Television digest and FM reports (Jan-Dec 1946)

!?SS£ COME THE SETS: Slowly but steadily, FM sets are reaching the dealers . Sparked by Zenith and Philco, sets have gone into such major FM markets as Kansas City, where KOZY and KMBC-FM are on the air; Washington, which has Everett Dillard's W3XL and the Washington Post's V/3X0 ; Columbus, where WELD is operating; Schenectady, where Leonard Asch's WBCA and GE's WGFM are putting out signals. Also showing up v/ith FM are Stromberg-Carlson, Stewart-Warner , Scott, Magnavox. Coincidentally, promotion by FM licensees and recent grantees has taken a Spurt. In Schenectady, FM broadcasters began plugging FM in newspaper ads; Zenith in full-page displays. In Washington, demonstrations for members of the FCC have taken place as well as meetings for dealers. Early public response is reported more than gratifying, auguring well for set distribution once they are available. Meanwhile, CPA this week took over control of all sawmill output and increased mandatory set-asides for the housing program to 50% of all production. This hits particularly at radio manufacturers v/ho have been working out means of assuring lumber supply for cabinets (Vol. 2, Nos. 22 and 23). And controls on steel were reimposed for the third quarter for the same purpose, housing, making it more difficult for radio manufacturers to count on supply for radio chassis. i:i DETE2JSE OF MOHOCHBOME: Monochrome applicant Philadelphia Inquirer (WFIL) carries a long article by Merrill Panitt this Sunday (June 16), titled "Scientific Double Talk Hampers Progress of Visual Broadcasting" and castigating many broadcasters for their complacency and eagerness to seize upon CBS color campaign as excuse for not breaking up TV "chicken-egg" routine. Writer likens situation to that in FM, says some broadcasters have applied without enthusiasm but "just to be on the inside in the event television ever amounted to anything." Anther defense of low-band TV appears in June "Popular Science," in which Author William P. Vogel Jr. appraises TV today as "simply a half-^vay house for the art.... that promises a good deal of occupancy." Regardless of speeches and fighting (about color vs. monochrome) he concludes commercial TV is here now, will not be "obsolete any more than standard broadcasting v/as made obsolete by FM." SISHT AilD SGUHD; Reason for FCC Commissioner Durr's recent votes in favor of holding hearings where AM stations request changes in facilities was stated by him this v/eek; he believes investigation would show that FM would better serve to improve a broadcaster's service rather than improvement of existing AM and that money spent on improving AM service means that much less for FM. ...Philip Bergson, FCC litigation. chief, has resigned, becomes partner in V/ashington law firm of Keane, Wilner & Bergson, Barr Bldg New name of ex-FCC Chairman James Lawrence Fly's New York law firm is Fly, Fitts & Shuebruk, RCA Bldg., other partners being William Fitts and Peter Shuebruk Harold Mott has resigned from FCC law staff to open offices at 1411 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, soon will be joined as partner by Vincent Welch, who is also resigning DuMont this week finally received formal notification f^om FCC that it has been granted CP for 5 kw Washington commercial TV station, which will replace its present experimental W3XWT ; call letters will be WTTG, honoring its engineering director. Dr. Thomas T, Goldsmith NBC has developed microwave TV transmitter for field pickup relays that operates on 9300 me with .05-watt power; because antenna puts out an shf signal only 3 degrees wide, the transmitter's effective radiated power amounts to 450 watts, gain of 9,000 Paramount isn't going to reveal its movie-screen TV projection system in New York's Paramount Theater on occasion of Louis-Conn fight, as first planned, but may unveil it later this year.... CBS has yet to extend its uhf TV operations to other cities, but meanwhile it has site for station atop Mt. Wilson, near Los Angeles, which has been graded in preparation for construction Farnsworth president E. A. Nicholas, an nouncing near completion of company's new Fort Wayne TV-FM-AM Center, says Farnsy/oH,h will file for commercial TV soon and will show "definite feasibility of practical and economical television broadcasting in cities of middle metropolitan size. "... .Bendix announced plan to set up experimental color TV station at Baltimore plant, coincident with signing (as did Federal and Westiiighouse previously) 5-year patent license with CBS to manufacture color receivers and transmitters.