FBI Stamp of Audio Approval
While the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is working overtime to jail file traders, members of the US Congress are introducing bill">http://www.stereophile.com/news/11691/">bill after bill targeting with criminal prosecution the 60 million Americans engaged in Internet file sharing.
FCC Approves "IBOC" Digital Radio
Beginning early next year, digital satellite radio startups may have some competition from terrestrial broadcasters, thanks to an October 10 decision by the Federal">http://www.fcc.gov">Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
FCC Auctions More Bandwidth. Likely Use? LMDS
So far, 139 qualified bidders have signed on for the FCC's new auction. Almost all are hoping to jump into the Local Multipoint Distribution Service business.
FCC Cracks Down on "Microradio"
The Federal">http://www.fcc.gov/">Federal Communications Commission is fighting an epidemic called "microradio." The agency has closed 250 unlicensed stations in the past year, most of them low-powered urban pip-squeaks with less than 100W of power and broadcast radii of 10 miles or less. The typical microradio station offers an off-center perspective on local, national, and world events to a listenership of a few hundred people, and loses money in the process.
FCC Gives Green Light to Digital Radio
FM stereo, introduced in 1961, was the last great leap ahead in commercial radio. That was 38 years ago, an eternity in technological time. Digital audio broadcasting (DAB) techniques are capable of overcoming many of the limitations of analog broadcasting, including multipath distortion. Such systems are already in place in Europe and Canada, so why not in the United States?
FCC Gives Green Light to Low-Power FM Stations
The FM radio spectrum could soon get a lot more crowded, thanks to rules recently adopted by the Federal">http://www.fcc.gov/">Federal Communications Commission. New stations with broadcasting power of between 1W and 100W will be cropping up soon in communities all over the country, provided they don't interfere with existing stations, and provided they remain strictly noncommercial.
FCC Goes Slower on Radio Mergers
Prior to the Telecommunications Act of 1996, federal law limited broadcasters to ownership of only four radio stations in any one market, and a maximum of 40 nationwide. The act loosened regulations to allow ownership of as many as eight stations in a single market, and hundreds nationally.
FCC Reverses Stance on "Microradio"
Until the end of January, the Federal">http://www.fcc.gov/">Federal Communications Commission had opposedhttp://www.stereophile.com/news/10244/">opposed; the proliferation of low-power FM radio stations. "Microradio," as it is sometimes called, has been an ongoing problem for the agency since inexpensive broadcasting gear became widely available several years ago. Primarily an urban phenomenon, microradio consists of individuals and small groups with a hodgepodge of equipment, who wedge themselves into unoccupied slots in the crowded FM band.
FCC Seeks Feedback
For some time now, the truly hip Web-enabled person of stature has shared his or her thoughts with the world via a blog (from web log); these days actors, musicians, and, yes, even politicians are getting into the act.
Feeling gruvi
While somewww.stereophile.com/news/100305musicgiants">some; are trying to push the quality of paid music downloads up, others are pushing in the other direction. SanDiskhttp://www.sandisk.com">SanDisk;, primarily known for flash memory cards used in portable devices like digital cameras, is launching "gruvi," described as "the first removable flash memory card of its type to be sold with premium music content."