> > > I don't mean to rain on the part 15 broadcaster's parade
>
> > > since I used to be one, but I made the jump from part 15
>
> > to
> > > Internet radio via Live365.com and couldn't be happier.
>
> >
> > “Internet radio” is not radio, it's just a different
> medium
> > for transferring audio. Radio has traditionally referred
> to
> > electromagnetic over-the-air transmission. This forum is
> > focused on real radio -- Radio-Info.com -- Community
> Radio.
> > I think you are indeed raining on the parade here and I
> > think you should confine your posts to forums focused on
> > "internet radio", which is not real radio.
> >
> > Saying you only reached the neighbor next door does not
> mean
> > anything. Maybe you had a crappy transmitter, crappy
> > antenna, crappy ground, mistuned antenna, etc. Maybe you
> > live in the middle of an Iowa farm with no neighbors. Who
> > knows what? The point is your statements are meaningless.
>
> I don't believe I started my earlier post with "Dear Phil,
> you and Part 15 broadcasting sucks" so please take a deep
> breath (and not take my post personally). My post attacked
> no one, made fun of or put down no one and was factual to my
> experience with part 15 broadcasting.
>
> The first post on this thread was someone expressing
> frustration about what they percieve as the condition of
> Part 15 radio. Truth is, BMI is out to begin collecting
> music licensing fees from Part 15 broadcasters and ASCAP and
> SESAC plan to follow. The truth is that music is not free
> for the airing. The artists, composers, producers and
> writers have legal copywrite claims and BMI, SESAC, ASCAP
> and the RIAA are out to capitalize on that fact. It doesn't
> matter that we don't make a cent on our broadcasts. The law
> is on their side, not ours. When we purchased that CD, we
> did not pay for the right to publically perform the contents
> of the disc. That's extra. The law won't allow you to go
> to a car rental place and use one of their vehicles without
> paying for the right. The law won't allow you to publically
> perform (broadcast)copywrited music without paying for the
> right either. I'm not making a "fairness" arguement here,
> just a legality one.
>
> Truth is, if you are a Part 15 FM broadcaster and are
> anywhere in the ballpart of legal, you are covering your own
> front yard and maybe a neighbor's. If you willfully exceed
> that, a healthy fear of the FCC is probably a good thing
> because you are breaking the law. Reality, however, is that
> unless you are interfering with a legally licensed station
> or have negatively caught the attention of a neighbor or
> Clear Channel, the FCC has much bigger fish to fry than you.
> Again, the fairness of the law is not the point of my
> comment. That is a completely different battle that I wish
> we had the ability to fight. Until it is changed, the law
> is the law. Rfry's recent posts simply point that out. I
> personally think it is neat that a broadcast engineer
> bothered to take the time to do the calculations and share
> them with us. Use or ignore the information he shares as
> you wish.
>
> As a Part 15 AM broadcaster I had a very decent signal
> footprint for Florida and it's miserable ground
> conductivity, about a 1/4 mile out from the antenna using a
> very good radio. No 20 foot in the air or 120 radial ground
> system in the back yard tricks...just using the supplied 3
> meter wire antenna which I encased in copper air conditioner
> tubing to make more manageable. I covered about 25 houses
> with a usable daytime signal. My classic country format was
> simply too specialized to have an impact among the number of
> potential listeners in the footprint. I have no proof, but
> would suspect that many other non-mass appeal formats suffer
> the same end result. The Internet gave me access to enough
> potential listeners to develop an audience.
>
> My original post was offering up one possible solution while
> sharing some of my frustrations. I encourage anyone with
> the desire to pursue Part 15 broadcasting to do so. If your
> goal is more than just having a transmitted signal in the
> air. If you want to reach people with a message or certain
> type of music, there are other ways of doing so that may
> offer greater potential than a Part 15 station. Internet
> radio is one of them.
>
> In a broadband wired neighborhood or city, community
> Internet radio has HUGE potential if you got the word out.
> Every listener gets a clear signal, day and night and the
> FCC is no longer an issue in your life. Go through a
> company like Live365.com, abide by their rules and the RIAA,
> BMI, SESAC and ASCAP are no longer an issue in your life.
> You can just worry about doing compelling radio that might
> make a difference in your community (and the whole world can
> eavesdrop). If you choose the Part 15 station route, thats
> cool too. But know that the BMIs and FCCs of this world
> will not stop carrying out their marching orders within the
> law. Fair or unfair.
>
Well, for the record, I appologize for being maybe a little to direct in my reply. I didn't mean it as a personal attack on you. Your "rain on your parade" comment just struck a nerve. Part 15 FM is indeed a lost cause with the highly restrictive power limit. Part 15 AM is another story entirely. There have been many innovative technical solutions toward viable broadcasting. Just consider multiple synced transmitters and elevated antennas with elaborate ground systems. Sure, if you want to reach the world, you can abandon Part 15 for streaming audio or podcasting. I don't think the primary focus of this forum is to discuss these alternative media.
I have listened to Live365 stations for several years. There is good stuff there, and some not-so-good stuff. I am constantly frustrated when I go back to my bookmarked stations and find they have disappeared.
The latest technologies like streaming, podcasting and XM are indeed alternatives to traditional radio, and they offer exciting alternatives to the usual "Clearchannel" drivel. But, they all completely miss the focus of this board: Community Radio.<P ID="signature">______________
Phil B
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