APRIL NEWSLETTER

Vol. VII, No. 4 - April 2000

More Comments From All Sides

March was a busy month for activity in the LPFM arena. On March 27, 2000, the FCC announced the first group to have a filing window opened for submitting LPFM applications. The states of Alaska, California, Georgia, Indiana, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Oklahoma, Rhode Island and Utah, as well as the District of Columbia and the Mariana Islands, will be allowed to file LPFM applications during the first window. The FCC expects to open a filing window every three months. The Public Notice indicated the actual window announcement will be made in late April with the end of May noted as the potential date for the filings. The FCC also released the form to be used for submitting applications for low power service. The technical section is limited to geographic coordinates, channel and height.

Meanwhile, Congress continues with its legislative matters on LPFM. The committee considering the matter has drafted a bill that, if passed, would require 3^rd adjacent channel protection for LPFM stations, ensure the service will never become a commercial outlet and prevent former pirates from being qualified as applicants. National Public Radio is supporting the Congressional proposals to ensure protection of Reading for the Blind services. Similar legislation is being developed in the Senate. When the proposed bill left the Commerce Committee, FCC Chairman William Kennard issued a statement that these changes would limit the availability of LPFM stations.

Class A TV Service Getting Closer

The Commission has released the Report and Order establishing Class A protected status for certain Low Power TV stations. Late last year, the FCC asked LPTV licensees to submit their request for certification as Class A stations. Rather than receiving several hundred requests, the Commission received over 1,700 requests for low power television stations. The Order states that, in order to be eligible for Class A status, the LPTV station must operate a minimum of 18 hours per week, broadcast an average of three hours per week of programming produced within the market area serviced by the station and be in compliance with the LPTV rules. Designation with Class A status protects the LPTV stations from future displacements, due to new full service TV stations and changes to existing facilities.

Checking On The Transmitter Site

Since more and more stations are relying on contract engineers, there is less time being spent at the transmitter sites. This means that quite some time could pass before the site is visited. As such, there could be damage to the tower or guy anchors which goes without attention. For instance, a guy wire anchor was the victim of a falling tree during a recent storm. While the location is checked more frequently than most, the tree could have damaged the guy wires or anchor, causing the tower to lean. The last thing any station wants to hear is that their tower is in danger of falling. If the contract engineer is tied up on studio issues, staff personnel should make a periodic trip to the site, where physically possible, and check that all is well. It is much easier to take corrective action immediately, than to find out damage has occurred due to inattention.

They Came To The Desert

The wind didn't seem to blow as hard as in past years, which made the National Association of Broadcasters Convention in Las Vegas an even nicer trip. If you weren't among the tens of thousand of attendees, you missed the discussions (sometimes heated) on the Low Power FM issues, the newest digital audio gadgets and couldn't see the DTV improvements. During the convention, Chairman Bill Kennard again asked broadcasters to work with him to allow for the co-existence of full service FM stations and LPFM's (in light of the NAB appeal and looming Congressional legislation).

The Chairman also noted that some TV broadcasters have requested a delay in the transition to digital. Kennard said TV transition to digital was going to happen, analog is over and that delaying the transition was not an option.