Radio frequencies

Radio Frequencies and Regulations

Radio frequencies are a resource that is heavily regulated by governments all over the world. Radiation is emitted by all electronic devices. General, purposeful, unintentional, unlicensed PCS and NII, ultra-wideband, Broadband, and television band transmissions are all classified. Section 15 of the FCC standards describes the various rules for different radio frequency bandwidths. Section 221 defines the functioning of AM radio waves with frequencies ranging from 525 to 1705 kHz (Legal Information Institute, 2017).

AM Station Transmission and Frequency Limitations

The AM station is a deliberate transmission whose implementers plan to broadcast over the air to radios in a certain geographical area. It requires the leaky coaxial cable that helps to regulate the amount of power used to achieve the overall outcome without breaking the FCC rules or other constitutionally empowered requirements (FCC, 2017). For instance, transmitters within this category are meant for universities and clubs may utilize this meter band on the condition that they do not exceed 15 microvolts per meter or 47 megahertz per meter. This kind of transmission is way below the critical frequencies such as those used in military, commercial communication gadgets, and television frequency bands. Many of the private radio stations use FM models (National Archives and Records Administration, 2003). The AM model of frequency transmission defined under FCC part 15 section 221 is that of transmitters belonging to universities and campuses. Those seeking to transmit signals based on any frequencies above the range set by these rules have to request permission or a license from the communications department of the government (Douligeris, Polemi, Karantjias, & Lamersdorf, 2013). The range of transmission is also limited in terms of area coverage. In many cases, it is required that the waves are active within the campus area only, specially when the station is used for educational purposes.

Intellectual Property and Broadcasting

Broadcasting has strict laws that honor the intellectual property. There are particular instances whenever the intellectual property laws may not apply when it comes to music broadcasting (Mittal, 2011). If the station is purely experimental and is supposed to run only during particular periods for class sessions, or if a lesson is conducted online for distant learning purposes, then broadcasting is exempted from the licenses. All other cases have to apply all the rules set out by the communications commissions of any country. ASCAP, BMI, and SoundExchange are organizations whose role is to ensure that all musicians and other artists are paid for their works (Healey, 2016). Therefore, all radio stations, including those that operate within universities, are mandated to report any broadcasting activities to any of these organizations in a documented engagement that ensures artists are paid for their intellectual property (WSU, 2017). All the broadcasting operations have to follow proper FCC guidelines in the USA or others set by the broadcasting commissions in other nations around the world.

Advertisement Regulations for Television and Radio

The Federal Communications Commission’s guidelines on advertisements for both television and radio define the regulations regarding the sale of airtime. Considering that have to obtain proper licensing from the appropriate bodies, the low-power broadcasting channels are allowed to sell airtime, which may enable them to pay for any recurrent costs (Federal Communications Commission, 1995). Also, the fact that they have to report their broadcasting trends and the kind of music that they play to the public, in which case university students are categorized as ’the public,’ the radio stations are entitled to advertisements. Therefore, Part 15 AM stations may promote products, services, and events in accordance with their type of license and agreements with the FCC.

Part 2

A Legal Station ID and Frequency Range

A legal station ID is a name that has not been claimed by any other entity as intellectual property (Galloway, Síthigh, Griffiths, & McMahon, 2010). The frequencies described for FCC part 15 for AM stations fall between 525 and 1705 kilohertz. Considering the fact that a university radio station is allowed to broadcast within a limited range, any frequency within the specified band is applicable with the condition that it does not jam the frequency of another commercial radio station. My legal station ID would be ’UniRadio’ on 1230 kilohertz.

Part 3

Target Audience and Music Preferences

The majority of university students are aged between 18 and 24. Many of the people within this range have free time and are more likely to like listening to music. The kind of music that appeals to this demographic constitution includes modern pop, rock music, hip-hop, and electronic music. Late-night ballads are also applicable for a particular section of this population. Therefore, the inclusion of this kind of music on the playlists of the various programs is likely to attract the target audience.

Rewards and Sponsored Programs

Many of the students hardly have existing sources of income. Therefore, they are likely to engage more in playing games that may reward winners financially. Individual sections of the programming could be sponsored by commercial entities, which may provide shopping vouchers, cash, and other forms of rewards. If such programs are available, then the radio station is likely to become successful.

One-Hour Rotation Wheel for the Station

A one-hour rotational wheel may comprise of four different sections with breaks in between. These breaks will be used for advertisements. The first segment would involve music mix for a quarter an hour. The second part will include a question session, in which a reward will be given out, depending on sponsored advertisements. The third portion will comprise a forum in which people call in and send text messages to make requests for songs to be played. The fourth segment will finalize with a mixture of songs from different genres that fit the description of the ’funky’ music.

Part 4

Focusing on Attracting a Large Audience

The station will be located on the university campus. Therefore, the primary audience will be the young students aged between 18 and 24. They have a unified neo-culture, which can be summed up as the liking for funky music. Among them, some will be fanatics of rock music and bands while others may appreciate other forms of music. Therefore, a well-balanced song program that allocates time to all these audiences on a 24-hour cycle is likely to attract the different listeners throughout the day. All the programming, however, should be organized in accordance with national regulations for music broadcasting to avoid legal issues.

Featuring Eminent Personalities and Interviews

Eminent personalities such as musicians and famous students with the ambition to run radio programs will be given a chance on air. This session will feature interviews in which people can call to contribute their inputs and opinions. It will the fans of these personalities to join the group of regular radio listeners.

Enticing Advertisers

As stated before, the audience is likely to be more attracted to the station whenever commercial entities sponsor advertisements. Therefore, the goal of the radio channel should be to maintain a constant enticement for the sponsors of different programs that are aimed at the youth. In order to do so, they should attract large audiences throughout the day, which will make it easier for companies to invest in advertisement and sponsorship of various programs. This kind of technique will result in a mutual dependence between the advertisers and audiences, creating a relationship that will be beneficial for the radio station.

Part 5

Professional Management and Career Opportunities

The broadcasting station will be managed professionally. It means that all the programs will be created based on surveys that determine the most popular trends. This exposure is essential to individuals who have the ambition to work in media program management as well as future media personalities. The experience in radio offers many opportunities for learning for a wide range of careers that fall outside of media and broadcasting. Electronic engineers and sound technicians are always needed in a broadcasting station. Therefore, a chance to work in this radio station may promise good prospects for future professionals.

References

Douligeris, C., Polemi, N., Karantjias, A., & Lamersdorf, W. (2013). Collaborative, trusted and privacy-aware e/m-services: 12th IFIP WG 6.11 Conference on e-Business, e-Services, and e-Society, I3E 2013, Athens, Greece, April 25-26, 2013, Proceedings. Berlin: Springer.

FCC. (2017, November). Low Power Radio - General Information. Retrieved from https://www.fcc.gov/media/radio/low-power-radio-general-information

Federal Communications Commission. (1995, June 14). Notice on proposed rule making. Retrieved from https://transition.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Mass_Media/Notices/fcc95226.html

Galloway, J., Síthigh, D. M., Griffiths, A., & McMahon, A. (2010). Modern intellectual property law. Abingdon: Routledge.

Healey, J. (2016, August 4). Opinion Justice Department rocks music industry with ASCAP-BMI decision. Retrieved from http://www.latimes.com/opinion/opinion-la/la-ed-ascap-bmi-justice-department-20160804-snap-story.html

Legal Information Institute. (2017, November). 47 CFR 15.221 - Operation in the band 525-1705 kHz. Retrieved from https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/47/15.221

Mittal, R. (2011). Licensing intellectual property: Law & management. Delhi: Raman Mittal and Satyam Law International.

National Archives and Records Administration. (2003). The Code of Federal Regulations of the United States of America. Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office.

WSU. (2017). Music & copyright. Retrieved from https://ucomm.wsu.edu/music-copyright/