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Gary Peterson makes great points about the history of AM modulation (Reader’s Forum, “Modulation Limits,” Sept. 16 issue).

I’d like to add to that by including a note about one of the most unique audio processors ever developed, the Frese Audio Pilot.

Audio Pilot. Courtesy Steven Allen

The Audio Pilot was invented by a consulting engineer in Washington state named George M. Frese. Its unique aspect was the RF control, which was a unit that demoded a sample from the transmitter to provide the control voltage for the second compressor stage in the Pilot.

With a robust modulation transformer the Audio Pilot could modulate the transmitter with positive peaks well over 150%!

I remember on a Class IV station in Monterey, Calif., we were able to modulate (at low power, 250 watts) the Gates BC-1T out to 185% on positive peaks. The Audio Pilot could make a small Class-IV station sound bigger than the 5 kW or even 50 kW stations in the same market.

All Audio Pilots were hand-built and only about 43 or so were ever built. Most were located at radio stations in the western United States.

When the FCC instituted the 125% positive peak limit, Frese stopped building new Audio Pilots. They were $2,500 new in 1968, which would be almost $30K in 2020 money.

Any history written about AM processing will be incomplete without an examination of the Frese Audio Pilot.

PS – It had a small pre-emphasis with about a +3 dB spike around 3.5 kHz. When I used the AP in 1982, we replaced that section of the unit with an Orban parametric equalizer. It gave the unit a much more modern sound. I think the AP was the first AM audio processing with any kind of pre-emphasis.

BTW, George also invented the parapanel antenna for AM broadcast use. He never patented it and didn’t make any money off of it. But there are several stations in the NW with parapanels that Mr. Frese designed and built late in his career.

YouTube has an interview with the late George Frese, done by his grandson. [See the notes under that video for time markers for various topics within that lengthy interview. — Ed.]

The post Letter: On Modulation Limits appeared first on Radio World.

In October, Wisconsin Public Radio and the state agency that manages stations that carry WPR programming announced they were reducing their use of HD Radio.

They posted an announcement explaining the decision. They noted that their use of HD Radio dated to 2007 and that WPR and the Wisconsin Educational Communications Board had installed 13 HD Radio transmitters carrying existing WPR content that also allowed WPR to broadcast its All Classical network on HD2 multicasts.

“Beginning Monday, Oct. 19 the ECB … will turn off HD Radio broadcasts on seven of WPR’s 13 HD-capable stations,” they announced. Those are licensed to the communities of Superior, Brule-Superior, Ashland, Park Falls, Menomonie-Eau Claire, Adams-Wisconsin Rapids and Sister Bay.

The organization will continue to operate HD Radio “for now” on stations serving Delafield-Milwaukee, Madison, Highland, La Crosse, Wausau and Green Bay.

“WPR and the ECB received federal grants to install HD Radio technology, but the costs of maintaining the service statewide are no longer justifiable based on audience use,” they wrote.

The audience in question is the one listening to multicasts. ECB Executive Director Marta Bechtol estimated that fewer than 500 listeners would be affected and noted that the classical network continues online and via apps and smart speakers. She also emphasized to the public that WPR service on “their usual FM and AM stations” would not be affected.

“HD Radio was launched nationally in 2002 with a promise to provide higher-quality, digital audio to radio listeners. Stations purchased new equipment to broadcast HD Radio and listeners were required to purchase new radios to pick up the signals,” the announcement continued.

“While many stations, like WPR, invested in the new technology, few consumers purchased the radios, which have become difficult to find. Despite some benefits, HD Radio has failed to attract enough listeners to offer a sustainable alternative to FM or even AM analog radio for many broadcasters.”

We reached out to Bechtol and Crane for more insight.

Radio World: Can you expand on the thinking that went into this decision, given the time and money that had been invested in it?

Marta Bechtol

Marta Bechtol: The Wisconsin Educational Communications Board, which holds the licenses for these stations, is an agency of the State of Wisconsin, and receives approximately 30% of its annual operating funds from the state. The agency has been issued a fiscal year budget lapse ($245,000) due to the economic effects of COVID-19, so tough decisions had to be made. This action will help keep future capital costs down as well.

RW: The seven stations are turning off HD-1 digital radio service and associated multicasts?

Bechtol: All of these are multicast services. The analog/digital mix of HD-1 and the all-digital HD-2 are being turned off.

Mike Crane: All had HD-2 signals delivering an All Classical feed. We do have several HD-3 services on the remaining transmitters, used either to deliver signal to another transmitter as a form of STL, or because limited local analog service for one of our two networks suggests that we should leave them on for the time being.

RW: The announcement quotes Mike saying “the resources we were spending to maintain HD Radio will be redirected to sustain other services that audiences clearly prefer.” Can you expand on which aspects of the operation created costs that can be saved?

Bechtol: We expect to see a reduction in utilities and maintenance costs, an extension of transmitter life, and ease in demands on our technical staff that travel good distances to maintain these facilities.

RW: Mike what specifically will now be turned off? 

Mike Crane

Crane: Importers and exporters that are external to the transmitters. Transmitter exciters were changed by internal setting of FM/HD to FM-only. HD2 audio streams are disconnected to save bandwidth at transmitter sites.

RW: How much do you expect to save?

Bechtol: We’ll see the bulk of savings in our transmitter replacement costs — size, tube life, HD-specific gear, etc. — which are on the immediate horizon. We expect to save around $65,000 in utilities, an estimated 20% decrease in our annual utility costs. (Our average analog-only efficiency is 72%, and our average HD-Hybrid efficiency is 57%, so we’ll see a 15% efficiency increase.) There will also be a small amount of savings related to HVAC/cooling. Additionally, this will save time and money in maintenance costs and relieve workload burdens on our technical staff.

RW: The announcement quotes Marta as saying, “It’s possible that some FM listeners will experience an improved signal quality due to reduced interference from our HD broadcasts.” How would you characterize any interference complaints?

Crane: These HD signals were activated a long time ago, and we don’t have a record of interference complaints from that time, nor have we received any notable complaints recently. The idea that some listeners may get better reception is just based on what we know about the effect of the HD sidebands on the analog signal.

RW: You estimated that fewer than 500 listeners will be affected; how do you determine that number? 

Crane: Based on the Nielsen ratings, we generally do not see any reported listening to the HD-2 signals in question. But anecdotal evidence from listener comments over the years suggests that we do have a few who tuned in.

RW: The announcement noted that radios have become difficult to find; but advocates for HD Radio cite a growing presence in cars. 

Crane: There are still a lot of cars that don’t have HD, and some implementations leave a lot to be desired. And with the current emphasis on Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, as well as on smart speaker listening, we believe focusing on our streams makes more sense.

RW: An argument made by advocates has been that HD Radio and other digital formats bring more capabilities for metadata including visual elements important in the dash. Does WPR deploy visuals like Artist Experience or other metadata-based services?

Crane: We do deliver some metadata, and are eager to add more as we upgrade our systems. We currently deliver RDS data on the FMs and remaining HDs through Center Stage, which we hope to retire someday in favor of something newer like Artist Experience. We are not currently using other platforms for expanded HD metadata.

RW: What would you tell an industry colleague who was thinking of exploring HD Radio at this point?

Crane: There are certainly specific reasons to add HD service in some circumstances. But consumer uptake has been disappointing for a very long time, and we think streaming to smart speakers and to cars is the future. Additionally, few radio station owners invested in it, at least in Wisconsin: In some markets WPR has been the only HD signal for many years.

RW: Your announcement for the general public generally treats the reduction of service as being about the end of certain multicasts. Presumably some listeners were hearing the HD1 too. 

Bechtol: Multicast was always the most exciting part for us.

RW: What else should we know about your experience with HD Radio?

Crane: It has helped us develop our All Classical network (the NPR News & Music Network is a mix of news and classical). But in the absence of special funding like we received from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, HD has become less sustainable.

RW: On another topic, hybrid radio services seem to be on the uptick. What if anything is WPR planning in regard to hybrid radio?

Crane: We’re certainly intrigued, and are following the news as it develops.

 

The post Why WPR Cut Back on HD Radio appeared first on Radio World.

The economic damage inflicted by the COVID-19 pandemic lessened in the third quarter for iHeartMedia as the company returned employees to the office in some markets.

The largest radio group owner in the United States reported Monday it generated revenue of $744 million across all of its business lines for the three months ending Sept. 30. That’s a decline of nearly 22% year-over-year, but a rebound of 53% compared to the previous quarter. July, August and September were down 27%, 21% and 18% year-over-year respectively.

Specifically, broadcast revenue in the quarter declined by 29.4%, while the network radio business sector dipped 25.7% compared to the same quarter in 2019. The company’s digital revenue was up 16.5% year-over-year with most of that growth attributable to podcasting, which grew revenue 73.6% compared to a year earlier.

Direct operating expenses in the third quarter 2020 decreased by 12.6% compared to 2019 and was driven primarily by lower employee compensation expenses resulting from cost-cutting initiatives and reduction in workforce, according to iHeartMedia’s financial report.

[Read: FCC Gives iHeart a Foreign Ownership Privilege]

Self-imposed cost cutting through modernization initiatives will result in operating expense savings of approximately $250 million in 2020, according to the broadcaster’s financial report. “Part of that is utilizing the studios of the future through cloud-based technologies, and really taking advantage of AI,” said Rich Bressler, president and COO of iHeartMedia. “We’ve created centers of excellence across the organization that consolidate key resources for the whole company that increase quality of our programming and reduce costs. The company has become wildly more efficient.”

The broadcaster continues to identify additional efficiencies, including opportunities to reduce its real estate footprint in response to changes brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. Bressler said on the investor call the broadcaster has no plans for downsizing the company through asset sales.

iHeartMedia Chairman and CEO Bob Pittman added: “We have learned a lot through COVID. We have had 10 years of technology learning through three or four months. As a result we envision operating differently in terms of operating our space. I think everyone will come to the office some, but we will not require the same amount of space. Employees will be doing more of their work outside the office.”

The broadcaster is slowly reopening facilities as local health safety criteria for doing so are met, Pittman said. In fact, employees in about half of iHeartMedia’s 160 markets have returned to the office.

iHeartMedia’s capital expenditures for the nine months ending Sept. 30 were $58.5 million compared to $82.5 million in the same nine months of 2019. iHeartMedia projects full-year cap-ex to be approximately $75 to $95 million. The broadcaster said it expects to continue to make key investments in its strategic initiatives related to smart audio and digital, including podcasting.

On Monday’s investor call Bressler called it the “best year for political advertising ever” for the broadcaster. iHeartMedia reported $40 million in political revenue in Q3 while another $55 million funneled in during October. “It will be significantly less in November but we will still get some benefit,” Bressler said. The company reported political revenue is expected to be up for the full year 67% compared to the 2016 presidential election cycle.

Pittman said he is optimistic about the company’s fourth quarter revenue, which continues to grow month over month but will “likely be down again but only in the mid-teens” compared to a year ago. A recent report of a possible COVID-19 vaccine breakthrough could calm advertiser fears, Pittman said, and stirs his optimism even further going forward. “A lot of our growth in Q3 came from sectors like food and beverage, auto, restaurants and retail. Those are categories that had been down a lot in the second quarter. But if we get a vaccine we could see the return of some big spenders like movies and concerts. And the rest of retail. We are watching those developments carefully,” he said.

The company, which emerged from Chapter 11 reorganization in early 2019, is still maneuvering to cut its debt, according to its report to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. iHeartMedia reported debt of just over $6 billion at the end of September.

 

The post iHeartMedia Q3 Revenue Report Brings Some Encouragement appeared first on Radio World.

Future plc, the global platform for specialist media, announced that Radio World is the recipient of its 2020 “B2B Publication of the Year” Award.

Radio World serves radio broadcast industry professionals in the United States and globally with content about technology trends, regulation, new products and radio technical careers. 

“In a challenging year marked by tremendous disruption in the media and trade show industries, plus the impact of COVID on all businesses, Radio World, a 44-year-old brand, continues to reinvent itself and thrive, consolidating its position as the radio industry’s No. 1 technology brand,” the company stated.

Future made note of Radio World’s revenue performance as well as its business-to-business innovation with new digital content formats, its growth in digital audience, and its recent content exploring diversity issues in radio. 

Radio World is a multiplatform brand, with print and digital editions, e-newsletters, social platforms, ebooks and webcasts. 

Among its successes in fiscal 2020:

• The webcast “Inside WTOP: A Specialty Facility Tour Webinar” took Radio World’s video camera into the gleaming new studios of America’s top-earning radio station near the nation’s capital. 

• A front-page special report “Blacks Are Few in U.S. Radio Engineering” was part of a special series of stories featuring career reflections of African-American engineers with their views on their roles and opportunities.

• “Broadcasting From Home” was a four-part series of one-hour produced webcasts featuring interviews with media company technologists about how they responded to the challenge of the pandemic in their workflows.

• Radio World’s online video efforts also included a webcast about one of radio’s big technical questions, “Digital Sunrise for AM,” a spring product-based webcast “15 Things You Can’t Miss” and two autumn product webcasts “Fall Product Peeks I & II.”

• Radio World’s website delivered YoY page views up +39%, users +51% and sessions +46% as of September. The publication’s e-newsletters are notable for their open rates and click-throughs.

• And Radio World expanded on the success of its ebooks, having now published more than 75 of them, this year including reports on trends in codec design, artificial intelligence, and virtualization and the cloud. 

“Radio professionals have become multimedia, multiplatform specialists,” Content Director and Editor in Chief Paul McLane said. 

“Radio World’s work has been characterized by remarkable stability and endurance, and by loyalty from both readers and clients. We’re proud of our efficiency and profitable operations accomplished in a difficult economic environment through smart initiatives, judicious investment and a roll-up-the sleeves attitude adopted by the entire team.”

“This is also an amazing time to be part of Future plc, which Radio World joined in 2018,” McLane said. “Its corporate culture and its support for innovation have been big parts of helping us not only keep Radio World relevant, but to grow it in new directions.”

The company’s annual awards were given in a virtual ceremony on Friday Nov. 6, led by Future CEO Zillah Byng-Thorne.

The post Radio World Is Future’s B2B Publication of the Year appeared first on Radio World.

A new career center has been launched by the IEEE Broadcast Technology Society, designed to connect broadcast industry professionals across all disciplines and career stages with broadcast employers.

The new center, called the BTS Career Center, is designed to highlight the unique nature of members of this industry, said Ralph Hogan, president of the IEEE Broadcast Technology Society. “Our members are highly appealing to employers because they’ve demonstrated a commitment to the highest levels integrity and training,” he said. “Providing our members with opportunities for professional development and career growth are core to our mission to serve the broadcast profession.”

[Read: Ben Dawson Honored With IEEE BTS Award]

The BTS Career Center is being hosted by YM Careers, a provider of job websites and career centers for organizations that serve specialized members. The career center is also unique in that it offers broadcast industry professionals and employers additional benefits such as the ability for job seekers to post anonymous resumes, options for employers to reach out to passive job-seeking broadcast industry professionals who do not visit job boards, integration of job content into social media channels, and the integration of career resources, training and other benefits offered by IEEE Broadcast Technology Society to members.

The career center is in line with the IEEE Broadcast Technology Society’s mission: to enhance industry professionals’ knowledge by keeping them informed of the latest research results and industry trends, and provide enriching educational and networking opportunities.

 

The post New BTS Career Center Launched by IEEE Broadcast Technology Society appeared first on Radio World.

If you want to tell the Federal Communications Commission what you think about its planned limit on applications in the upcoming window for new NCE FM stations, take note: The commission has now published the deadlines for comments.

In October, the FCC said it is seeking comment on its proposed limit for applications in the window that’s expected to open next year. The commission intends to cap the applications at 10 for any applicant, and that no party should have an attributable interest in more than 10 applications. [Read: “FCC Plans to Cap New NCE FM Applications.”]

Now the Media Bureau has set the deadline for comments at Nov. 20, and reply comments by Nov. 30.

Comments are being accepted in MB Docket No. 20-343. Comments may be filed via the commission’s ECFS website.

As we’ve reported, more than a decade has passed since the FCC accepted applications for new full-power NCE construction permits.

The window will allow non-profit organizations, schools and native tribes to apply for original CPs in the NCE reserved band, which is 88.1–91.9 MHz on the FM dial. Individuals cannot apply for NCEs. A separate window for additional new LPFMs is expected to follow.

The post FCC Sets Comment Deadlines on NCE FM Cap appeared first on Radio World.

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Joe Mack

Joe Mack has been named chief revenue officer of equipment manufacturer GatesAir. It is a newly formed position.

Meanwhile Rich Redmond has left the company after 23 years, a spokesman confirmed to Radio World. Redmond most recently held the title of president – managing director, international.

[Read: GatesAir Promotes Parikh to VP of Engineering]

“Joe will take ownership of global sales activity in his new role, with all regional sales leaders across APAC, CALA, EMEA and North America reporting to him,” the company stated in a release planned for Tuesday distribution and obtained by RW.

Mack will continue to report to GatesAir CEO Bruce D. Swail.

Rich Redmond

Mack has been with GatesAir and its predecessor Harris for 30 years. He was promoted to VP of sales for the Americas when GatesAir was formed in 2014, after holding leadership roles at Harris Corporation’s Broadcast Communications Division. “Joe was responsible for all U.S. spectrum repack sales efforts, which established GatesAir as the undisputed market share leader for broadcast transmission,” the company stated. He joined Harris through the acquisition of Midwest Communication in 1990.

Rich Redmond joined Harris in 1998, according to his LinkedIn page, and held several sales and business development roles. He has been a familiar face to visitors to the GatesAir booth at trade shows, and played an important role in that 2014 “carveout” of GatesAir from Harris six years ago. He started his career with Northeast Broadcast Lab in 1990. Redmond did not immediately reply to a request for comment from Radio World.

GatesAir is part of The Gores Group, a global investment firm.

 

The post GatesAir Names Joe Mack as CRO appeared first on Radio World.

A USSI Global field engineer performs maintenance on the satellite dish of a customer in Miami. Photo: USSI Global

USSI Global has launched a service to mitigate possible interference that may occur in the C-Band as broadcasters and cable networks transition from the lower 300 MHz band to make room for 5G services.

Operators of C-Band services in the 300 MHz band will be moved to what remains of the 200 MHz band by 2025. An auction for the spectrum begins in December, and the relocation of existing C-Band users in the 300 MHz band will occur with deadlines in late 2021, 2023 and 2025.

[Read: FCC Chooses C-Band Repack Money Clearinghouse Operators]

The new USSI Global interference mitigation service offers a full range of project management services, including site inspection, installation and commissioning. The company also can modernize all satellite systems and infrastructure, it said.

USSI Global, which is a turnkey provider of customized network, broadcast and digital signage systems and services around the world, plans to have a dedicated team of RF and satellite engineers work on each relocation project. It will offer C-Band users an option to offload network operation, monitoring and maintenance to USSI Global technicians, as well as a dedicated around-the-clock call center to respond to problems, the company said.

“The C-Band spectrum is occupied by television and radio broadcasters, as well as cable networks, that use satellite networks for contribution and distribution,” said David S. Christiano, USSI Global CEO and president.

“Our C-Band Mitigation Interference service will guide operators through complex, time-sensitive transformations and complete system upgrades that optimize their network infrastructure for the next generation. USSI Global brings together every project management and customer service element to ensure smooth transitions for our customers.”

The company will perform a full inspection of existing satellite facilities, after which its field engineers will manage all technical changes to the network infrastructure. It will update and repaint existing antennas as well as install new antennas, filters, IRDs and other components to modernized satellite networks. USSI Global will work with multiple suppliers while procuring new technology to get the best price, the company said.

USSI Global also will retune and repoint antennas to comply with frequency changes while enabling its clients to maintain uninterrupted service during the upgrade and transition, it said.

More information is available on the company’s website.

 

The post USSI Global Service to Assist C-Band Spectrum Users Relocate appeared first on Radio World.

Gordon Smith sent a video message about the elections to NAB members. Click to view.

Gordon Smith, a former Republican senator and now the president/CEO of the National Association of Broadcasters, says it is “decisive” that Joe Biden won the U.S. electoral vote. Smith issued a statement this weekend praising Biden for “his patriotic love for his country and of his good heart for all his countrymen.”

This would normally be considered a fairly routine post-election compliment from a former Senate colleague, but it stands out in the 2020 political climate.

Smith, a Republican, issued his statement even though Trump has not conceded and has issued numerous legal challenges to the Biden win.

In a similar vein, former President George W. Bush on Sunday described the election as “fundamentally fair.”

Smith acknowledged Trump’s rights to judicial review of election results but said, “It is time to acknowledge the election of Joe Biden and to allow him the chance to bind our nation back together.”

Here is the text of Smith’s statement:

“It has been clear for days now that Joe Biden has been on track to win the popular vote in his run for the presidency. It is decisive that today he has surpassed the threshold of 270 electoral college votes. NAB congratulates Joe Biden on becoming president-elect of the United States of America.

“I was privileged to serve beside President-elect Joe Biden during my two terms as a Republican Senator from Oregon. I know Joe. I know his patriotic love for his country and of his good heart for all his countrymen.

“Working together on the Foreign Relations Committee, we routinely bridged the partisan divide to achieve important legislative accomplishments.

“And, during a time of personal tragedy for my family, when we lost our son Garrett, Joe was a source of support and solace. Because he too knew the pain of losing a child, he gave to me a steady, brotherly shoulder to lean on. Joe is a healer, the consoler-in-chief our nation has elected.

“With due respect to President Trump’s rights to judicial review of election results, it is time to acknowledge the election of Joe Biden and to allow him the chance to bind our nation back together.”

He posed a video message for NAB members regarding the elections. He highlighted the large turnout and the role of broadcasters in the process.

The post Gordon Smith Says Biden Won appeared first on Radio World.

Petitions for Reconsideration (Petitions) have been filed in the Commission's proceeding by David Goldman, on behalf of Space Exploration Technologies Corp.; Audrey L. Allison, on behalf of The Boeing Company; Jennifer A. Manner, on behalf of EchoStar Satellite Services, LLC and Hughes Network Services, LLC; Mike Safyan, on behalf of Planet Labs Inc.; Ananda Martin, on behalf of Spire Global, Inc.; Elisabeth Neasmith, on behalf of Telesat Canada; and Julie Zoller, et al., on behalf of Kuiper Systems, Inc.

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As required by the National Defense Authorization Act, the FCC Submits its Fifth Semi-Annual Report to Congress on Submissions by U.S.-Based Foreign Media Outlets

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