[BC] FCC Deletes digital report from today's meeting

[Rich Wood]

>Mike McCarthy wrote:
> > In an analog world where the D/U ratio is something like 40dB, your
> > argument is correct.  In a digital world, the D/U ratio could be as
> > little as 6 dB and there would be no problem receiving/decoding the
> > signal. I can see where a NUMBER of arrays would be able to go omni with
> > digital...day AND night..

Is there any way you can pass your ideas on to the FCC and the 
manufacturer? As it stands, judging by the delay in dealing with 24/7 
AM IBUZ, there appears to be terrible fear of giving it a try. If 
there really are ways to make nighttime operation work we need it 
now. If it weren't affecting analog reception we'd have decades to 
figure out a fix before many listeners can receive IBUZ. Nothing in 
the way of portable receivers appears to be on the drawing board, so 
we're stuck with three types of receivers, only one of which is even 
remotely portable - the car radio. We have deaf table radios that 
require outdoor antennas, the Yamaha AV receiver that has incredible 
sensitivity even with the BA rat tail antenna and a couple of car 
receivers that require additional tuners and share with satellite 
radio. As hard as I've searched I can't find a single manufacturer 
with portable devices on the drawing board. Ask retailers, they'll 
tell you small devices are what's selling. Only HDTV finds big to be 
desirable.

Mike Bergman of Kenwood gave me a manufacturer's timeline for the 
introduction of new models, particularly ones with more than cosmetic 
changes. IBUZ is a major change. He gave me three years for design, 
manufacturing and distribution. When I suggested that I completely 
agreed with the research done on layered displays I was told it's not 
in the cards. They have so many products with much larger markets 
that this isn't a front burner issue, since broadcasters seem content 
with the current system. I don't know what departments are content 
but I can assure you programming, promotion and sales departments are 
going to have problems on their hands translating their positioning 
into listener recall when the receiver tells them they're listening 
to WXXX-HD2 and Arbitron credits the listener to the main channel 
because the listener has put WXXX in the diary. That's what was 
displayed on the radio. HD1 and HD2 don't mean much in an area where 
confusion is rampant. Both stations and Arbitron try their best to 
capture "top of mind awareness" and translate that to an accurate 
diary entry. Listeners don't pay much attention and often wait until 
the diary is due before filling it out. That relies on recall long 
after the listener has forgotten, so they simply enter the station or 
show they remember even if they regularly listen to 3 or 4 stations.

If IBUZ could be implemented with no effect on analog reception, all 
would be well. Futz around with the system and let the rest of the 
world listen as usual. You can sort of do that with FM but AM damages 
analog listening. Not a good thing. I can't listen to KDKA until WBZ 
shuts it down for the night. I can only imagine the problems I'll 
have listening to WBZ when KDKA fires it up. I have no credible news 
sources on radio here. WBZ is the closest I can get that has 
relevance to Massachusetts. Here I have rip and read and FOX network 
news. I'm used to New York with three all news stations - locally produced.

I wish there were more programming/promotions people here who felt 
comfortable posting. Unlike engineering, Programming is proprietary. 
You don't let the competition know what you're planning and you don't 
tell them how you've figured out how to overcome the handicaps 
introduced by confusing displays.

As more stations fire up IBUZ the more the predictions of AM's death 
approach reality. Once AM is gone we have to figure out how to sell 
nearly 7,000 new "stations'" glut of inventory to the same base of advertisers.

This isn't just my opinion. Rich Russo of the industry's largest 
media buying firm has been quoted in the trades that this is a 
solution waiting for a problem. Pay attention to him. He's the guy 
with the advertising money.

Rich