Paul Riismandel is reporting that FCC Commissioner Mingon Clyburn, in a speech to the NFCB over the weekend, suggested that the FCC should look at reallocating TV channels 5 and 6 (located immediately below the noncommercial FM band) to radio broadcasting. Be still, my heart!
Link: Radio Survivor. --Dennis
That is the voice of but one commissioner but never the less a start. There will be a lot of political wrangling over this if it comes to pass. Since new radios would be required it would be a good time to make the band all digital. DRM+ would be the most spectrum efficient but from a political perspective it would likely be the hybrid system we have now. Then there are those who would argue that the expansion should be analog since most chips already have the capability of tuning that range.
This suggestion comes at the same time the FCC is talking about finding ways to improve DTV reception on VHF channels in order to have an additional means of reclaiming high UHF channels so there may be an internal conflict at the comish.
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Dennis replies: For readers unfamiliar with Robert's use of DRM+, it's not "digital rights management" but rather Digital Radio Mondiale, http://tinyurl.com/37k9qh.
Posted by: Robert Meuser | Wednesday, 16 June 2010 at 19:10