Before the FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION Washington, DC 20554

In the Matter of ) ) MB Docket No. 13-249 Revitalization of the AM Radio Service )

To: The Commission

COMMENTS OF THE BROADCAST MAXIMIZATION COMMITTEE

The Broadcast Maximization Committee ("BMC") consists primarily of consulting engineers representing hundreds of AM clients. Each has worked on numerous AM projects of all types over the past 40 years. BMC appreciates the Commission's willingness to consider additional proposals to those set forth in the Notice of Proposed Rule Making1 ("NPRM') in the above referenced proceeding. BMC continues to advocate for the use of television Channels 5 and 6 for AM stations. Despite the small number of digital TV stations still operating on

Channels 5 and 6 and the need to retain those channels for the incentive auction and repacking process, the Commission should consider allowing AM stations to share Channels 5 and 6 with digital TV stations.

1. On July 30, 2008, BMC filed a comprehensive proposal in MB Dockets No. 07-

294, et al. (the Diversity Ownership proceeding)2 which provided for the migration for AM stations on a voluntary basis to the Channel 5 and 6 spectrum space which was then being vacated. The BMC plan was offered in response to a Commission solicitation of proposals for the use of Channels 5 and 6 for FM broadcasting in the Diversity Ownership proceeding. The

BMC proposal is still pending.

1 FCC 13-139, released October 31,2013. 2 See Report and Order and Third Further Notice of Proposed Rule Making, 23 FCC Red 5922 (2008). 2. On July 19, 2009, Minority Media Telecommunications Council ("MMTC") filed its Radio Rescue Petition for Rule Making in which it supported the BMC proposal and advocated the creation of an "AM Transition Advisory Committee" to facilitate the transition of

AM stations to Channels 5 and 6 and "arrive at a plan agreeable to all stakeholders." MMTC noted that minorities are more likely to own AM than FM stations and therefore the proposal would foster diversity in ownership. That suggestion and the Radio Rescue Petition are also still pending.

3. As the Commission recognizes in its NP RM, the AM band is in desperate need of revitalization. Listenership has dropped to 17% among the middle age group and to just 4% among the younger generation.3 Indeed, 77% of AM listeners are over 45 years old.4 The median listening age for AM radio is 57 years old, a full generation older than that ofFM radio. 5

The Commission noted the causes of the decline as a "combination of higher fidelity alternatives to AM radio, increased interference and the loss of young listeners to other programming outlets."6 Others have described the problems as the proliferation of digital devices working against receiving AM signals-light bulbs, computers, tablets, iPhone chargers, LED traffic lights, etc. 7 These problems are expected to continue. The Commission cannot change the physical properties of the AM band in urban areas. Even if it could, the problem of perception is not easily changed. When younger people are asked why they do not listen to AM radio, nearly

50% say it is "for older people", another 41% say "it is boring or out of date". 8 It is easy to say

3 See Notice of Proposed Rule Making at para. 2. 4 "AM Radio Starting to Fade Away", Bottom Line Communications, November 12,2012. 58% are older than 55 and a survey by Mark Kassof & Co. found that 9% of respondents never listen to AM radio and many of them stated they haven't changed the dial from FM in years. 5 "AM Radio: Where Do We Go From Here?", Radio World, September 25,2013. 6 !d. 7 See Radio Ink article October 28, 2011, "What's Next for AM?" 8 "AM ... and Millennials??" Mark Kassof &Co, November 21,2013. The technical problems facing AM radio is only the #3 reason that younger people dislike AM radio according to the survey. 2 that good quality programming will attract the listeners but that same programming will always sound better on FM. Too often when a popular format appears on AM, it is not long before that format will appear on FM and the listeners will follow. 9

4. Some commenters believe that digital AM radio will provide a long term solution for the AM service. But for various reasons, including technical inferiority compared to FM digital and the cost versus the benefit of the investment of in HD equipment and licensing fees,

AM broadcasters are not jumping on the HD bandwagon, are not likely to do so in the immediate future, and some who have implemented HD have since turned it off.

5. The Commission's proposal to offer one FM translator for every AM station is nothing more than a partial step toward transitioning the AM service to the FM band. AM stations are now permitted to rebroadcast on FM translators but there are only a small percentage of AM broadcasters that have been able to purchase them or have found a willing owner within their service contour to rebroadcast their signal. The FM band is already congested in urban

9 The following discussion occurred in a recent Inside Radio ("IR") interview (January 17, 2014) with Jim Farley ("JF"), ofWTOP-FM (Washington, DC market) about moving the format ofWTOP(AM) to WTOP-FM: TR: You were also one of the first spoken woN/formats to make the move to FM. .JF: Back in 1997, Steve Swenson realized that we weren't reaching big chunks of Virginia, the fast-growing parts of the metro, on our AM signal at 1500. We were not visionaries who said we needed to be on FM. We were just a couple of guys who said we need to extend our signal. So we lool.:ed for a radio station in Virginia that we could afford and it just happened to be FM. IR: So if there was rm AA'l available you would lwl'e grabbed that? ,JF: Sure, we didn't know any better. People give us credit as visionaries. It's more credit than we deserve. Then for l 0 years Arbitron reported the AM and FM numbers side by side and the incredible thing we realized was the audience on the FM was significantly younger and had more females. That's when the light bulb went on. Then we realized we had to go. When we launched, we ran the biggest marketing campaign in WTOP history. We spent $900,000 on TV ads to tell people WTOP was moving to 103.5. When the day came to be only on FM, we held our breath and the audience migrated and then some. And then it grew, and from that point on we had people saying it's no longer a theory that news, or sports or talk works on FM- it was a living laboratory in the WTOP simulcast and their growth since they moved to FM. TR: What tlo you tllink would llave happened ({you stayed AM-on(v? JF: We'd have a fraction of the audience and a fraction of the revenue. I'm not ready to pronounce AM radio dead, but AM radio in this marl.:et is nearly dead. This is one of the weakest AM marl

3 areas which will not help those AM stations located in such areas even if given the opportunity to apply.

6. Not surprisingly, the great majority of commenters have expressed their support for the FM translator proposal. But, of course, moving the AM programming over to the FM band does nothing to fix the problems with the AM band. In fact, it will tend to prolong the problems by discouraging AM station owners from spending money to repair or replace equipment as needed. Instead, the AM owner will become more reliant upon its FM service which is the experience thus far from AM stations which currently have FM translators. An analogy would be the TV broadcaster who operates a minimal over the air facility--just enough to obtain carriage from the desired multicast carrier. The TV owner has no incentive to invest in its station's equipment and coverage. As long as it is carried on the cable system, its over the air signal is not worth the investment. The same will be true of AM stations. Once they have enough signal to gain "carriage" on the FM translator, the listenership will be primarily on FM.

The investment in the AM facility will not be worth the expense. A minimal AM facility is all that is needed.

7. Other countries, like Canada and Mexico, have recognized that AM stations are in trouble and have been proactively moving their AM stations to the FM band. Mexico and Brazil have announced plans to move their AM stations to Channels 5 and 6. 10 Japan already uses

Channel 5 and 6 for radio broadcasting. The Brazilian plan involves the voluntary migration of

540 AM stations to the FM band beginning this year. The article cites the problems with AM technical quality that plagues US stations- "the AM band is very susceptible to noise and interference, which increases with the urbanization. Also, the mechanical noise caused by electrical networks and factories, for example, generates spectral 'noise' in the frequency bands,

10 See Exhibit 1. "Brazil Broadcasters Push AM Migration". 4 and AM radio is the first to be affected ... " The article also notes that cell phones have FM reception but not AM capability. While waiting for the receivers to become more prevalent in the marketplace, Brazil will allow AM stations to simulcast on the AM band and on Channels 5 and

6 for a period of time.

8. BMC's plan proposes a voluntary migration for those AM stations that desire to move. As stations move, those that choose to remain would benefit from the elimination of interference and take advantage of the extra spectrum available. BMC does expect a large majority of AM stations would eventually want to move to Channels 5 and 6 especially as receivers become available.

9. The biggest hurdle admittedly is that Channels 5 and 6 are not available for use at this time and may not be available any time in the foreseeable future due to the possible move of some TV stations voluntarily as a result of the ongoing incentive auction and repacking proceedings. BMC recognizes that some TV stations may end up on these channels just as there are currently some TV stations using these channels. 11 In order to alleviate concerns about the impact on the use of Channels 5 and 6 by AM stations where there are TV stations also using these channels, BMC developed a software program which demonstrates that AM stations can share this spectrum with digital TV stations. For example, Station WUOA(DT) operates on Ch.

6 in Birmingham, Alabama. Protecting WUOA's F(50,90) 28 dBu noise limited service contour with a F(50, 10) 13 dBu interfering contour from co-channel radio stations on the Channel 6 spectrum, all AM stations in the Birmingham market can operate on Channel 5 and protect

WUOA. Similar studies show that wherever there is a digital TV Channel 5, all AM stations in

11 There are currently 15 DTV stations on Ch. 5 and 8 DTV stations on Channel 6 nationwide. 5 the market can operate on Channel 6 and wherever there is a digital TV Chanel 6, all AM stations in the market can operate on Channel 5. 12

10. Some commenters have pointed out that receivers are not available and will not necessarily be produced for this service. While FM receivers do not (as sold in the US) tune to the frequencies we have proposed, because they are immediately adjacent and below the existing

FM frequencies, tuners can be easily modified by manufacturers to extend down to these frequencies. Tuners currently manufactured for Japan receive the lower FM frequencies spanning

Channels 5 and 6.

11. Moving AM stations to operate digitally on Channels 5 and 6 will have the desired result of increasing demand for FM HD receivers. When AM stations migrate to FM frequencies in digital, consumers who may have abandoned the AM band will see these new stations as more appealing, with far better audio quality than AM and with exciting new features.

This will drive the sale of new digital receivers to pick up the "new" stations. Once the digital signal processor (DSP) circuits are installed in receivers, digital reception of virtually any digital station should be possible by modifying the radio's software, whether HD IBOC or all-digital on

Channels 5 and 6.

12. Adding microprocessors to new receivers will also allow additional functionality.

BMC is proposing that radio services on Channels 5 and 6 share frequencies with the few TV stations that have chosen to continue operating on those channels. The new digital receivers will be able to pick up the relocated AM stations by taking of advantage of "Smart Radio" technology. This technology, also called "Software Defined Radios" has been encouraged by the

FCC. In ET Docket 03-108; FCC 05-57, Facilitating Opportunities for Flexible, Efficient, and

12 BMC would be pleased to share its methodology and studies with Commission staff upon request. 6 Reliable Spectrum Use Employing Cognitive Radio Technologies 13 the Commission amended 47

CFR Parts 0,2, and 15 to implement rules which encourage the use of software defined radios. In paragraph 5, the Commission stated:

An accelerating trend in radio technologies has been the use of software in radios to define their transmission characteristics. The incorporation of cognitive radio technologies to allow the more efficient use of spectrum is also becoming increasingly common. As demonstrated in this and earlier proceedings, this Commission has a continuing commitment to recognize these important new technologies and make any necessary changes to its rules and processes to facilitate their development in the public interest.

BMC believes that by incorporating the very simple function of adaptive modulation analysis, new receivers can be manufactured which will allow the sharing of Channels 5 and 6 between digital television and radio services to maximize the use of these frequencies and thus advance the Commission's goal to more efficiently use spectrum and to develop this type of receiver in the public interest.

13. Other commenters have focused on the fact that the proposal calls for the AM stations to operate in the digital rather than analog mode when they migrate to Channels 5 and 6.

But since new receivers would be needed anyway, there is no reason to have the stations start out as analog and then change to digital in the new spectrum and then new receivers would be required again. Besides, the lesser bandwidth needed for digital allows twice as many AM stations to convert to the new spectrum.

14. While it is not known how many digital TV stations will choose to occupy

Channel 5 and 6 after the repacking and incentive auction proceedings are concluded and how long such a transitional period will take, the sharing arrangement could begin to take place with the TV stations now occupying Channels 5 and 6. BMC's proposal is designed as a long term solution and a meaningful goal for AM broadcasters who need to know there is some hope for

13 20 FCC Red 5486 (2005). 7 the future. The Commission's proposals are short term fixes and (except for the window filing for FM translators which, as discussed above, does not revitalize the AM band) are not of assistance to the great majority of AM stations that are remaining at their current site. The

Commission needs to take a bold and dramatic approach to the AM service and recognize as other countries are doing, that the future is not bright for most AM stations unless the service is truly revitalized.

Respectfully submitted,

BROADCAST MAXIMIZATION COMMITTEE

/1/dA/tf;p MfkN. Lipp i/(/ Paul H. Reynolds Bertram Goldman John J. Mullaney Joseph Davis, P.E. Clarence Beverage Laura Mizrahi Lee S. Reynolds Alex Welsh January 21, 2014

8 EXHIBIT 1

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Brazil Broadcasters Push AM Migration

Carlos Eduardo Behrensdorf, 11/05/2013

The U.S. radio industry is not the only one exploring ways to help AM broadcasters.

Brazil radio observers expect their government to publish a decree in November detailing an optional migration process for AM radio to the FM band. In cities where the FM spectrum can't accommodate new channels, it will be necessary to extend the spectrum using television Channels5 and 6. ABERT President Daniel Slaviero Brazil -the largest country in South America and home to the world's fifth-largest population - has about 1,800 AM stations.

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff okayed the migration concept in June, and the Ministry of Communications formulated an outline this summer and early fall. Rousseff was expected to sign off on the actual plan in November.

As we've reported, Brazil sought to settle the AM migration issue before deciding on a digital radio standard or standards for shortwave, AM and FM. In pursuing this plan, the nation follows partially in the footsteps of Mexico, which approved a voluntary AM migration plan this year. Approximately 540 AMs there plan to migrate to FM.

Daniel Slaviero, president of the Brazilian Association of Radio and Television Broadcasters (ABERT), talked with RWI freelancer Carlos Eduardo Behrensdorf about what led to the AM migration decision and how the moves would proceed.

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RW: What do proponents say are the advantages of migration?

Slaviero: ABERT and the state associations of broadcasters view the migration as critical to the future of AM radio. On the FM band, [AM] broadcasters will gain transmission quality. Being located in a lower position in the spectrum, the AM band is very susceptible to noise and interference, which increases with the urbanization. Also, the mechanical noise caused by electrical networks and factories, for example, generates spectral "noise" in the frequency bands, and AM radio is the first to be affected, followed by shortwave. The interference also affects other bands used for broadcasting, but with less intensity.

The migration will also enable broadcasters to get better integrated in the current context of technological convergence. The technical characteristics of signal reception, especially the need to use large antennas to capture the signal, have hindered the reach of AM radio. For example, cell phones have FM reception. But many vehicles leave the factory already without a medium-wave receiver.

RW: How many broadcasters would move and what is the timeframe?

Slaviero: Since the migration is optional and costly, we don't have a ballpark figure of how many broadcasters will move. The government estimates that the decree, containing the rules for the reallocation, will be published this month. Therefore, the migration could be expected to begin in early 2014. In small towns where there is space on the dial, the AM stations will immediately move to frequency modulation. But in large cities, where the spectrum is crowded, it will be necessary to extend the spectrum of the FM band to television Channels 5 and 6. In this case, the migration will take place gradually as these channels get released after the analog television signal is turned off, which will occur between 2015 and 2018.

RW: Who conceived and led this effort and how did they win the support of broadcasters?

Slaviero: Given the problems that AM radio faces, ABERT and the state broadcasting entities agreed that the best solution for the AM is migration. We proposed the migration to the government, which is now responding favorably to the petition of the broadcasting industry.

RW: Was migration a contentious issue?

Slaviero: No. There is a consensus that the most important thing is to rescue the AM radio and to ensure the provision of services, with more quality to the listeners. The migration will strengthen the radio industry as new media emerge and begin to take away attention from the traditional media.

RW: How will AM stations pay for the costs of the transition? Is the government offering a subsidy?

Slaviero: The government is not offering a subsidy. ABERT supports access to financing options, but we have not gotten a reply from the government regarding this issue yet. There is a clear indication that the broadcasters will have to pay the price difference between the basic AM or FM license, established according to the station power, coverage area, etc. We are talking about the minimum cost of the license, set in the previous ordinance.

RW: Besides cost, what other obstacles will individual stations face?

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Slaviero: The broadcasters will have to pay for the costs incurred from any technological change. Basically the stations will need to invest in order to adapt their transmission systems.

RW: Are there sufficient receivers in the marketplace for stations to be heard? Will there be a campaign to expand the number of FM receivers capable of receiving these stations?

Slaviero: In the cities where there is no need to expand the dial, listeners will receive the signal in their current receiver. On the other hand, in cities where the television Channels 5 and 6 will be used, it will be necessary to increase the number of receivers. There are already receivers in the market capable of receiving the signal. Some new equipment will only require a software upgrade- for example, some new cell phones. This will be a gradual change and the manufacturers will have to adapt to the frequency spectrum. That's why there will be a simulcasting period when broadcasters will operate in AM and FM simultaneously.

RW: What will happen to the vacated AM spectrum?

Slaviero: The vacated spectrum will be returned to the government and they will conduct the appropriate research on new uses for the band. But since the migration is optional, and not all broadcasters will make the transition, this spectrum will continue to be used for the AM band.

RW: For countries that may be considering such a migration, what do broadcasters and regulators need to know or be aware of?

Slaviero: It is crucial to examine the regulations and to talk extensively about the issue with every party involved. You should be aware that the FM spectrum may not be sufficient to accommodate the migration, so it will be necessary to make some changes, as is the case of Brazil, which will extend the range of frequency modulation to the TV Channels 5 and 6.

In Mexico, for example, the migration took place only in the cities where it was possible to do it on the dial. In the cities where there was no space, the change was not implemented and they have no plans for the near future. We can say that in Mexico only one part of the process was finished.

RW: Would you like to add anything else?

Slaviero: Hopefully this semester the Congress will review the government's proposal and will publish a law.

The migration is very important for Brazilian radio. We are [talking about] a robust market, with more than 4,500 commercial radio stations- from these, 1,800 are AMs- and 200 million conventional receivers.

Radio in Brazil reaches approximately 50 million households (88.9 percent) and, contrary to what one might think, its presence in day-to-day lives grows, favored by the Internet and various devices such as computers, cell phones, iPods, MP4s and tablets. These devices are helping to expand the reach of radio, which now can be heard in new ways. Once the quality of the sound and the scope of the reach are guaranteed, our stations should constantly strive to improve their content and therefore maintain the relevance of the media.

http://www.radioworld.com/printarticle.aspx?articleid=222 179 11/7/2013