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Media Bureau grants NCTA petition seeking clarification of the Section 621 Stay Denial Order

The Federal Communications Commission said it needs $481.59 million to conduct its operations next year, up just 0.3% from the current fiscal year and reflecting an expected boost in revenue from spectrum auction fees. Among the notable lines items in the Fiscal Year 2021 budget plan that the FCC unveiled on Monday (Feb. 10) was a $134.5 million request for spectrum auction authority, an increase of nearly $2 million (about 1.5%) from the current year.

The FCC’s 2021 budget request coinciding with the release of the White House’ $4.8 trillion proposal to Congress for next year’s spending plan. The administration’s plan includes increased funding at Commerce Department agencies to accelerate 5G and artificial intelligence.

As part of its budget proposal, the FCC listed four “strategic goals for 2021,” starting with objectives for “Closing the Digital Divide” and “Promoting Innovation.” Its goals also include “Protecting Consumers and Public Safety” and “Reforming the FCC’s Processes,” which it defines as efforts to “modernize and streamline the [agency’s] operations and programs.”

[Read: FCC Proposes Record-breaking Forfeitures to Pirate Radio Operators]

Overall, the FCC said it will conduct its business with the same staffing level (1,448 people) that it currently employs. It broke out its proposed budget levels for major bureaus and operations as follows:

As for its primary strategic goal (closing the digital divide), the FCC said it will “develop a regulatory environment to encourage the private sector to build, maintain, and upgrade next-generation networks so that the benefits of advanced communications services are available to all Americans.” It vowed to “employ effective and efficient means to facilitate deployment and access to affordable broadband” where the business case for infrastructure investment doesn’t exist.”

Counting On Auction Revenue

The commission pointed out that its to-date auction program “has generated over $117 billion for government use” at a cost of “less than $2.1 billion or 1.7% of the total auctions’ revenue.”

The budget plan cited the Trump administration’s legislative agenda items “that pertain to the FCC” and “are designed to improve spectrum management and represent sound economic policy.” In particular, it points to plans for “new authority to use other economic mechanisms, such as fees, as a spectrum management tool.”

“The FCC would be authorized to set user fees on unauctioned commercial spectrum licenses based on spectrum-management principles,” according to the 163-page FCC budget document. “Fees would be phased in over time as part of an ongoing rulemaking process to determine the appropriate application and level for fees. Fee collections are estimated to begin in 2021 and total $4 billion through 2030.”

The commission explained that it needs funding at the requested levels “to continue post-broadcast incentive auction (BIA) work related to repacking and reimbursing broadcasters and MVPDs [multichannel video programming distributors] for their relocation costs to implement the results of the BIA, as well as expand that program to include new requirements included in the Reimbursement Expansion Act.”

It also said that the funding level will “improve its auctions program infrastructure in preparation for future auctions” and thus help it to conduct additional auctions to make more spectrum available for next-generation wireless services.” It also cited the need to implement RAY BAUM’S Act (Repack Airwaves Yielding Better Access for Users of Modern Services) of 2018, which will make more spectrum available for mobile and fixed wireless broadband.

Preparing for HQ Move

The FCC confirmed that it intends to move to new headquarters at 45 L Street NE (north of Capitol Hill) in June of this year, as authorized in previous budgets. The cost of the move (about $68 million) will come from “both regulatory fees and auctions program funds.”

Separately, the Department of Commerce section of the White House budget plan singles out the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, allotting it $25 million “to modernize spectrum management systems,” and thus enable the U.S. “to more efficiently satisfy industry’s need for additional spectrum and preparing the nation to transition to 5G.”

NTIA’s sister agency within DoC, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) will be allotted $718 million “to advance U.S. innovation and technological development” as part of an “all-of government approach” to establish U.S. leadership in next generation communications (especially fifth generation 5G) wireless, artificial intelligence and advanced manufacturing. This sum doubles NIST’s prior AI funding “in order to accelerate the development and adoption of AI technologies.”

 

The post FCC 2021 Budget Plan of $482 Million Built Around Spectrum appeared first on Radio World.

Satcaster SiriusXM continues to explore other areas of media. This time it has announced a $75 million investment in audio portal/platform SoundCloud.

According to a release, “SoundCloud will use this additional investment to accelerate its product development and enhance the services that fuel its global community of creators and listeners.”

SoundCloud in the past has worked with internet audio streamer Pandora, a subsidiary of SiriusXM.

SoundCloud Chief Executive Officer Kerry Trainor said, “We’ve built a great relationship with SiriusXM through our highly successful Pandora ad sales agreement, and their investment gives us added capital flexibility to accelerate our vision and take advantage of strategic opportunities as they arise.”

The post SiriusXM Invests in SoundCloud appeared first on Radio World.

(L–R) Frank Montero, Joel Oxley and Paul McLane.

The American Academy of Radio is celebrating this week’s World Radio Day (Feb. 13) by naming WTOP in Washington, as the first U.S. station to receive its World Radio Day Award.

The award was presented Tuesday to Senior Vice President and General Manager Joel Oxley at WTOP’s new studio facility by two members of the jury, Frank Montero, an attorney with Fletcher, Heald & Hildreth, and Paul McLane, the editor in chief of trade publication Radio World.

Other jury members included Heather Cohen of the Weiss Agency, Michael Harrison of Talkers Magazine, longtime broadcaster Bob Kieve, consultant Mike McVay, Deborah Parenti of Radio Ink and Paul Rotella of the New Jersey Broadcasters Association.

The announcement was made by Jorge Álvarez, president of the Spanish Academy of Radio, whose advocacy for World Radio Day helped prompt U.N. recognition of the day. The date of Feb. 13 was settled on because it also marks the anniversary of the founding of United Nations Radio in 1946.

WTOP is Hubbard Radio’s all-news flagship station in Washington, which is Nielsen Radio Market #7. Five million people age 12+ live in the metropolitan area. The city is a globally important national capital and a vibrant local media market, with crowded suburbs and a city government and two state governments to cover; a severe traffic situation; variable weather; and a vibrant pro and college sports environment. WTOP is one of the most recognizable media brands in the city and is also the top-earning commercial station not only in Washington but in the country, according to BIA Kelsey.

[Related: “World Radio Day Organizers Raise U.S. Profile”]

World Radio Day was adopted in 2012 by the United Nations General Assembly, highlighting radio as “a powerful medium for celebrating humanity in all its diversity [that] constitutes a platform for democratic discourse,” according to a UNESCO website.

In making the presentation, McLane said WTOP was chosen in part for its notable success at building and sustaining a media business around core concepts of localism and service to a specific and unique marketplace of listeners.

Last year’s recipient of the award was Gordon Smith, president/CEO of the National Association of Broadcasters, recognizing Smith’s help in establishing World Radio Day.

All radio stations can find assets to celebrate World Radio Day at its UNESCO website.

Watch a short video message about radio from the U.N. Secretary General António Guterres.

 

The post WTOP Receives World Radio Day Award appeared first on Radio World.

The author is field service engineer for Wheatstone, Audioarts, and PR&E products.

I’m often amazed at what engineers will do to keep older consoles on air.

If you’re currently supporting analog and/or digital consoles designed in the 1990s and the aughts (2000-2009), I don’t need to tell you of the challenges! Here are five proven steps for transitioning your facility to AoIP, whether that takes place this year or next.

Richard Maddox

STEP 1

Convert Existing Wiring One Device at a Time

Almost all new between-equipment wiring uses unshielded CAT5e or CAT6 cables. It’s possible to use these two CAT cables, which have identical specs for our usage, to connect analog audio, AES-3 audio, AoIP audio streams, ethernet for KVMs and VoIP/SIP phones as well as your facility’s LAN connections.

CAT6 has a thicker sheathing and tighter twists in its four wire pairs than CAT5e. This makes it more resistant to crosstalk but also slightly harder to handle. Many broadcasters have standardized on using UTP (unshielded twisted pair) CAT5e as their interconnection cable of choice.

A typical AoIP configuration showing all sources available to console surfaces and devices.

When moving to category cables to connect up just about everything, there are two main approaches. Either buy pre-made “patch cables” in various common lengths like 6-foot, 15-foot, 25-foot, etc. Or buy reels of raw CAT5e cable and bags or boxes of RJ45 plugs so you can create your own custom-length cables. It really boils down to how much time you have and how much you like crimping RJ45 plugs onto cables.

Since the IT industry uses CAT5e and CAT6 cables by the truckload, the price for category cabling and plugs means your cabling cost (whether making custom length cables yourself or using off-the-shelf “bagged” cables) is a fraction of what it would be to run shielded balanced audio cables around your facility.

STEP 2

Adapt, Adapt, Adapt

Most audio and broadcast equipment has not transitioned to adding an RJ45 jack for their analog or AES signals, therefore you’ll still need XLR or TRS plugs on your cables. This means you’ll need to terminate your CAT5e cabling at one end to something other than RJ45. You could solder the plugs directly to the category cable wire pairs, but that’s messy and time-consuming.

An easier solution that will cost about US$20 (approximately €18) is to use RJ45-to-XLR and RJ45-to-TRS adapters to connect new equipment using CAT5e without having to solder anything.

RJ45 adapters are available for just about every connector type, but not for the AMP MOD IV plugs used since the mid-90s on all PR&E consoles (except Oasis). No one makes an RJ45-to-MOD IV adapter, but there are RJ45-to-pigtail adapters, so with a bit of hand crimping of the MOD IV terminals onto the pigtails, you can roll your own MOD IV-to-RJ45 adapters.

By the way, it’s possible to repurpose any custom MOD IV adapter you make later as an RJ45 adapter for a satellite receiver or other equipment using D-sub and other non-standard jacks.

STEP 3

Add I/O Devices

You’re likely already familiar with the concept of distributed I/O, where one “I/O interface box” is mounted in each rack to connect all the equipment within that rack. Each I/O box then connects to a main router using a single CAT5e cable.

An AoIP system is configured in much the same way. For example, a WheatNet BLADE is an AoIP I/O box with eight stereo inputs and eight stereo outputs on RJ45 jacks to connect local signals.

The BLADE then connects, again using a CAT5e cable, to a gigabit Ethernet switch to network it with the other BLADEs in the system. So any discrete local input can be streamed to any other BLADE or console in the plant, and any other system signal can be streamed to any local output on that BLADE.

If you have a VistaMax system, or any brand of TDM router, with some spare I/O (like eight unused AES ins and eight AES outs), then you’re prepared to begin the transition to AoIP. Connecting that spare AES I/O to an AES Blade (using 16 CAT5e cables) means you now can convert one or two studios to AoIP consoles while continuing to use your existing router.

These eight “tie lines” allow signals from the new consoles (PGM, bus-minus, etc.) to feed the existing router, and the router system to send common signals like off-air-tuners, EAS, satellite feeds, hybrids, etc. to the AoIP consoles. A couple non-dedicated tie lines allows users to change signals from one system to the other as necessary.

AoIP Advocates Snag Technical Emmy

STEP 4

Add An AoIP Console or Two

It doesn’t have to be all or nothing. Adding an AoIP console in the main studio, for example, offers a world of features, like source selection, bus-minus, and audio processing on every fader, which were not available on any twenty-year-old console. AoIP consoles typically cost about the same, or even less, than a 20-year-old console did when new. For example, you can obtain an eight-channel AoIP console like the Audioarts DMX for under $8,000 (about €7,250), pretty much the price for a NetWave-8 console from the early 00s.

STEP 5

Plan for Obsolescence

An analog exit strategy is crucial, whether you can do it all at once in a complete studio rebuild, or by updating one studio at a time.

Start by looking at all the activities that take place in your facility. Consider how you feed your air chain and your internet streams. Just about everything can be simplified by moving to AoIP. For instance, what type of playback system are you using? If it supports AoIP streaming, then you can kiss your audio cards and Bob boxes good-bye forever.

Same for your VoxPro and other PC-based audio editors. When you move to AoIP, it’s possible to network each server and PC that handles audio directly into the AoIP system. To do this, use a dedicated NIC and one CAT5e cable. There is no other hardware necessary beyond an available port on a network switch. Once you make the switch to AoIP, you open up so many other doors.

Adding appliances like the PhoneBLADE allow you to integrate your VoIP phone system into your AoIP system. Other AoIP appliances, like StreamBLADE, give you the codec and processing tools for managing multiple streams. Still other appliances can extend AoIP beyond the studio so you can connect with other studios or remote locations.

Even if you can’t jump into AoIP with both feet, taking these steps will give you some, and eventually, all the benefits of an AoIP facility.

Richard Maddox joined PR&E in 1993 as their Digital Product Specialist, with later stints in the Engineering, Systems Design, and Customer Service departments. When Wheatstone purchased PR&E assets, he joined Wheatstone to continue supporting legacy PR&E products. He now supports the full line of current Wheatstone-designed products from his location in Southern California.

The post How to Transition to AoIP in Five Steps appeared first on Radio World.

John Records Landecker, a longtime top 40 DJ whose shows and interactive phone bits have influenced many others in radio, will be in the spotlight when the 2020 NAB Show comes to Las Vegas.

The selection of a classic air talent to join the NAB’s Broadcasting Hall of Fame comes during a winter when the role of the American DJ has been challenged by technology.

Not that National Association of Broadcasters made any mention of recent iHeart headlines in naming Landecker, whose selection was likely decided well in advance.

NAB Executive Vice President of Industry Affairs Steve Newberry hailed Landecker’s “profound impact on radio” and said his induction “symbolizes the personal connection between DJs and their audiences and how innovative personalities can influence radio programming.”

But those connections have been squarely in the middle of debate in American radio over recent weeks, as the industry digested the announcement by iHeartMedia that it would put artificial intelligence and other technologies to work in its programming, and proceeded to lay off hundreds or more of its air talent.

So regardless of intentions with this award, it may be with some taste of bittersweet that the NAB will induct a classic radio jock into its Hall of Fame. It’ll do so during the Achievement in Broadcasting Dinner on April 20 at the Encore.

“Landecker is best known for his tenure as the evening personality at WLS(AM) Chicago, a 50,000-watt station reaching audiences in some 40 states,” NAB stated in the announcement. “His signature style included incorporating satirical songs and bits based on current events into the program, as well as his trademark saying, ‘Records truly is my middle name.’”

The association noted that Landecker is credited for introducing some of the first interactive phone features on top 40 radio.

According to the bio, his 50-year career began as a high school student at WOIA(AM) in Saline, Mich. He stayed on the air throughout college in Michigan, working at WTRK(AM) in Flint, WERX(AM) in Grand Rapids and WILS(AM) in Lansing. “Landecker later entertained listeners with stints at WIBG(FM), Philadelphia; CFTR(AM), Toronto; WPHR(FM), Cleveland, WJMK(FM), Chicago and WGN(AM), Chicago.”

[Read Radio World’s interview with last year’s honoree Cathy Hughes.]

Additionally, Landecker has released six albums and written an autobiography. Today he hosts a weekly program on WEFM(FM) Michigan City, Ind.

Landecker has won other notable honors including induction into the National Radio Hall of Fame; and his work is acknowledged in the radio exhibit of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland.

Read the honor role of past inductees.

 

The post Landecker to Be Honored at NAB Show Las Vegas appeared first on Radio World.

The AEQ Systel IP broadcast telephone and multiconference solution operates on VoIP phone lines. The system is based on a digital matrix designed to manage IP lines.

The company says the interface offers a dynamic and flexible workflow for various scenarios including radio, television or corporate.

It’s possible to operate AEQ Systel IP through dedicated software on PC. Staff can also operate the system through the Systelset+ handset, a touchscreen IP phone with an intuitive interface to manage incoming calls.

The company recently released the new Systel IP Basic engine version. It’s a 19-inch, single-rack unit able to work as a multi-line IP phone with SIP signaling protocol. The basic version features eight IP phone lines and four additional hidden for Systel Set + handsets.

The engine features four digital audio inputs and outputs as well as two analog audio inputs and outputs. It also offers 32 AoIP inputs and outputs based on Dante protocol/AES67- compatible. That means it’s possible to integrated into an AoIP net and route the calls inside the IP network.

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

Users can upgrade the AEQ Systel IP Basic to Systel IP 16 through a software license. This allows expansion to a bigger system in the future, either to service more studios or to add more simultaneous calls on air.

For information, contact AEQ in Spain at +34-916-861300 or visit www.aeq.eu.

The post AEQ Adds to Systel IP Phone System appeared first on Radio World.

As it gets closer to the RadioDays Europe 2020 edition in Lisbon, Portugal, organizers continue to announce conference’s lineup of speakers and other sessions.

The coordinators have added eight new speakers to the RadioDays Europe agenda.

Among them are Niina Jokiaho, head of Radio Nova, Bauer Media Audio; Johannes Saukko, radio content director at Sonoma; Yolanda Tati, an entertainer, content director, digital entrepreneur and female social activist; and Mary Hoogerbrugge, branding specialist from De Positioneerders.

Author and journalist Sophian Fanen; Laurie Palacio, deputy head of talkSPORT; Renata Silva, executive board member, CCO of Grupo Renascença Multimėdia; and Rebecca Frank, content director at KISS will also address participants during the event.

[Niall Power, Adam Bowie Join Radidays Europe Speaker Lineup]

The schedule for ReelWorld Room’s Track 1 has also been revealed. Running from March 30–31, ReelWorld Room will host presentations from James Purnell, director, radio and education, at the BBC; radio host Carolina Bermudez; iHeartMedia’s Vice President of Talent Development Dennis Clark; and the Radio Summit. The full schedule can be found online.

RadioDays Europe will also put a special spotlight on podcasting, running multiple sessions, as well as a #ThePodcastLife meet-up area. More information is available on the RDE website.RadioDays Europe 2020 takes place from March 29–31 in Lisbon, Portugal. More information is available at www.radiodayseurope.com.

The post RadioDays Europe in Lisbon Adds Speakers, Special Events appeared first on Radio World.

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Provides notice of technical restrictions on FM broadcast construction permit MM-FM1192-B, Channel 300B, Sacramento, California to be offered in Auction 106

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