Broadcasting (July - Dec 1940)

Ten Video Stations Granted By FCC as Interest Slackens NBC, CBS, DiiMont, Don Lee, WCAU Applications Are Approved; RMA Action Gets Endorsement SEEKING to keep alive interest in television, which had waned sharply following its actions knocking out limited commercial operation last May, the FCC July 17 announced first regular grants of facilities to NBC for New York and Don Lee for Los Angeles and San Francisco and on July 20 announced similar grants to DuMont in New York and Washington, and to CBS in New York. Three additional grants were announced July 25 to WCAU, Philadelphia and to Purdue and Iowa State U. Simultaneously, it gave its blessing to the action of the Radio Manufacturers Assn. in organizing a national television systems committee to seek to work out technical standards or visual radio. Supplementing its action of June 18, when it announced tentative approval of 23 applications for television stations, the FCC now has confirmed the approval for these ten station operations. This was done on the basis of showings by the stations that they would carry on programs of research and development, experimentally, designed to contribute to advancement of the art. Presumably the other applicants have not yet complied with these conditions to the FCC's satisfaction [Broadcasting, July 1]. RMA Committee Named Appointment of Dr. W. R. G. Baker, of Bridgeport, vice-president in charge of engineering of General Electric Co., as chairman of the new National Television Systems Committee, was formally announced July 17 by RMA President J. S. Knowlson. A meeting in New York of the committee has been set for July 31, with both FCC Chairman Fly and Chief Engineer E. K. Jett slated to attend. President Knowlson said the committee would include all industry interests, whether or not members of RMA. The committee will have 13 members. Companies invited to nominate representatives are CBS, Don Lee, Allen B. DuMont, Farnsworth, General Electric, Hazeltine, J. V. L. Hogan, Hughes Tool Co., Institute of Radio Engineers, P h i 1 c o, RCA, Stromberg-Carlson and Zenith. "I think I am safe in saying", said President Knowlson, "that both the Commission and RMA feel that in this way we are setting the vexing problem of television standards on a path which will lead to a satisfactory solution. We are both encouraged to feel that by so doing we are serving the interests of all concerned". Two on West Coast The three stations given the much-abused "green light" on July 17 are W2XBS, NBC's outlet in New York, W6XA0, Don Lee's pioneer video transmitter in Los Angeles, and a new Don Lee station, call letters yet undesignated, in San Francisco. All three stations are assigned to the new Television Channel No. 1 (50-56 mc). At its July 20 meeting, the FCC authorized regular grants to Allen B. DuMont Laboratories and to CBS. DuMont's new Washington station will operate on Television Channel No. 1, wih 1,000 watts for both aural and visual transmission. Its New York station will use Channel No. 4 (78-84 mc.) with similar power. DuMont's present television station, W2XVT, at Passaic, N. J., is authorized to increase power to 5,000 watts aural and visual, and transmit on Channel No. 4. The CBS station, W2XAB, New York, not yet on the air, was assigned to Channel No. 2 (60-66 mc.) with 7,500 watts, aural and visual. WCAU, College Grants At its meeting July 25 the FCC announced grants to WCAU, Philadelphia, for a station on Channel No. 5 (84-90 mc). with 1,000 watts aural and visual; to Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind., on Channel No. 3 (66-72 mc.) with 750 watts both emissions, and to State University of Iowa, Iowa City, on Channels No. 1 and 12 (50-56 and 210-216 mc.) with 100 watts visual only. Neither of the school stations will engage in public program service, but will concentrate on transmission standards, systems of modulation and similar technical pursuits. The WCAU adjunct would experiment with 441 to 729 lines and 15 to 30 frames, along with interference checks and compare FM with AM as the sound component for video transmission. The FCC said that the NBC New York station will continue to use the RMA standards but will increase the number of frame lines from 441 to 507, and will continue experimentation in collaboration with RMA. Both Don Lee stations will experiment with 525 lines-30 frames, or 441 lines-30 frames, the {Continued on page 124) Seek Met Sponsor NEW NBC-Blue Network sales force has hopes of selling the Metropolitan Opera series of 16 Saturday afternoon broadcasts next winter, since the setting of a blanket price of $225,000 for the whole series, including time and talent, a reduction of more than a third from the previous quotations. Several advertisers, NBC reports, have expressed interest in the series, which has not been sponsored since the season of 1933-34 when American Tobacco Co. purchased the opera broadcasts for Lucky Strikes. SCOPHOm PLAmiJSG AMERICAN BRANCH AN AMERICAN branch of Scophony Ltd., English manufacturer of television transmitters and receivers, is being formed, according to Arthur Levey, Scophony official, who arrived in New York July 24. Company, to be called American Scophon-^' Television & Radio Corp., has secured financial backing, Mr. Levey stated, which he could not yet divulge. About two years ago, when Sol Segall, managing director of the English concern, visited in New York, it was reported the Scophony television process would b© exploited over here with the backing of Eddie Cantor. The new company also plans to broadcast television programs, Mr. Levey said, and will ask the FCC for permits to operate two video stations — one in Chicago and one in Los Angeles. Mr. Levey said he brought with him a complete line of Scophony receivers, ranging from the junior home size, which gives a picture 18 x 15 inches, to the large screen receiver similar to that installed in London's Odeon Theatre, prividing an image 18 x 15 feet. All Scophony receivers operate on the projection principle, he said, describing it as an "electrical-optical" process. Mr. Levey said he is negotiating for a theatre for demonstration and research. NBC Shuts Down Television Plant W2XBS Off the Air Pending Transfer to 507 Lines INTERRUPTING a regular television program service maintained by W2XBS, New York, since May 1, 1939, NBC on Aug. 1 is shutting down this video transmitter to make the necessary adjustments in its equipment to conform with the recent FCC order moving the station from the 44-50 mc. band, now assigned to frequency modulation, to 50-56 mc, which is to be television's new No. 1 channel. At the same time, the transmitter will also be altered to increase the picture definition from its present 441 lines to 507. Work of rebuilding, retuning and readjustment is expected to take between six weeks and two months, with W2XBS returning to the air about Oct. 1. Revives Old Standard While no official explanation has been made, it is believed that in changing from 441 to 507 lines, RCA is returning to its ideas of several years ago, when it urged that 507-line images be adopted as the RMA standard, but when outvoted on this stand agreed to the majority rule in favor of 441 lines. The reason for selecting 507 lines instead of some higher definition, such as the 625-line images which the Du Mont video transmitter will broadcast, is that 507 is the maximum number of lines which can be transmitted at 30 frames per second interlaced. With 625 lines, the Du Mont transmitter will broadcast only 15 frames per second interlaced. It has also been learned that NBC will retain one transmitter sending out 441-line images, so these pictures can be compared with those of 507-line definition. The change will necessitate a slight adjustment in the receiving sets, it was said. SOMETHING NEW in the way of spot television coverage, using special newsreel films, was achieved by NBC in midJuly at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago through cooperation of Pathe News. A special 1,000-foot film of convention proceedings was made each day and air-expressed to New York for telecasting on NBC's W2XBS twice during each following day. Here is the NBC-Pathe crew filming high spots of the July 15 opening session in the Chicago Stadium — (1 to r) Clarence W. Farrier, of the NBC television staff, describing the scenes as they are filmed; George M. Dorsey, chief cameraman of Pathe Newsreel; Anthony Caputo, Pathe cameraman. SCHUDT TO EXHIBIT COLUMBIA RECORDS TO SUPERVISE final preparations for the Sept. 1 entry of Columbia Recording Corp., CBS subsidiary, into the transcription field [Broadcasting, July 1], William A. Schudt Jr., general manager of CRC's transcription and commercial recording division, is spending several days in Chicago completing the selection of personnel for his staff in that city, which will be headed by Girard (Jerry) Ellis. Following the NAB convention, where he will demonstrate CRC equipment and products, Schudt will visit the CRC transcription office in Hollywood, where Paul Crowley is in charge. I. P. Rodman, director of engineering and development for CRC, is also visiting Chicago and Hollywood, making final arrangements for the installation of technical equipment. The precision-operated, custom-built appai'atus in all CRC studios was designed and built by CBS and CRC engineers under the direction of Rodman and Vincent Liebler of CRC's engineering staff. While not previously equipped to get into the commercial recording field, CRC has for some months been recording the Lang-Worth Program Service. BROADCASTING • Broadcast Advertising August I, 1940 • Page 101