Sponsor (Apr-June 1964)

Kjiter Bro«dc*tting't v p *nd general m.m.igiT Dick Block jI xUlioni Penobicol for ill operations of the group Kaiser's "project UHF' ihe spring of 1962 after manktgemcnt approved the l HI projinvolved applying for live comlercial licenses. Mono areas Ken were ranked two through . respectively. New York, the lumber one market, was by-passed cause there already was a spate applicants for the one l Ml funnel then allocated San Irani Oakland and Coronal OS Igeles uere tiled for tirst on ulv 10, IW->2. A leu months later, •n Aug. 31, 1962, Chicago, Bur Igton-Philadelphia and Detroit pplications were tiled. C'Pn for tWO California markets and Btroit have been awarded. Two ler applicants tiled on top of iser for channel 38, Chicago, id the Burlington-Philadelphia Implication was held up pending V-\ tower site approval. I wo guiding principles arc cvi:nt in all Kaiser proposals for II stations. First, the stations uist go m with maximum power nd height, ["here can be no skimpig here, no staging, no growing ith the medium. This also re uires that transmitters be locat d at antenna farms. Ihe reason ig here is that it will be difficult hough to promote viewership in markets, and once a viewer DCS tune to a Kaiser station, he uist not be lost because of low or inadequate coverage. N >nd. in the field of program g, Kaiser pavs full respect to the et that its stations must "crawl before they can walk." In each case, a standard, competitive pro gram schedule was adduced with the application, but kaiser views this program schedule as a goal rather than a reality at the outset. In the span between birth and maturity, as it were, flexibility ami experimentation must be allowed if the stations are to survive. I X perimentation and improvision will not end at maturity, but in all probability, will plaj a lesser role in later vcars. Specifically, the proposals outline how the stations will solicit users of tv who have never preVlOUsly thought ot its broad application. For example, large coin en lions could telecast keynote speeches for overflow audicik I his would aUo allow interested parties in the community to look in. provide a record, if required, on videotape, and even allow those who missed the speech to view it at a more convenient hour lor a retelecast. Converting distribution systems, such as are found in hotels, to UHF is a simple matter. I he applications for this "open circuit" system are enormous. Currently, in Detroit, where the first station is building, a special unit has been set up called "special projects division." Its job is purely to develop business in this area But the long range value of the proposed five stations, both to the public and Kaiser, will be in the creation oi more choice for view ers, kai^ei spokesmen have a leadv answei i * » i those who say there is too much now. In mo-! \\i and I \1 markets, the majority Ol stations are Oj ating successfully, despite the la number of outlets m several mar kets. And the public is the bei factor in most ^.ho ( ontrasting the thirty or more -civics with the potential foi tv ni\ko. even with I HI is eye-opening I or example, in I os \ngeles metro, where the possibility lor primary service Irom I Ml and \ MI is the greatest, viewers will have 13 channels to choose Irom when all stations operative And. then is the p sibility that some ot these channels may choose not to cover the metro area, which is already the case in one instance Kaiser defenders arc also quick to point out that there are less than tv stations on the air. but m than 5500 W1 .iud I M facilil ( ontrast this, they say, to the 9 or so radio stations prior to World War II and you can see that some growth is certainly possible And when critics point out that irrcs; live of all this, i hi medium just doesn't otter much, k ser's rejoiner is that high freqiK always been fearsome to those in broadcasting In the early '. \\I radio when anything I Km kilocycles or graded, tears about the high. ot \ Ml (channels ear':. *y 11, 1964 3»