Industry News

The National Association of Broadcasters has added a “resource designed to equip new employees with information they need to succeed in their new roles,” according to NAB Executive Vice President of Industry Affairs Steve Newberry.

This new online educational program, dubbed “Broadcast Essentials,” is intended to help broadcast stations and new employees. NAB members can access the content for free, and nonmembers can purchase each suite for $499 per station or cluster.

The first course is entitled “Radio Employee Onboarding Suite” features six videos that address:

• Radio station licenses and content delivery methods;
• A typical station’s organizational chart;
• Content and revenue streams;
• How commercials are created, scheduled and aired;
• Radio’s role in the local community and economy.

More courses are slated for release in the coming months.

 

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What an exciting issue we have for you, with great stories and news from all around the world of radio. Low-power FM operators explain why they think they deserve regulatory relief. We remember the late Warren Shulz and Jeff Nordstrom. Buyer’s Guide features new offerings for streaming, podcasting and online delivery. We take a look inside the new studio of Rutgers station WRSU. Fred Jacobs writes that Alexa wants to be everywhere, including in our ears, our glasses and maybe even our pizza boxes. And lots more.

Read the digital edition here.

REGULATION
LPFM Stations Seek Technical Upgrades

Advocates argue that the low-power FM service is now a mature one. Many broadcasters say that doesn’t mean LPFM rules should be changed. Here’s what people are telling the FCC.

TECH HISTORY
How D-C Cranked Out All Those Tapes

Hank Landsberg is known for his little blue Henry boxes; but back in the day he was director of engineering at Drake-Chenault Enterprises, and he has cool stories to share about what it was like to work there in the heyday of tape-based automation.

 

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE:

• Symposium Examines Changing Radio Landscape
• Scarlet Knights’ Station Gets a Fresh Start
• Alexa Is in My Ears and in My Eyes

The post Inside the November 20 Issue of Radio World appeared first on Radio World.

A study commissioned by iHeartMedia challenges common assumptions about the efficacy of automotive radio advertising strategies and consumer behaviors.

The media company said that for 17 months, marketing attribution software company LeadsRx tracked “nearly 2 million commercials” run by “more than 300 automotive advertisers” and featuring all major automotive brands.

A report summarizing the findings, “Five Secrets for Automotive Advertisers,” was presented at the Automotive Analytics & Attribution Summit during a workshop titled “Turbocharge Your Radio Spots. The Top 5 Attribution Secrets Discovered From Over 300 Automotive Advertisers.”

[Read: Connected Travel Seeks a Radio Connection]

These so-called secrets will likely not surprise seasoned radio professionals; reach and frequency are key. The report concludes, “Running 10 commercials per day using a mix of ad lengths, dayparts, stations and days of the week can lead to a two times greater web traffic response rate.”  According to the study, the best recipe appears to be to run a campaign seven days a week, airing ads of multiple lengths between 6 a.m. and 7 p.m.  

Additionally:

• After running radio commercials, advertisers saw an average 17% increase in web traffic within 10 minutes.
• Ad campaigns airing seven days a week saw +90% greater results than those who advertised three to four days. 
• Web traffic response to advertising is two times greater from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. than in evenings or overnight.
• Multiple ad lengths outperformed campaigns with single ad lengths by over two times. 

“The goal of any attribution study is to demonstrate how to make campaigns more effective, and this study confirms that advanced attribution helps automotive businesses to plan, measure and evaluate their advertising,” LeadsRx CEO AJ Brown said in a release announcing the study. 

iHeartMedia Executive Vice President of Automotive Business Development and Partnerships John Karpinski said, “Importantly, the use of attribution upended several commonly held industry misconceptions as to what makes for a successful advertising campaign. We [iHeartMedia] are now fully committed to marketing attribution to drive 100% of our automotive advertising business.”

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Some 120 broadcast engineers, equipment manufacturers, academics and students traveled from as far away as Japan and South Korea to attend this year’s BTS Symposium.

Convening for the 69th time in as many years, this year’s IEEE Broadcast Technology Society’s annual fall Symposium brought together some 120 engineering personnel from as far away as Japan and South Korea to exchange information about developments in disseminating information and entertainment to mass audiences.

Although the ATSC 3.0 and 5G rollouts got the lion’s share of attention this year, contemporary radio technology and issues were visible, with presentations ranging from IP connectivity to network security, remote monitoring, emergency alerting and regulatory matters. 

Frank Foti led off presentations on a day of the conference devoted primarily to radio, with an update on the initiative by the Telos Alliance to assist broadcasters in moving to all-IP transport platforms. 

[Read: The Value of Standards]

“I just recently finished up some pretty cool research work that I want to share that ties in with (the transport of) the FM multiplex signal,” said Foti. “Moving from multiplex over AES 67 to IP is a natural progression, and (this) technology slashes the amount of bandwidth needed for distribution by nearly 84 percent to a remarkable 320 kbps. It’s a remarkably efficient payload.” 

Foti said that the µMPX technology was designed for FM transmission applications and was devoid of traditional psychoacoustic artifacts, with those that were generated being masked by the FM reception process. He also noted that by using the technology, which supports the embedding of the pilot, FM broadcasters could gain 1 dB greater loudness in their signals.

Frank Foti. “With this [µMPX] technology we’re able to get that 1 dB loudness legally.”“In the FM stereo system (with) 100 percent modulation, it’s basically 90 percent audio and 10 percent pilot,” said Foti. 

“In this system we’re embedding the pilot instead of adding it. The equivalent would be modulating at 110 percent to get that added loudness. With this technology we’re able to get that 1 dB loudness legally. I’m not up here to (push) loudness, but we live in a competitive world. This is dense audio; you shift it 1 dB and the program director says ‘Wow’! In an age where broadcasters are fighting in every way to retain listeners, I think added loudness is a benefit to the industry.”

MP11

The NAB’s David Layer teamed with Xperi’s Harry Chalmers to provide a report on testing of a high bitrate (100 kbps core and 48 kbps non-core) HD Radio operating mode that was defined in the NRSC-5 IBOC standard but had not been tested until now.  

Layer noted that the testing was a cooperative effort of Xperi, Nautel and NAB Pilot, and utilized the Pilot radio test bed set up at the Cavell, Mertz & Associates offices in Manassas, Va. 

David Layer. “We needed to characterize the performance of MP11 before it’s supported by manufacturers of receivers and transmission equipment,”

As explained by Layer, this MP11 mode accommodates hybrid analog/digital broadcasting and operates within the same RF bandwidth (193.3 kHz) as the established MP3 transmission mode. 

“We needed to characterize the performance of MP11 before it’s supported by manufacturers of receivers and transmission equipment,” said Layer. “The first five modes of FM HD radio have always been supported, but there was no software written for this sixth mode (MP11).” 

The main objectives of testing were to determine the impact of the MP11 digital sidebands on the mainstream FM analog audio signal and the RDS component, as well as the possible effect of the analog FM signal on MP11 digital sidebands. 

[BTS Explores Tech’s Role in Content Wars]

Layer said that part of the testing involved using real-world program formats (including classical, country, urban and others) in addition to periods of silence (no modulation) and discrete tones (for measuring signal-to-noise ratio). The testing utilized six different FM receivers (a mix of analog-only and HD Radio-capable) and compared performance of the MP11 mode with established MP1 (no extended sidebands) and MP3 (some extended sidebands) modes of operation.  

Chalmers revealed that the signal-to-noise performance of one of the receivers used was inconsistent with that of the others, and that the analog-only receivers involved were most affected by the MP11 signal.

Harry Chalmers. “As a result of this study, Xperi is planning to commercialize this technology. We’re now including MP11 in all chip uploads that we give to manufacturers.”

“We spoke with the manufacturers, and they said that this was correctable,” he said. 

Layer said that in listening tests, any differences in analog component performance that might have been caused by the MP11 component were not noticeable, and that the study to determine effects of the analog FM signal on the MP11 signal was equally encouraging.

“The results were quite positive,” he said, adding that iHeartMedia is now doing some field testing, with station WTUE in Dayton, Ohio, acting as host.

Alan Jurison, senior operations engineer, engineering and systems integration with iHeartMedia and chair of this IEEE Broadcast Symposium session, said that iHeartMedia “did a driving test from Cincinnati to Dayton and the results were good. At the time of the symposium, WTUE has been operating (with MP11) for some 90 days and there have been no listener or automobile manufacturer complaints.”

Chalmers added, “As a result of this study, Xperi is planning to commercialize this technology. We’re now including MP11 in all chip uploads that we give to manufacturers.”\

AM PROTECTION CONTOURS

In the conference devoted to regulatory matters, the FCC’s 2018 Second Further Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) addressing “revitalization” of the AM broadcast band came under the spotlight, with a report by Tom Jones of the Carl T. Jones Corp. consulting firm.

He said that this second NPRM focused on changes to protection contours of existing Class A 50 kW stations, and would affect their protected operating contours during all operating modes (daytime, critical hours and nighttime), and reported that a large amount of feedback had been received during the comment period.

“Numerous thoughtful and informative comments were received in response to this ‘Second Further Notice,’ both in support of, and in opposition to, the proposed changes in interference protection afforded to Class A stations.” He said the most complete technical comments opposing the rule changes had come from a group called the AM Radio Preservation Alliance, and the most technical comments had been filed by several engineering consulting firms.

[Upgrading an AM to All-Digital: Why, How and Lessons Learned] Tom Jones. “The tradeoff is pushing noise away from your transmitter while creating interference elsewhere.”

Jones presented a list of the various pros and cons offered by the two dissenting groups, which include “adoption of the proposed change to the daytime contour for Class A stations would potentially allow other Class B and D stations on the channel to substantially increase their daytime power and thus better serve their communities” and “failure to protect a Class A AM station’s 0.1 mV/m daytime groundwave contour would eliminate massive amounts of current AM service, while only resulting in modest gains for non-Class A stations.”

He said that some of the strongest comments opposing the rule change came from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. FEMA said that such changes would “decimate the system developed and funded by FEMA, under the mandate of Congress, for a robust communications distribution network (allowing U.S. citizens to receive) under all conditions, a presidential message in time of national emergency.” 

FEMA added that millions of dollars had been invested on this network, “which is reliant on skywave signal coverage by Class A AM stations.”

Jones said, “I would advise anyone interested to review these comments, which are on the FCC’s website.” If the changes were to be enacted, “the tradeoff is pushing noise away from your transmitter while creating interference elsewhere.”

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FCC Chairman Ajit Pai on Monday, Nov. 18, disclosed his plan for reallocating part of the C-band spectrum (3.7–4.2 GHz) for 5G use.

In a letter to Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS), chairman of the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, Pai said the FCC will auction 280 megahertz of spectrum for 5G. An additional 20 megahertz will be used as a guard band with the remaining upper 200 megahertz available for the continued delivery of programming for radio and television.

[Read: New Bill Would Force C-Band Auction]

The FCC told reporters on Monday that with broadcast satellite services being downsized to just 200 MHz of spectrum a repack of the space will be required. There are more than 16,000 registered receive-only dishes in the field that currently use the C-band, according to NAB. They are used to receive national and syndicated programming for TV and radio.

The order is expected to be considered by the full commission early next year, according to an FCC official. FCC staff will be tasked with carrying out the public auction, which is expected to commence prior to the end of 2020, according to an FCC official. The FCC will accept public comment before any new rules are adopted.

On Nov. 18, the FCC called the process a “complicated rulemaking” that took over two years and raised a number of economic, legal, engineering and policy issues.

Pai in his letter to Congress outlined four principles that the FCC should advance in the rulemaking: “First, we must make available a significant amount of C-band spectrum for 5G. Second, we must make C-band spectrum available for 5G quickly. Third, we must generate revenue for the federal government. And fourth, we must protect the services that are currently delivered using the C-band so they can continue to be delivered to the American people.”

The public auction of the 280 megahertz for 5G (3.7 to 3.98 GHz) will be administered by the FCC. The commission determined an auction is preferable to a private sale, according to the FCC official. The C-Band Alliance, led by Intelset, SES and Intel, had previously proposed to split the band frequency to accommodate 5G services, with the alliance handling the private sale of spectrum.

The FCC on Nov. 18 said the repack of broadcast services to the upper 200 megahertz (4.0–4.2 GHz) has yet to be defined. The FCC official suggested that with the use of high-resolution video compression, the 20 megahertz guard band, the installation of filters on earth-stations and the launching of several new satellites, can compress all of the existing services and content currently delivered over the C-band into the upper 200 megahertz.

The FCC did not disclose whether incentive payments would be made to incumbent satellite providers affected by the repack. It is also not clear if there will be an independent facilitator appointed to oversee the clearing of the band.

NAB asked the FCC in an early filing during the proceeding to ensure “costs for implementing such a plan should be entirely borne by the beneficiaries of any private or public spectrum transaction: either the satellite operators or the mobile carriers who acquire spectrum usage rights.”

National Public Radio earlier pressed the FCC for clarity in its final decision when it comes to the financial ramifications of a massive C-band migration of satellite earth-stations caused by a repack. The Public Radio Satellite System (PRSS) depends on C-band for distribution of programming to approximately 1,275 public radio stations, said Adam Shoemaker, counsel for NPR, according to an FCC filing.

While the FCC’s plan on the repacking of broadcast services is unclear, the commission does expect to fully protect all incumbents currently relying on the C-band for video and radio programming, the FCC official said.

 

 

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Sofie Engelen hosts Willy’s morning drive

VILVOORDE, Belgium — The plan to launch a new radio station dates back from 2017, when Kevin Moens, music director with Joe, and a group of radio creatives came up with the idea.

“We felt we were missing something,” Moens said. “Both Qmusic and Joe have well-defined formats, but we couldn’t find a ‘guitar-focused’ station on the Flemish radio scene — part of the audience was left in the cold.”

NEW MARKET Willy’s on-air cast includes presenters, musicians and media personalities

The idea initially faced some criticism. “A third FM station for our media group was not the option, there was no room in the existing frequency plan — and streaming the signal was not enough,” Moens explained. “But gradually, the idea to serve a new segment alongside Joe and Qmusic became reality.”

When, in 2018, DPG Media decided to fully go ahead with DAB+, and with Alain Claes as head of the group’s innovation department, opportunities for new stations were created. “We launched the new Joe channels and DAB+ also became a facilitator for a new station,” said Moens.

“We wanted something novel — and Willy became the group’s first digital-only station, broadcasting via DAB+, streaming and the Radioplayer platform,” he said.

“Willy was part of a business plan,” added Claes. “This has to be seen as a long-term investment and although we offer a modest program today, the new station has received a lot of enthusiasm from advertisers because it offers a new potential audience market. With DAB+ tripling its penetration here, we are confident in Willy’s future.”

Willy is complementary to Qmusic and Joe. With the tagline “Music Matters,” the new station targets the “music lovers” audience bracket. “It’s all about music and people talking about it,” continued Moens, who is Willy’s music director.

MODERN STRUCTURE Editors were the first international band to take the “Free Willy” studio

The station invited a cast of music and media personalities to host its Friday program roster. Musicians like Triggerfinger’s Ruben Block, television director Tim van Aelst and presenter Sofie Engelen received “carte blanche.”

Moens added that the only prerequisite is that “they are passionate about music and their playlist includes a guitar segment.” The rest of the week, Willy offers a no speech music format. Friday night’s “Free Willy” show is the platform for bands, interviews and album presentations.

Although Willy wasn’t planned when Joe and Qmusic moved to the Sound Park studio landscape, the new station benefits from the future-proofed structure.

“To be honest, when we planned the studios, we knew new activities would be coming our way,” said Alain Claes. “In-house production of commercials and jingles, podcasts, micro-podcasts — they all require studio space and today, it’s nice to see that we have the capacity.”

Willy broadcasts from one of Sound Park’s studios, which the broadcaster build this summer. The station makes use of a DHD RX2 console, Dalet Galaxy playout system, Neumann TLM102 mics and a Technics SL1200 turntable.

The post Music Matters to Willy appeared first on Radio World.

With a move to a new location already on tap, Lincs FM in the United Kingdom recently updated six of its studios with audio over IP equipment from AEQ and Dante.

Working with service provider Broadcast Radio, Lincs FM installed a Forum IP Split consoles that uses Dante AoIP Network signals and works with a central Routing Network Matrix Netbox 32 MX.

All signals in the studio, except for “local” microphone inputs, are exclusively in Dante and are concentrated to/from the Netbox 32 MX. The Netbox system provides 64×64 channels program and antennae matrix at the same time as it interconnects all the studios in the network.

As a result of the flexibility of the installation, all signals in the network can be shared with any studio. Routing and summing of all network signals is done through the Netbox 32 MX, which can be executed either manually or automatically from any mixing console or with the stations group also newly acquired Myriad 5 Playout automation system. Additional features like alarms and level monitoring are also possible through the Netbox platform.

Lincs FM is now operating out of a new studio complex facility that also houses Dearne FM, Ridings FM, Rother FM and Trax FM.

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Illegal broadcasting and media modernization continue to be top of mind at the Federal Communications Commission, as evidenced by recent remarks delivered by FCC Commissioner Michael O’Rielly when he addressed the Massachusetts Broadcasters Association’s annual Sound Bites event. His speech centered on pirate radio, payola concerns and media modernization efforts, among other policy updates of interest to broadcasters.

O’Rielly noted the spread of illegal radio stations from large to smaller markets, in addition to ever-increasing sophistication on the part of unregulated operators. He said the commission is “playing a long game here, and there is reason to be optimistic,” especially now that “Senate passage of the PIRATE Act is imminent.”

[Read: NYSBA Honors Native Son O’Rielly as New Yorker of the Year]

He explained that the PIRATE Act’s fine increases are meant not only to punish offenders, but to make sure these cases get on the radar of the Department of Justice. Additionally, O’Rielly said the act will speed up and streamline the commission’s timeline to file notices of apparent liability for pirates. He also cited the forthcoming list of licensed radio operators (required by the PIRATE Act) as another enforcement tool, one which citizens and advertisers can use to distinguish between legitimate stations and savvy pirates.

However, O’Rielly conceded that legislation alone won’t eradicate the problem, so the commission is “also deploying state of the art technology to make it very difficult for pirates to escape scrutiny.”

O’Rielly also addressed the issue of payola as it relates to the current broadcast laws and streaming. The practice was outlawed in 1960, and O’Rielly said he plans to explore whether the issue persists or if record companies have instituted policies that prevent the bribery — and if so, what are these safeguards.

Payola is a legacy regulation, and he questioned whether it might not fall under the umbrella of Chairman Pai’s Media Modernization initiative. But until the issue is addressed, O’Rielly pointed out, “there will continue to be two different sets of rules based on whether listeners tune in over-the-air or stream programming online.”

In his speech, O’Rielly also proposed “a guaranteed right at license renewal for a station to supplement its Issues Programming List” in order to make the documents less “over-inclusive” out of fear. O’Rielly acknowledged the Media Bureau’s efforts to help stations come into or stay in compliance, but indicated he believes this formalized system makes more sense.

The post O’Rielly Tells MBA “We Are Playing a Long Game” Against Pirate Operators appeared first on Radio World.

Acoustic treatment manufacturer GIK Acoustics has introduced an acoustic foam option for its Impression Series and Alpha Series room treatments.

Both the Impression and Alpha Series of acoustic panels utilize front plates with designs cut into them to both absorb low-to-mid frequencies while diffusing high frequencies simultaneously.

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

Available in squares measuring 23.5 inches x 23.5 inches and 2.25 inches-thick, the newly added acoustic foam option was characterized as “lightweight, versatile, affordable, and effective” by Glenn Kuras, president of GIK Acoustics.

The Impression Series is available in a dozen patterns, while the Alpha Series is available in three mathematical patterns and five different plate finishes.

Info: www.gikacoustics.com

 

The post GIK Acoustics Adds Acoustic Foam Option appeared first on Radio World.

The author is membership program director of the National Federation of Community Broadcasters. NFCB commentaries are featured regularly at www.radioworld.com.

The recent announcement by a London radio station that it will build its full schedule from podcasts certainly garnered some attention. It comes not many months since iHeartMedia’s announcement over the summer that its stations would broadcast some of the company’s podcast properties.

If you’re a media company, these moves make sense. Since podcasts are the hot commodity at the moment — it stands to reason that radio wants to grab some of that attention. What’s stopping community radio from making more of its broadcasts to be podcast-first propositions too?

[Read: Community Broadcaster: Money Moves]

To be clear, there are a few stations that do the preproduction work typically associated with podcasting and use the finished mixdowns in their broadcast schedules. Richmond’s low-power FM station WRIR pops to mind as a station that has done this successfully. A few other stations, like WXPR, create podcasts that are aired at times. Community radio podcasting, in this regard, is not unheard of.

What are the obstacles to a community radio station going all podcast?

A station must overcome the structural issues it would have to deal with. Podcast production is a lot of work, and producing 168 hours a week of quality local podcasts is no small feat. A station could partner with local podcasters, but there are still particular broadcast and federal regulations to follow, should such podcasts become broadcast material. Rules around payola, indecency, plugola, obscenity and lobbying are just a few areas podcasters have far more latitude than a noncommercial educational broadcaster. There’s orientation and training, as well as quality assurance for everything on air. Such a commitment is not impossible. A community radio station going all-podcast could experience a unique set of challenges.

As an extension of local partnerships, and beyond, a station could opt to just air podcasts it finds online. Obtaining permission to air their work, and ensuring all podcasts meet broadcast regulations, are issues to be considered, though.

In a few other instances, whether community radio stations air all or even a few podcasts may be a cultural question. Over time, I have gotten the impression that some stations believe their brand and what people look to them for is live radio. While I think that opinion is a stretch — how much of the public, frankly, can ascertain live radio from the dozens of prerecorded “live” spots commercial radio has exposed them to for years? — the belief in live radio as “a thing” a community radio station is known for is not an isolated opinion. Implicit here may be the idea that podcasts sound polished while live radio sounds rougher, more organic or more like what longtime listeners associate with community radio.

I gently suggest that sounding less than top-flight may not be something to aspire to, however. Public tastes have grown sophisticated, across many generations and demographics. People expect more these days. A raw sound we may think is community radio may not be as appealing to others. Moreover, I can hear that aesthetic on YouTube, Instagram Live and Facebook. We may not be able to hang our hats on the “radio” sound anymore.

Podcasts to broadcasts are done in limited ways in community radio today. The barriers to greater adoption may lie in costs and having the necessary staffing. Yet the moves happening in other media, and the natural fit local podcasts and local community radio could have, should inspire all of us to dream bigger.

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