Federal Communications Commission (As of June 30, 1957)
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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION 23rd Annual Report For Fiscal Year 1957 With introductory summary and'niltllthllls" \1 of later important developments UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE· WASHINGTON For .ar. by the Superlntenden' of Documents, U. s. Govem.,.n' PrInting 0fR~ Wadlington 25, D. C. • Prlce.so centI COMMISSIONERS Members of 'he Federal Communications Commission (As of June 30, 1957) GEORGE C. MCCONNAUGHEY. Chairman 1 (Term expires June SO, 1957) ROSEL H. HYDE (Term expires June SO, 1959) ROBERT T. BARTLEY (Term expires June 30, J958) JOHN C. DOERFER (Term expires June 30, 1961) ROBERT E. LEE (Tenn eJ:pirea JUD.. 30, 1960) RICHARD A. MACK (Tetm ezpir.. June SOl 1962) T. A. M. CRAVEN (Term expIres June 30, 1963) A list of present and past Commissioners appears in the appendix to this report. 1 Suceceded .. Chairman by '<Ibn C. Doerfel OD July I, 1957, and u Comm.l181oner by Fredulck W. Ford n,.,A.aJU"29.1!167. II LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION, W IUhington 25, D. C. 1'0 the Congres8 01 the United States: Herewith is transmitted the 23rd annual report of the Federal Communications Commission. It contains information and data required to be reported to the Congress by section 4 (k) of the Com munications Act of 1934, as amended. Though this compilation covers, primarily, the fiscal year ending June 30, 1957, notations of subsequent important developments are included to make the information more current. Biographies of employees joining the Commission during the year, as well as a list of those leaving during that period, are being reported in a nonprinted supplement. Respectfully, JOHN C. DoERFER, Chairman. ill ( Page IV in the original document is intentionally blank ] Table of Contents ..... INTRODUCTORY SUMMARY 1 General ......• 1 Common carriers "•. 1 Domestic telephone 1 Domestic telegraph 1 International telephone and telegraph 2 Safety and special radio services . 2 Broadcast 3 TV. 3 AM. 4 FM. 4 Miscellaneous 4 Tall towers 4 Field engineering and monitoring 5 Research and laboratory. 5 Spectrum conservation 6 National defense 6 Commission 6 Problems 7 REGULATION 9 Authority ... 9 Communications Act of 1934 . 9 General regulation 10 Common carrier regulation. 10 Broadcast regulation 12 Broadcast license procedure 13 Nonbroadcast radio regulation. 15 Nonbroadc8st license procedure. 16 Hearing procedure 16 COMMISSION ••• 19 Organization chart 18 Commissioners .. 19 Staff organization. 20 Personnel .... 20 AppropriatioDs and expenditures 21 Docket statistics •...... 21 Rules of practice and procedure. 22 Other general rulemaking 22 Litigation .. 22 Legislation. ...... 23 Authorizations ...•. 24 Applications and other filings. 25 Correspondence. ..... 25 Releases and publicatioDs . 25 Foreign technical assistance 26 v VI TABLE OF CONTENTS P... NATIONAL DEFENSE .. 27 Act provisions ... 27 CONELRAD p"'lgram 27 Commission participation 28 Executive Order of 1957 . 29 SPEGRUM CONSERVATION. 30 General . 30 Newteelwiques . 31 ··Offset carrier". 31 ('Single sideband" . 31 USplit channels" . 31 Radio's new woUhorse-microwave . 32 What microwave is ... 32 Microwave characteristics .. 32 How nUcrowaye works. ... 33 Microwave Bnd TV broadcasting 33 Cwnmoncarrier mlCrOwa;ic operation 33 Private microwave systems.... 34 Public agency microwa:ve ope1'8tion 34 International microwave. 35 Microwave development. 35 Microwave problems 35 National frequency allocation. 36 IntematlQna\ frequency allocations 38 Intemational protection of frequency rights 39 International frequency usage data . 40 International frequency coordination 40 FCC frequency list ........ 41 FCC~Government frequency coordination 41 COMMON CARRIER SERVKES. 42 Domestic telephone .. 42 General . 42 Services and facilitielj .. 43 Construction of facilities. 43 Diaoontinnance of aetvi£e 44 Speed of Ijervice. .... 45 Acquisitions and consolidations. 45 Interlocking directorates. ... 45 Microwave facilities for closed circuit TV 45 Local TV transmission. ........ 46 Impact of microwave on telephone service 46 Domestic public land mobile radio service 47 Developmental domestic public aeronautical service. 49 Rural radiotelephone service . .... 49 Public radiotelephone service to vessels 49 Private line service rates. ...... 50 Foreign attachment case. ...... 50 Bell System lease-maintenance service . 50 Off-the-air pickup TV transmission channels 51 TV traD5mission charges. 51 T sriff filings .............. 51 'TA!JiLI!J OF OONTENTS VII COMMON CARRIER SERVICE--CONTlNUED P... Domestic telephone-CoDtinued Other regulatory milttel'9 51 Depreciation ....• 51 Separation procedures . 52 Western Electric earning6 and prices 53 Pensions-and -relief .•.•. 53 Uniform systcIIl6 of accounts . 53 Original cost accounting. 54 Continuing property records . 54 Field studies and reviews •• 54 NARUC committees on accounts and statistics and deprecia- tion .. 55 Domestic telegraph .•. 55 General. ..... 55 Sel"vices and facilities 56 Modernization expenditures 56 Reperforator switching 57 Carrier equipment 57 Radio beam ..... 57 Construction of radio facilities 58 Private wire systems 58 Facsimile and teleprinter tielines 58 Construction of wire facilities 58 Curtailment of service. 59 Speed of service 59 Rates and tariffs ...•. 60 Domestic telegraph rates 60 Leased facilities services . 61 Tariff schedules 61 Other regulatory matters 61 Original cost of plant and continuing pt"operty records. 61 Pensions. ........... 62 Miscellaneous accounting matters. 62 International telegraph and telephone 62 General ...... 62 International services 63 Telegraph . 63 Telephone . 64 Applications 65 Docket cases. 65 Circuits to The Neth~rlands and Portugal 65 Radiotelephone service to Hawaii. 65 Circuits to Turkey •.•••....• 65 Puerto Rico application ........ 66 Delays in handling international press traffic. 66 Review ofinternational radiotelegraph circuits and frequenciea. 66 Western Union divestment. ........ 66 Far East traffic. ••.•.•.....•• 66 Western Union international formula practices 67 Canadian traffic transiting United States 67 Participation under international formula •• 67 Mackay offer of free automatic equipment for TE:tEX users . 67 Nonchargeable tieline designations •.... 68 Western Union-Globe and Tropical contracts. ••••••• 68 VIII TABLE OF CONTENTS COMMON CARRIER SERVICE-CONTINUED International telephone and telegraph-Continued PalO Tariff schedules. contracts and miscellaneous reports 68 Rate level and structure • 68 Other regulatory matters 69 Relief and pensions • 69 Reclassification of plant 69 Depreciation. ...• 69 Continuing property records 69 Accounting compliance 69 Statistics •••••• 70 General •.•.•• 70 Telephone carriers 70 Telephones hy States 71 Land line telegraph • 71 Radiotelegraph and ocean-cable carriers 72 International telegraph traffic ••• 73 Common carrier applications. .•• 7S SAFETY AND SPECIAL RADIO SERVICES 76 General •.•.••••. 76 Ptivate microwave systems 77 Marine radioservicea ••• 77 Safety at sea. .... 77 Communications Act requirements 77 Great Lakes agreement ••••• 78 Safety at sea legislation ••••• 78 Exemptions from compulsory radio requirements 78 Distregg studies. •._•.•_• 79 Radio aids to navigation. •••• 79 Equipment and technical advancement 79 Type-acceptance program •••• 79 Radio Technical Commission for Marine Services (RTCM) 79 Single-sideband radiotelephone system. •• 80 2182 kilocycle calling and distress frequency 80 Improvement in techniques and equipment 81 Marine radio communications systems. 81 Coast stations •••..•••• 81 Marine fixed stations .••.•. 81 Great Lakes weather transmiggion$ 81 Implementation of Geneva frequency plan 81 Operation in 152-162 megacycle band. • 82 Special communication for laying cable to Hawaii. 82 Developmental control and relay microwave system. 82 Great Lakes VHF public coast applications •• 82 Ship-shore radiotelephone public correspondence 83 Improvement of facilities and frequencies 83 Public fixed and maritime stations in Alaska •• 84 Radio communication in Alaska ••••• 84 Study of duplicate public facilities in Alaska 84 Aviation services •.•.•••••••• 84 General. .•.•.•••.•.•. 84 Aviation organizations and conferences 8S Air Coordinating Committee .•. 85 InternaticmalCivil Aviation Organization 86 Radio Technical Commiggion for Aeronautics. 86 TABLE OF CONTENTS IX SAFETY AND SPECIAL RADIO SERVICES-CONTINUED Aviation services--Continued Pa.. Rule amendments. •••. 86 Air carrier aircraft stations • 87 Private aircraft statioos .• 87 Aeronautical public service statioos 87 Aeronautical cmoute and aeronautical fixed stations • 87 Operational fixed statioos •.•• 87 Aelonautical advisory stations •. 87 Aeronautical utility mobile stations 88 Airdrome control stations 88 :(i'}ight test statioos ••. 88 Flying school statioos •. 88 Radionavigation Btatioos 88 Civil air patrol stations 88 Public safety radio services 88 General •.••• 88 Rule changes. .. 89 Police radio service 89 Fire radio service . 90 Forestry-conservation radio service 90 Highway maintenance radio service 91 Special emergency radio service 91 State guard ramo service 91 Disaster communications service 91 Indus~rial radio services .••. 92 General .•.•••••• 92 Major problems and accomplishments. 92 Other developments. •.•• 94 Land transportation radio services 95 General ..••••.•• 9S Motor carrier radio service. 96 Railroad radio service ••. 97 Taxicab radio service ••• 98 Automobile emergency radio service. 98 Citizens radio service • 98 Amateur radio service • 99 Enforcement. .... 101 Statistics ..•.•.