falsely alarms the public and undermines confidence in the Emergency Alert System."

The incident took place Oct. 24 when "The Bobby Bones Show" transmitted the EAS tone to its entire syndicated audience, the FCC said in a media release. Bones was discussing hearing the tone during a broadcast of the World Series, when he played the tone for his national audience from inside WSIX-FM studio in Nashville.


"This false emergency alert was sent to more than 70 affiliated stations airing 'The Bobby Bones Show' and resulted in some of these stations retransmitting the tones, setting of a multi-state cascade of false EAS alerts on radios and televisions in multiple states."


The FCC uses the system to alert listeners to natural disasters and other public safety emergencies.

As part of the settlement, iHeartMedia admits it broadcast the tones and violated FCC laws. In addition to the $1 million fine, the company is required to implement a comprehensive compliance plan and delete EAS simulated tones from its audio production libraries.

After the news release went out from the FCC and media outlets began covering the fine, Bones tweeted, "BREAKING: a monkey just climbed off my back."
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: Skipmuck on May 09, 2018, 2124 UTC
Florida TV Station Fined for Misuse of EAS Tones
Published June 6, 2017
It Starts at the Top…


The day after Memorial Day will be memorable for one Florida TV station but not for the right reasons. May 30 2017 is when WTLV TV and the FCC agreed to a Consent Decree ending an investigation into the station’s violations of EAS rules. The FCC cited WTLV TV for airing commercials last August which included EAS tones with an audio message assuring the audience that “this is not a test”. The ad went on to promote the local National Football League Team, the Jacksonville Jaguars.

While you can debate whether the $55,000 penalty included in the agreement is countered by the publicity generated for the team and the station, that certainly wasn’t the only expense Multimedia Holdings, the owners of WTLV’s license, paid to settle the matter. The terms of the Consent Decree also call for the station to implement a “compliance and reporting plan” on the proper use of EAS tones. In addition to the paperwork, there are the fees and costs incurred by the station’s attorneys over the nine months of negotiations and the fact that the station will have to remind everyone at the FCC about the settlement and fine again in 2020 when they apply for their license renewal.

The normal first reaction here might be to blame an over-zealous Account Executive for the idea of using EAS tones in a commercial. But it’s not likely that only one person was responsible for this blatant violation of long-standing FCC rules. Not only did someone write a commercial which incorporated EAS tones and verbiage, someone had to produce the commercial, including the EAS tones. Presumably–because an NFL spot has got to be a Big Deal even for a station like WTLV–someone had to review the commercial before it went to traffic and air. That’s a lot of TV station “someone’s” who didn’t think there was anything wrong with using EAS tones and a “this is not a test” message to promote a football team.

It’s sad to think that two years after the Bobby Bones debacle the staff of a major market TV station in the heart of hurricane country didn’t know that there was a FCC rule against using EAS tones for anything other than an EAS activation. Ultimately, the WTLV management pulled the ad, but not before someone noticed the EAS tones and filed an FCC complaint.

Apparently the time has passed when everyone at a radio or TV station knew the basic rules of broadcasting, including those involving EAS. It didn’t help that we relegated EAS to rack rooms and engineers only. Today our engineers are more about IT than broadcast. However, ignorance of the law is not an excuse and because management is ultimately responsible for what happens at a station, as your EAS State Chair, I’m asking all station managers “Do you know what’s on your air?”

For more information and questions about EAS rules, contact me.

Adrienne Abbott, nevadaeas@charter.net

Posted in Engineering, In the News
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: redhat on May 09, 2018, 2246 UTC
I take it your point is that the big boys don't play by the rules either?

+-RH
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: Skipmuck on May 09, 2018, 2329 UTC
I take it your point is that the big boys don't play by the rules either?

+-RH

(https://i.imgur.com/JLaHwCk.jpg)

Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: JimIO on May 09, 2018, 2335 UTC
If you tried to explain that the 2nd harmonic of an FM station ends up in the High VHF TV band it would blow the pinhead politicians mind.
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: redhat on May 09, 2018, 2355 UTC
True, although I have seen a few cases where spurious products, due to equipment failure or mixing products, wind up in the aviation band.  I've also heard more than a few stories of the big boys in major markets doing less-than-ethical things.  Greed breeds corruption on all levels.

Skip, a picture is worth a 1000 words ;)

+-RH
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: Traveling Wave on May 10, 2018, 1229 UTC
WTLV TV is one of 47 TEGNA Inc. TV stations. I find it interesting, after reading the FCC Consent Decree, that such a large company did not have an EAS compliance plan, nor did they have a compliance officer or corporate compliance officer responsible for EAS activity. Did fine fit the crime ?
 TEGNA Inc. (NYSE: TGNA) is an innovative media company that serves the greater good of our communities. With 47 television stations and two radio stations in 39 markets, TEGNA delivers relevant content and information to consumers across platforms. It is the largest owner of top 4 affiliates in the top 25 markets, reaching approximately one-third of all television households natiowide. Each month, TEGNA reaches 50 million adults on-air and approximately 35 million across its digital platforms.

“Laws are like cobwebs, which may catch small flies, but let wasps and hornets break through.”
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: Pigmeat on May 10, 2018, 1838 UTC
Where are the vocal stylings of Jimmy The Weasel when they're needed?

Tim Leary got bounced from Pacifica for announcing fake whale pods off Santa Barbara back about 1980. He had traffic tied up for miles. He'd been making up the news for a good while, but that incident did him in. That's what you get for putting Tim behind a live mic for three hours.
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: Skipmuck on May 10, 2018, 2146 UTC
Where are the vocal stylings of Jimmy The Weasel when they're needed?

Tim Leary got bounced from Pacifica for announcing fake whale pods off Santa Barbara back about 1980. He had traffic tied up for miles. He'd been making up the news for a good while, but that incident did him in. That's what you get for putting Tim behind a live mic for three hours.

Born   Timothy Francis Leary
October 22, 1920
Springfield, Massachusetts, U.S.

Geez....one of the most infamous of the psychedelic fringe element hails from my hometown. Times have changed.....

TURN ON (The radio)
TUNE IN (The pirate stations)
DROP OUT (ummm....the band goes long?    ;D )
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: Azimuth Coordinator on May 11, 2018, 0311 UTC
It will be interesting to see how this plays out the first time they find a "Pirate"  in say Newark or East New York.  And how it affects the Part 15 Ops.. 

Coincidentally  Leonard Lance's wife is Heidi A. Rohrbach, who is a VP at JPMorgan Chase  You know the people who Clear Channel owe lot's of money to...   Just saying

tAC
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: TheRelayStation on May 11, 2018, 0339 UTC
in my opinion, this is a useless deterrent against FM pirates (the bad ones) because the FCC simply cannot collect the money from an individual citizen, they dont have the authority and until congress gives them the authority, this problem (as they claim it is) will continue despite the increase in the amount of fines levied.
red-hat once described the situation as a "whack-a-mole", that is exactly what it is.
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: MDK2 on May 11, 2018, 1548 UTC
in my opinion, this is a useless deterrent against FM pirates (the bad ones) because the FCC simply cannot collect the money from an individual citizen, they dont have the authority and until congress gives them the authority, this problem (as they claim it is) will continue despite the increase in the amount of fines levied.
red-hat once described the situation as a "whack-a-mole", that is exactly what it is.

This is incredible to me. How can they levy fines but not have any power to collect them? Try not paying your credit card bill or a traffic ticket for a few months and watch what happens.
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: TheRelayStation on May 11, 2018, 1615 UTC
in my opinion, this is a useless deterrent against FM pirates (the bad ones) because the FCC simply cannot collect the money from an individual citizen, they dont have the authority and until congress gives them the authority, this problem (as they claim it is) will continue despite the increase in the amount of fines levied.
red-hat once described the situation as a "whack-a-mole", that is exactly what it is.

This is incredible to me. How can they levy fines but not have any power to collect them? Try not paying your credit card bill or a traffic ticket for a few months and watch what happens.
there was an article i read that explained why the FCC doesnt have the authority to collect levied fines and even if they did have the authority, the AG has better things and bigger fine amounts to go after and collect so maybe increasing the fine amount to $2M will get the AG motivated ?
that still doesnt mean they will be able to collect the money though.
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: ThElectriCat on May 11, 2018, 1715 UTC
As to what was mentioned about the big boys not playing by the rules either, Most commercial radio stations (especially the top dog stations in small markets) have countless FCC violations, most commonly poor EAS functionality and interference to other operations both broadcast and non-broadcast related. They will almost never directly report an FCC violation of a pirate or competitor station, as they themselves would then have to "clean up" I have seen many stations (mostly translators) which run at several times legal power, AM sites which are abhorrently in disrepair not meeting FCC regulations or even fire safety code, and a complete disregard for any other broadcasters in the market (unless of course they are owned by the same big company). 

To boot, most of the translators I have seen are sold in the community as the main market station, allowing the AM to become a more and more unreliable and poor quality signal. This is completely against the purpose of a translator, and yet, seems to illicit no negative response from the FCC or NAB.

on a second note, I wonder what would happen to a pirate operator who was caught if they had been running a sane and well controlled amount of power, with clean modulation, and monitored an EAS primary to actually participate in eas alerts and weekly tests? I am quite curious to whether the FCC could deem that pirate OPs action legally "harmful".
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: TheRelayStation on May 11, 2018, 1733 UTC
As to what was mentioned about the big boys not playing by the rules either, Most commercial radio stations (especially the top dog stations in small markets) have countless FCC violations, most commonly poor EAS functionality and interference to other operations both broadcast and non-broadcast related. They will almost never directly report an FCC violation of a pirate or competitor station, as they themselves would then have to "clean up" I have seen many stations (mostly translators) which run at several times legal power, AM sites which are abhorrently in disrepair not meeting FCC regulations or even fire safety code, and a complete disregard for any other broadcasters in the market (unless of course they are owned by the same big company). 

To boot, most of the translators I have seen are sold in the community as the main market station, allowing the AM to become a more and more unreliable and poor quality signal. This is completely against the purpose of a translator, and yet, seems to illicit no negative response from the FCC or NAB.

on a second note, I wonder what would happen to a pirate operator who was caught if they had been running a sane and well controlled amount of power, with clean modulation, and monitored an EAS primary to actually participate in eas alerts and weekly tests? I am quite curious to whether the FCC could deem that pirate OPs action legally "harmful".
it doesnt matter how clean your RF is, how abiding and how professional you are as a pirate on FM, even with documented and diagnostic proof, the bottom line to the FCC is that you do not have a license.
it will never be the legal FM station itself that will make the report of a pirate, its always the NAB or other broadcast group associations that make the reports but these reports are done mostly for a different reason, take a look at how one conglomerate company owns several FM stations in a single market as an example, i know the reasons why this is done.
captivity is everything and money is the manipulator.
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: Pigmeat on May 11, 2018, 2205 UTC
They did in Texas a couple of decades back, ElectriCat. They were the only station operating with storm damage and FEMA info for a couple of days after things hit the fan. I want to say it was in Austin? They had huge community support for their service, but the FCC did their best to run them off the air.
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: BoomboxDX on May 12, 2018, 1404 UTC
Where there is money..... etc.

I don't like being conspiratorially minded, but I see an industry (FM radio) that is worried. Worried about their future. Worried about loss of listeners. Worried about loss of revenue, including advertising revenue. Even though the numbers of radio listeners who have gravitated away to other forms of entertainment haven't yet been substantial, the writing is on the wall.

When you see massive businesses scrambling to wipe out gnats, you know that there is more to the picture than just whether someone was breaking the law.
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: Josh on May 12, 2018, 1704 UTC
There's also the danger to power when the networks are bypassed, and by networks I mean fox, abc, cbs, nbc, msnbc, cnn, etc corporate/agenda media.
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: JimIO on May 12, 2018, 1820 UTC
It's an FCC witch hunt and the fix is a Trump lawyer.  :-*
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: TheRelayStation on May 12, 2018, 2019 UTC
Where there is money..... etc.

I don't like being conspiratorially minded, but I see an industry (FM radio) that is worried. Worried about their future. Worried about loss of listeners. Worried about loss of revenue, including advertising revenue. Even though the numbers of radio listeners who have gravitated away to other forms of entertainment haven't yet been substantial, the writing is on the wall.

When you see massive businesses scrambling to wipe out gnats, you know that there is more to the picture than just whether someone was breaking the law.
which is precisely what is happening.
the conglomerate media companies who own several FM/AM stations in captive market areas are trying to recoup their losses by offering and venturing to several other media platforms to keep the investors and lending firms happy in addition to acquiring competitive radio stations to eliminate competition and stomping out the "gnats" of low power pirates in order to keep captivity on that specific market and keep revenue loss from advertising on the decline.
now imagine if one media company owned all the FM radio stations in the NYC market.
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: BoomboxDX on May 13, 2018, 0950 UTC
There's also the danger to power when the networks are bypassed, and by networks I mean fox, abc, cbs, nbc, msnbc, cnn, etc corporate/agenda media.

Cable TV is starting to see a dip, just as FM radio is.

Not as much news about it, but when ESPN cuts staff, you know that Cable is having a few issues.

From what I've read, it seems to be mostly people cutting back on their cable packages.
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: BoomboxDX on May 13, 2018, 0954 UTC
which is precisely what is happening.
the conglomerate media companies who own several FM/AM stations in captive market areas are trying to recoup their losses by offering and venturing to several other media platforms to keep the investors and lending firms happy in addition to acquiring competitive radio stations to eliminate competition and stomping out the "gnats" of low power pirates in order to keep captivity on that specific market and keep revenue loss from advertising on the decline.
now imagine if one media company owned all the FM radio stations in the NYC market.

I hate to sound cynical, but if only one radio company owned all the FM stations in the NYC market, would any of the listeners really notice?

I think the only people who would notice would be industry types, radio enthusiasts (like us here at HFU), and policy wonks.

The average listener? I'm not sure they would either notice or care. They just want to hear their favorite music. Not saying that's awesome, but just sayin'.
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: John Poet on May 13, 2018, 1533 UTC
This bill mandates the FCC to increase enforcement, but provides them with no additional funds to pay for it....

LOL

Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: Josh on May 13, 2018, 1802 UTC
There's also the danger to power when the networks are bypassed, and by networks I mean fox, abc, cbs, nbc, msnbc, cnn, etc corporate/agenda media.

Cable TV is starting to see a dip, just as FM radio is.

Not as much news about it, but when ESPN cuts staff, you know that Cable is having a few issues.

From what I've read, it seems to be mostly people cutting back on their cable packages.

Sadly, most I know who are cutting the cable are simply going netflix, and netflix is programming of the same sort as the dinosaur networks.
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: redhat on May 13, 2018, 1821 UTC
I don't know why people watch TV anyway.  There is very little out there I actually want to watch, and almost none of it prime time.

+-RH
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: TheRelayStation on May 13, 2018, 2018 UTC
This bill mandates the FCC to increase enforcement, but provides them with no additional funds to pay for it....

LOL
[/quote
i am quite sure the conglomerate media companies support the FCC financially when the need arises.
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: TheRelayStation on May 13, 2018, 2027 UTC
which is precisely what is happening.
the conglomerate media companies who own several FM/AM stations in captive market areas are trying to recoup their losses by offering and venturing to several other media platforms to keep the investors and lending firms happy in addition to acquiring competitive radio stations to eliminate competition and stomping out the "gnats" of low power pirates in order to keep captivity on that specific market and keep revenue loss from advertising on the decline.
now imagine if one media company owned all the FM radio stations in the NYC market.

I hate to sound cynical, but if only one radio company owned all the FM stations in the NYC market, would any of the listeners really notice?

I think the only people who would notice would be industry types, radio enthusiasts (like us here at HFU), and policy wonks.

The average listener? I'm not sure they would either notice or care. They just want to hear their favorite music. Not saying that's awesome, but just sayin'.
the casual listener wouldnt notice or even care but the companies who want to advertise would have no competition for better advertisement rates.
the anti-competitive law for FM radio stations is weak at best because the only true oversight is the FCC while the DOJ takes a back seat to matters they consider trivial.
see example attachment:
https://apps.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-96-380A1.pdf
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: ChrisSmolinski on May 13, 2018, 2205 UTC
I don't know why people watch TV anyway.  There is very little out there I actually want to watch, and almost none of it prime time.

+-RH

I'd remove the word "almost"  ;D

We watch a mix of mostly Netflix, Acorn, Great Courses, and selected programs from the DVR, I don't think any of them from the major networks. A little from Amazon, "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" for example.
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: Skipmuck on May 13, 2018, 2309 UTC
I gave up watching TV during the 2017 4th of July weekend. There was very little of interest to keep my attention, and way too much politicizing from both sides of the fence. I did watch 12 minutes of the Election Night returns in November.....the TV has remained unplugged since then.
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: Josh on May 15, 2018, 1930 UTC
Haven't had a tv for tv watching since the 80s. I do, however, watch vids such as youtube online and movies too, just not any tv programming. They don't call it programming without reason. When you watch it, you're being programmed. In an alpha state.
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: Matt_B on May 16, 2018, 0804 UTC
Here's an e-mail I just wrote to my Congressman (Jim Himes, D-CT) on the matter. 

Quote
Congressman Himes,

I am writing to express my concerns regarding HR 5709, which is known as the "Preventing Illegal Radio Abuse Through Enforcement (PIRATE) Act". This bill, which is currently being discussed in the House, deals with the unlicensed operation of radio stations. 

First off, I concede that there are some radio operators who intentionally interfere with licensed radio frequencies.  However, the majority of stations that I have heard don't attempt to do this.  Rather, they are small, community-based operations that transmit on otherwise vacant frequencies, with average power outputs of around ten watts (compare that to the one hundred thousand watt maximum power output of an FM station).  As they do not interfere with other stations, their transmissions serve the public, and harm nobody. 

The radio broadcasting industry would have you believe that unlicensed broadcasters often interfere with frequencies intended for emergency broadcasts, as well as the public health.  The major broadcasting firms say that they are afraid of "pirates" taking over their frequencies.  However, and having first-hand knowledge of the radio industry, I can tell you that this is a "red herring".  What the major companies are really afraid of is competition in the radio industry.  Many broadcasting firms have virtual monopolies in several markets, as they control the vast majority of stations in those areas.  The unfortunate reality of the radio industry is that "if you want to play, you have to pay", and pay big bucks at that.  Unless you know someone in the radio world, it isn't possible for average citizens to own radio outlets, as one station will typically cost millions of dollars.  This has the effect of limiting the diversity of voices that can be heard, and degrading free speech. 

Congressman, I understand the arguments of the major broadcasting firms.  It wouldn't be false to say that unlicensed broadcasting is a problem, and should be addressed as such.  However, I believe that the proposed legislation is a threat to the free speech rights of all radio broadcasters, licensed or no.  For this and other reasons, I urge you to oppose the submitted bill, and vote no on passage.  Thank you for your time. 

Sincerely,

(Real Name was put here)
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: TheRelayStation on May 16, 2018, 1509 UTC
Haven't had a tv for tv watching since the 80s. I do, however, watch vids such as youtube online and movies too, just not any tv programming. They don't call it programming without reason. When you watch it, you're being programmed. In an alpha state.
"Television, the drug of the nation..."
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: Josh on May 16, 2018, 1731 UTC
Haven't had a tv for tv watching since the 80s. I do, however, watch vids such as youtube online and movies too, just not any tv programming. They don't call it programming without reason. When you watch it, you're being programmed. In an alpha state.
"Television, the drug of the nation..."

While a fruitloop celebrity, I think it was an accurate description when Johnny Depp said watching tv was nursing at the glass breast.
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: TheRelayStation on May 16, 2018, 1907 UTC
Haven't had a tv for tv watching since the 80s. I do, however, watch vids such as youtube online and movies too, just not any tv programming. They don't call it programming without reason. When you watch it, you're being programmed. In an alpha state.
"Television, the drug of the nation..."

While a fruitloop celebrity, I think it was an accurate description when Johnny Depp said watching tv was nursing at the glass breast.
on a different note, the "MMA" bill, i believe is going to have a big impact on online music streaming.
http://variety.com/2018/biz/news/senate-introduces-music-modernization-act-1202806411/
Title: Re: Broadcasters Cheer Pirate Radio Bill
Post by: Josh on May 17, 2018, 1725 UTC
Yep, spotify is toast. Also, ffs Grassley has been in congress doing nothing yet getting paid for it since I was a kid in Des Moines 40 years ago.