[cma-l] CR on AM

Fri Sep 26 17:38:34 BST 2014

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Canalside's The Thread" <office at thethread.org.uk>

Ian et al

Ofcom have actually said we can apply, but that’s about as far as we are at
the minute. We can prove and have proved that without a shadow of a doubt
we deserve Macc, and Macc deserves us. Our Community work over the last ten
years has been second to none, and if one wishes to talk about ‘’’ticking
boxes’’’ we’ve ticked the lot, twice over and some !

 Most of the Community Groups, Organisations and Charities that we work
with a based in Macclesfield or if they ain’t, their HQ is in Macc. Can you
believe we run some Programmes specifically aimed at certain groups (with
em and for them)  and they can’t listen because they can’t pick it up. Of
course some can go onto the internet, but as we know people are lazy and
will always go for the easy option     switch the Radio on, if the signal
is dodgy, crackly or half none existent, then it’s Bye Bye Blackbird and
Goodnight Vienna.

I have always maintained to Ofcom and the CMA, that if Fred down the road
chooses not to listen to us because he prefers Radio 2 or 3, then that’s
fine, that is a democratic choice, however, if Fred is listening to the
local Commercial drivel or Radio 2 because ‘HE CAN’T PICK US UP AND HAS NO
OPTION’ that is absolutely not acceptable.

 As I have said, the excuse that gets thrown back to us is ‘’you’re not
licensed for Macc’’      yes, I know we’re not, but that’s because the
pathetic rules that most of us have been battling with for the last ten
years create the mess that we have to work in.

Community Radio is a fantastic thing, and there has been a lot of good has
come out of it, trouble is, it has been marred by all the nonsense,
bureaucracy and jobsworths. In the jobsworths defence, it isn’t really
their fault, they are merely doing their job, it is the fault of the
Governments / DCMS      they allowed the Commercial Radio big wigs to wine
and dine them from the outset, that caused problems that have been pecking
away at us all since 2002/3.

I wake up every morning with astonishment that here we are in nearly 2015,
and after all the debates, arguments, discussions & rants and yet we still
have Stations like Tudno in Llandudno and Bay in Exeter in the restrictions
!  no on-air advertising. In fact, I think all the bloody restrictions
should go now, it’s a nonsense. I really feel for these guys.

 I suggested at the meeting in Sheffield in the summer that every Community
Station should turn off for a week as a protest … we had at least a 85%
support. Sometimes you have to roll your sleeves up and get stuck in, it is
regrettable, but when you’re backed in a corner, what do you do. I also
suggested that we fight together to get the Radio fund up a little £££ and
everyone gets a set amount (the same amount) every year. Once again there
was a lot of support for this.

I think for this Country (UK) the Ministers need to wake up and smell the
coffee         it’s an embarrassment !

Apologies if I have gone off-piste slightly   LOL   J       I think I’m
going soft in my old age, I’ve only had two rants this year. I’ll see if I
can squeeze another in before Chrimbo    LOL

Oh, I forgot to mention   silk fm got a double power boost at the drop of a
hat and within 10 weeks, bizarrely enough the Station who were pecking at
them were the same Station who were pecking at us, but on the other
frequency   mmm ???        like I said, bring out the Geese and Ganders
again, what’s good for one is good for another isn’t it ?

Have a good weekend everyone

Regards

Nick

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*From:* Ian Hickling [mailto:transplanfm at hotmail.com]
*Sent:* 26 September 2014 16:52
*To:* office at thethread.org.uk
*Subject:* CR on AM

Nick - this is brilliant.

I should come and see you and get a feel of how you've been treated and how
to get on top.

Silk can have no moral or legal objection to your presence if you are so
licensed and their hike in power and coverage is the best possible reason
for you now to get justice.
You are no possible threat to them and they can have no say in any
increases you might request.

Indeed if you can prove that you have a demand for your service in Macc
then that again is excellent ammunition.

Ian

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From: office at thethread.org.uk
To: cma-l at mailman.commedia.org.uk
Date: Fri, 26 Sep 2014 11:37:26 +0100
Subject: Re: [cma-l] CR on AM

Dear All

I have only been half following this, but I do get the gist of it. Ian
talks about folk not really doing their homework properly and he does have
a case. However, I can point out that in our case the allocation of
frequency / power / coverage was a bit of a mish mash cock-up.

As you know, we were in the ‘’’restrictions’’’ category, we had to endure
the constant whinging from the local commercial Station (silk) and it was
this that meant our launch was not going to be plain sailing. The truth is,
if we had said our main coverage area (officially) was Macclesfield, we may
not have gotten the licence. That’s why we had to walk around on egg-shells
and go for Bollington (just outside Macc) with a view to including
Macclesfield. We have always maintained that without Macclesfield the
project is a dead duck, and that still applies.

On a scale of 1- 10 our coverage came in at about 7. Off to the North West
we drift into areas that we don’t want, with half dead spots just 4 miles
down the road in Macc. All that said, we were getting away with it until
Ofcom licensed Real in Wales …….. they now peck at us with hisses and
crackles and spurts and we do know that we have lost listeners because of
it. On a scale of 1 – 10 our coverage in Macclesfield has now dropt to 6 !
and inside some buildings possibly 2 !

We do need to be nearer to Macc and/or higher …… there may soon be a
discussion about a transmitter move and we are literally only talking about
half a mile tops. This would at least push Real / or is it Heart ?    back
a bit.

So the point I’m making is some Stations are where they are due to matters
outside of and beyond their control. The thing that frustrates me (which
kinda backs up Ian)  is that sometimes doing a few tweaks doesn’t harm
anyone, it doesn’t interfere with anyone but you still get told no.

The main objection for us seems to be ‘’well, you’re not licensed for
Macclesfield’’        yes but    we’re not licensed for Macclesfield
because you wouldn’t let us/the rules wouldn’t let us be licensed for
Macclesfield. We have always argued this case since day dot, and it is a
valid point. Silk fm had a power boost and are now out of the 116,000
category, they are over 200,000               so, silk changed the rules,
so did Ofcom, we didn’t. All we are doing is running alongside the rules.
We are out of one restriction, not because it was the correct and moral
thing to do, but for the complete wrong reasons. I still have a very nasty
taste in my mouth   re:- this matter

I find that in our business certainly over the past 10 years, there has
been one hell of a lot of goalpost moving and ignoring things that don’t
suit. What’s good for Geese and Ganders spring to mind as well.

Mmm ?

Nick

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*From:* cma-l-bounces at mailman.commedia.org.uk [mailto:
cma-l-bounces at mailman.commedia.org.uk] *On Behalf Of *Ian Hickling
*Sent:* 25 September 2014 19:09
*To:* RJ THORNE; The Community Media AssociationDiscussion List
*Subject:* [cma-l] CR on AM

We see this all the time.

Applicants take advice and make vital decisions without consulting a
propagation specialist and wonder why they don't get the coverage their
Licence requires.
The original Application goes in with a notional transmitter site and a
coverage area someone has drawn on an OS map with a pencil round a jam-pot
lid - or something not much better qualified.

When it comes to installing transmission the site has already been agreed
and we have to do what we can with what we're given - and then get
questions afterwards when the result isn't good enough.

With VHF/FM we can plan reasonably well to give the coverage that's
specified. but we're always up against this "25 plus 25 giving a 5km radius
fits all" edict which in most cases simply isn't enough.

At the moment we're looking at a station licensed to cover two towns whose
centres are 6km apart and the urban area alone spans a minimum of 12 km but
Ofcom refuses to consider two transmitters.
So we proposed 100 + 100 on a central single site and that's refused too.

Ofcom predicts coverage with its own excellent software from the
Applicant's proposals, tells him it's not good enough, but won't allow
another transmitter or higher power.

With MW/AM as illustrated below it really is a shot on the dark - and who
suffers?
The Licensee - who goes ahead and spends his (and other peoples') money -
and then wonders why his project fails.

OK - an over-simplified analysis maybe - but let's see who disagrees?

 ------------------------------

Date: Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:34:03 +0100
From: rj.thorne at btinternet.com
To: cma-l at mailman.commedia.org.uk
Subject: Re: [cma-l] CRonAM

There may well be life in the old dog yet but after our experience with
Forest of Dean Radio I never want to be on AM again. Throughout the life of
the station we constantly got complaints about the quality of the signal
and spent thousands looking for ways to improve it. Even with two
frequencies and two transmitters (one of which had 250 watts) there were
whole areas of the Forest where the signal was either too poor to listen to
comfortably or didn't exist at all, especially at night.(We did get picked
up in Sweden though).

I'm not a technical bod and didn't understand many of the discussions and
suggestions made except that most of them cost way more than we could
afford, still didn't offer too much and certainly couldn't guarantee we'd
get what we needed. The geography and geology of the Forest were major
factors it seems, as were the hundreds of thousands of trees.

Personally I'm convinced the way forward for those who can't get FM is to
go digital in whatever form becomes universally available.

*From:* fantasy office <office at fantasyradio.co.uk>
*To:* cma-l at mailman.commedia.org.uk
*Sent:* Thursday, 25 September 2014, 12:33
*Subject:* [cma-l] CRonAM

it's true to say AM is not considered very sexy these days, but there's
life in the old dog yet.

Our first RSL broadcasts were on AM back in 1995, using a transmitter of my
own design, and we had good daytime reception over a wide area, with none
of the black spots you often get on low power FM! The antenna design is
vital for AM, but we were on 1 watt EMRP and we had listeners as far away
as Sweden and Germany. It's worth remembering that there are far fewer
stations on AM these days, causing less interference, so for community
broadcasting, AM could be very worthwhile. especially when backed up by a
good quality stream.

If anyone would like more info on AM, feel free to get in touch.

Phil Dawson

FANTASY RADIO 97FM
*DEVIZES AND MID WILTSHIRE*

office at fantasyradio.co.uk
07710 027389
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