Nope, but interestingly the Licensee’s address is in San Francisco.
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With the closure of 3WRB (97.4), it would make sense to use 97.5 for low powered temporary broadcasting. 96.1 is another- it hasn’t been used since the demise of Lion FM.
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To a sandwich shop of all places - can I get a toasted sandwich and a LPON to go?
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There are places in Melbourne (and San Francisco) where a toastie has a higher market value than an LPON.
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ACMA has listed its Compliance priorities for 2023–24 one of which is
Maintaining licensing integrity: LPON licence compliance
Recent audits have revealed widespread non-compliance by Low Power Open Narrowcasting (LPON) licensees with their licence conditions. This includes over-powering transmitters, operating from unlicensed locations, failing to keep records or not providing services.
Non-compliance increases interference risk to other users of the radiocommunications spectrum, denies spectrum to others, degrades services and undermines the efficient allocation and use of spectrum.
We will audit LPON licensees and take action if we find non-compliance with licensing conditions.
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The ACMA forgot to mention LPONs compete with Commercial Radio and in my view the real reason for the audit. ACMA is a tax payer funded arm of the Commercial Radio industry.
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Regardless though, some LPONs are in flagrant breach of their ERP limit.
The over commercialisation of the LPON sector has been discussed here time and again, so I won’t rehash these arguments. If a crackdown leads to less gambling and God and more grassroots broadcasting, I’m all for it.
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I have Starter FM waiting in the wings, waiting for that day to come hopefully.
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To much money roped up in those squads and ACMA would be scared to touch them
AKA a local LPON here in Toowoomba who was caught running 500w through a co-linear and ACMA told them turn it down after the commercial guys teamed up and complained several times… Within a week it went back up and this time to 200w and we gave up trying to get the issues sorted
On top of that they run a quasi Commercial format aka Local Sport, 60s-00s Music aswell as at one stage News.
It seems unless you interfere with emergency services or the Telcos f**k all gets done… But I guess there ain’t enough inspectors floating around these days
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I think the following distinction would serve us better:
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HPONs could be repackaged as ‘niche commercial’ services. Operators can control as many transmitters as they wish. Operators can be for profit corporations.This is where the TABs and Visions would go. Programming must be of limited appeal, to distinguish niche commercial services from regular commercial services.
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LPONs could be repackaged as ‘hyperlocal’ services. Operators are limited to two/three transmitters each and must provide 80-90% locally originated programming (the small allowance is for syndicated programming). No networking or common ownership is allowed. Operators must be not for profit. In light of these restrictions I’d loosen format requirements on these services; hyperlocal services are limited by coverage area alone. Regulation would exist primarily to manage interference, as with the LPFM system in NZ.
This will never happen whilst the ACMA is captured*** by commercial operators (who may be threatened by high quality hyperlocals) but it’s nice to dream.
NFP groups who want a high powered licence should apply for a community service.
***Look up ‘regulatory capture’ on Wikipedia.
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Its hard to unscramble the egg, in terms of traditional AM and FM radio the ACMA and previous agencies have created this suitation and there are now so many vested interests across all the sectors that any change to the status quo is pretty much impossible.
One positive however is the internet and even satellite DTH platforms, these are true open market systems. There are heaps of examples of large media organisation, who use no licenced spectrum, who really have no need to deal with national regulators like the ACMA but have a good business… netflix, spotify, CNN to name a few…
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I kind of agree. It’s such a mess it’s impossible to fix. How did they let it get to this point? Regulatory failure.
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Of course this is true, but dreams are still nice to have…particularly with the gloomy state of the world at large at the moment.
Somewhat ironically, I have argued that social media is narrowcasting writ large; you’re usually ‘broadcasting’ to the same handful of people over and over. And it’s a place where even the most abhorrent opinions are welcomed. But good old fashioned FM spectrum is still nice to have. We may as well use it in the best way possible, while we’ve still got it.
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Is there any Chance the Long Vacant 47-68 MHz shall become Frequencies for Niche Stations???
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Unlikely. VHF Band I is like that overgrown lot with a peeling weatherboard house that nobody wants. And yet, you can reach the world when the sun kicks out the spots.
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That is useless because radios can’t listen to them.
You’ll have better luck streaming on the internet
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It’s only hard because there is no will to do it in the broadcast bands - ACMA have reorganised other spectrum bands in the past (at force) to effectively asset recycle spectrum that has become valuable
Spectrum is a public asset and we should be using it to its full potential
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Nail, head, etc. The counterargument is that streaming makes spectrum scarcity null and void, but terrestrial radio frequencies will be the last thing standing in an all-out emergency and so are still inherently valuable. Ukraine has started up high powered MW again, for example.
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If that was true then there is no need to protect incumbants in any way…
Agree on the emergency broadcasting aspect.
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Our spectrum needs change over time, needing large lumps of spectrum to support mobile telephony is a realtively new thing. Broadcast spectrum has traditionally been avoided for these purposes because it’s congested and has a current purpose, but that’s starting to be challenged.
We’ve already seen this as one of the drivers for the proposed TV channel reshuffle was that the spectrum was capable of supporting future mobile services.
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