• Get involved.
    We want your input!
    Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.

    After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
    If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.

    After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
    https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/

    Thanks in advance and have fun!
    RadioDiscussions Administrators

Question about low power digital TV stations with analog audio

N

nd2023

Banned
WNYZ-LP Channel 6 is running video in digital and still has an analog audio carrier at 87.7 FM. They use only the analog audio as a radio station, the digital video signal is on channel 1-1 and has color bars and the audio is the radio station. The carrier frequency is 82.1.
Would it be possible to just run completely different video programming and the accompanying audio on the digital portion, and the analog audio would continue to be operated as a radio station?
The owner of WNYZ is planning to sell the station because Mega Media, the leasee of WNYZ, is going bankrupt. But would it be legal to only lease the analog audio portion to Mega Media and sell the digital video/audio?
 
I think they may be playing hard and fast with the rules already: If they're running a digital video broadcast, I don't believe there should be a separate audio carrier at 87.75 MHz. But I am not certain of the rules that govern TV; much more familiar with the radio rules.
 
I would rather doubt they can do this. However, if their public file is up-to-date, they have all their reports filed with the Commission, and have two employees of varying gender from each officially approved minority, I am sure the FCC will give them a "bye" on this minor violation of technical rules.
 
Nick said:
WNYZ-LP Channel 6 is running video in digital and still has an analog audio carrier at 87.7 FM. They use only the analog audio as a radio station, the digital video signal is on channel 1-1 and has color bars and the audio is the radio station. The carrier frequency is 82.1.
Would it be possible to just run completely different video programming and the accompanying audio on the digital portion, and the analog audio would continue to be operated as a radio station?
The owner of WNYZ is planning to sell the station because Mega Media, the leasee of WNYZ, is going bankrupt. But would it be legal to only lease the analog audio portion to Mega Media and sell the digital video/audio?
Click to expand...

MANY of the rules that apply to full-power stations do *not* extend to LPTVs like WNYZ. I think you can reasonably assume if a good case could be made that what they were doing now was illegal, the major NYC stations would be jumping down the FCC's throat to get Pulse shut down.

I can say with 99% confidence that it would be legal for WNYZ to lease the analog audio and digital video separately. I cannot imagine a situation where they could *sell* the signals independently. But they've been pretty good at finding loopholes (both legal and technical) and I wouldn't rule anything out!

(what WNYZ is doing simply should not work, from a technical standpoint. I really don't understand how it does. Likewise with WRGB up in Schenectady which is doing essentially the same thing.)
 
I would figure that since Island Broadcasting went through the expense of buying the digital TV/analog audio combiner, this might have been their intention. Since they don't care about the video at the moment, why would they go through the expense of upgrading to digital? Pulse 87 could have used that to start their own TV channel, but they didn't.

WRGB blocks out certain programming from 87.9 that it's not allowed to air on the radio.
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.


Back
Top Bottom