Television digest with electronics reports (Jan-Dec 1954)

4 munications Laboratories) next week will file interim report with FCC urging "rulemaking proceedings looking toward early commercial operation of stations designed to [obtain] extended coverage both of vhf & uhf, but particularly in the uhf band." The RETMA report gives these new definitions for the 2 types of repeater stations; Satellite — Transmitting station "operated unattended by an operator, on the same TV channel as the primary, or controlling station, upon which it depends for all its programs and identification." This was formerly called "booster." Special services TV station — "Station assigned by the FCC on a normally allocated TV channel, but with certain relaxed rules and regulations permitting a favorable economic operation." This includes stations formerly called "satellites." RETMA group's report v/as prepared before FCC's Public Notice appeared. As to same-channel satellites ("boosters"), committee recommends they be "tailored to a specific location or area where it is not economically or technically feasible to provide TV broadcast service directly from the primary station." Committee is having trouble making up mind about special services stations (formerly "satellites"). The big question; How much should FCC relax its regular rules in authorizing this type of operation? This, says committee, is "now under intense study," and will be subject of its final report. It does suggest that such stations be permitted to operate with reduced powers and heights (not envisioned in FCC's Notice) and depend solely or in part on other stations for programming — but with the reservation that after audience has been built up under the relaxed rules, the outlet may take on local expression and become full-fledged local TV station. Economic problems are so intertwined with engineering in whole question of repeaters, that RETMA committee has asked aid of NARTB in furnishing answers to some questions about TV broadcasting economics. Next meeting is Sept. 14 in Washington. Chairman Adler expressed disappointment that FCC chose to go ahead with its Public Notice before getting report from RETMA committee — which was set up at the request of Comr. Sterling and has worked closely with Commission staffers. Like some others, RETMA is expected to petition formally for rule-making on whole issue. Equipment makers, now in doldrums, were delighted with FCC's new policy on repeater stations. ^ got out press release pointing to 6 basic "packages" — from 100-watt transmitter at $50,000 to 12-kw at $150,000 and up. Gates Radio Co. announced 50-watt vhf transmitter suitable for satellite or special services operation (though FCC Notice applies only to uhf repeaters). * * * * Application for rule-making on directional vhf antennas was filed by Neptune Broadcasting Co., Atlantic City, whose WFPG-TV was uhf casualty. Neptune president Fred Weber is v.p. of UHF Industry Coordinating Committee. Petition asks FCC to fit vhf stations where minimum spacing rules don't permit them now — by using directional antennas to eliminate co-channel and adjacentchannel interference. Neptune doesn't ask new allocation plan, just requests FCC to authorize low-power directionals on case-to-case basis. Weber indicated he is interested in filing for Ch. 8 in Atlantic City. TV's SHARE OF THE ADVERTISING RUDGET: It's still good guesstimate that TV time sales alone this year will top $600,000,000, that total advertising expenditures on TV (including time, talent, production, all other charges) will jump this year to well over 5800,000,000, that CBS's Frank Stanton was conservative in forecasting that we can "look forward to TV advertising expenditures of the order of $1.25 billion by 1957 or 1958" (Vol. 10;14,23). We repeat these figures despite fact that McCannErickson's final estimates show TV's portion of the nation's $7,809,200,000 ad bill for 1953 was $610,500,000, or 7.8% — and not as high as the $688,700,000 estimated in its preliminary report for Printers' Ink. The new Printers' Ink figures, final for 1953 and generally recognized in the trade as standard for the advertising business as a whole, shows TV's portion of the national advertising budget last year broken down as follows; network, $322,800,000; spot , $128,700,000; local , $159,000,000 — making total of $610,500,000 as against $453,900,000 (6.3%) in 1952.